Sportscars, Electrics, Hybrids and Luxury… What have these features in common? Typically you will find some combination of these aspects in cars anywhere on the spectrum. But the 2019 Porsche Cayenne E-Hybrid just might do it all. The Cayenne was Porsche’s first foray into the financially sensible SUV market, sensible for the manufacturer of course. The first Cayenne was, if anything, a bit of a disappointment as a Porsche, neither here nor there, a very confused creature. Sixteen years later, however, the ever-increasing competitiveness of the market moulded and pushed the Cayenne to what you see now. What it perhaps was meant to be in the first place. In 2019, we are shown off the Cayenne E-Hybrid, a fresh, impressive-looking soft-roader which, as opposed to its ancestor that was, well… it wasn’t the best looking thing on four wheels. This is all thanks to the immense research the boffins at Porsche poured into making sure the hybrid drivetrain of the Cayenne would leave you with little to no doubt you’re driving a Porsche.
Engine:
3.0 litre V6 turbo + electric motor, AWD, 455bhp, 700 Nm
Fuel Economy:
36km/l + 32 km EV range
Weight:
2,295kg
Interior advances are more pronounced than ever. Columns of buttons from generations past have been replaced with a flat, glass panel on the centre console complete with haptic feedback, doing away with the visual clutter caused by the number of button functions required in a vehicle as well-appointed as the Cayenne. Front, rear and luggage space is plentiful and also features rear height control from inside the boot for your loading convenience.
The word ‘Hybrid’ typically brings to mind ideas of slow, fuel-saving eco-boxes, but here, Porsche took what it knows best, in terms of what is possible when a petrol engine and an electric motor can do when combined and brings you a face-shifting SUV that can also bring you up to 36 kilometres to the litre, and pop around to Mum’s for some tea and ginger biscuits. And let’s not forget it’s capable of running fully electric as well.
When it isn’t in full electric, however, and the joyful little ‘Sport Chrono’ toggle is in full mental model (i.e. Sport Plus), its relentless, blistering pace truly belies its dimensions and very purpose. 456BHP and 700Nm were numbers reserved for the upper echelons of supercars not too long ago. Now you can share it with the kids… and a dog. What a time to be alive. All this with CO2 emissions of less than 80g/km. Technology.
So, what do we think then? It isn’t cheap, that’s for sure. But what you get for your money is a family carrier capable of proper sports car thrills complete with enough acronyms, standard and optional, to exhaust the alphabet. If you’re in the market for an SUV but dislike the handling-wrecking higher centre of gravity, give the Cayenne a shot. Remember – Porsche placed an engine behind a rear axle and turned it into the world-beating 911. Those Germans, they know what they’re doing.