Should You Road Trip a Cayenne GTS Coupe With the Lightweight Package?

• What's new: The Cayenne GTS Coupe can now be had with a Lightweight package that ... doesn't save all that much weight.
• Why it matters: It might be bent toward performance, but I wanted to take the opposite approach to see if the Cayenne's all-round balance still shines through. 
• Edmunds says: The Cayenne is so competent you might think any trim can handle any job, but this road trip proved how Porsche's subtle tuning differences between variants really make a difference. 

It's also better built and far nicer than the Macan we owned. I have gone on record saying that vehicle's interior didn't justify its almost $100,000 price tag. The GTS we have here is a hefty $178,820, but frankly, it's nearly worth it. The interior feels tightly bolted together, there are properly luxe materials almost everywhere you look, and the houndstooth pattern on the seats broke up the typically drab gray and black GTS interior theme — it's a very nice place to be. 

However, its on-road credentials are undone slightly by just how loud the cabin can get. Despite being optioned with noise-insulated glass, the Cayenne rarely quieted down. The high-performance Pirelli P Zero Corsas the GTS wore were wrapped around big 22-inch wheels, and the resulting road noise was a constant presence in the cabin. Even though wind noise was well hushed, that thrum did not make for a relaxing time. And that's not all. 

As lovely as it sounds at full bore, the consistent drone from the sport exhaust at 2,000 rpm while driving 75 mph eventually starts to grate. Even if you're in the more sedate exhaust mode, you notice it burbling away in the background. As tempting as it is to go blasting down the highway with loud mode always on, you're going to want to tone it down sometimes, especially if you're willing to attempt eight hours behind its Alcantara-wrapped steering wheel. 

The last, and most surprising drawback is, in fact, that steering wheel. Underneath that layer of technical fabric it is rock hard. If you enjoy cruising with your elbow on the windowsill and the wheel between your index and middle fingers, your hand will eventually get quite sore. It was a quirk of the Cayenne I never noticed in the Macan, and despite being a very marginal note, it's the first time a road trip has ever left me with raw digits. It's worth noting that, even if you opt for the Lightweight Package, you can swap a leather steering wheel that might bring a little relief in this area (it's a small change I recommend making). 

So, should you attempt a road trip in a Cayenne GTS Coupe with the Lightweight package? Probably not. This was an experiment, and one that confirmed Porsche's fine-tuning of its model variants can be more comprehensive than the spec sheet might suggest. A regular Cayenne S or even the Turbo E-Hybrid we tested would likely deliver better, more cosseting 1,000-milers. 

As it stands, the GTS is great for the day-to-day and the occasional backroad blast — heck, you can probably get away with taking it to an autocross now and then. But if long-lasting stretches of highway are in your repertoire, this isn't the Cayenne you should choose. At least, not in Coupe version with these particular options; the standard-body GTS we had last year was more sedate when it came to road, tire, and exhaust noise and that's a car we can't recommend enough. Thankfully, if GTS red isn't to your taste, there are plenty of other Cayennes to pick from.