2019 Porsche Cayenne Review

The Cayenne accelerates without effort, swifter than you'd think possible of a 4,700-pound SUV. It's not a pin-you-to-your-seat kind of speed, but rather steady and robust for passing and a raging gallop when you really need it. Flooring the pedal from a stop produces some lag, but the Cayenne still makes the 0-60 mph sprint in 5.3 seconds.

The pedal feels firm, but the pedal action is longer than we'd expect of a Porsche. It also doesn't transmit much feel, so it takes a bit of familiarization before you can accurately judge your input. Our test sample executed a panic stop from 60 mph in just 106 feet at our track, an impressively short distance for a large SUV, even if it was aided by expensive optional tires.

The steering is almost unnecessarily heavy and resistant at lower speeds, but that's part of the bargain with Porsche. Some drivers will like it. We think it's heavy for heavy's sake, especially in what is essentially a family SUV. The effort and feedback make a lot more sense on a winding stretch of road, where the steering imparts a keen sense of control.

The optional wide (and expensive) tires skew the performance here, but the Cayenne's inherent balance is remarkable. This Porsche is the kind of SUV where you can pick a line through a curve and continue to coax power from the throttle without inducing any noticeable body roll. It's about as controlled as it gets.

The throttle feels well-calibrated. It's easy to dial in precise amounts of speed and just as easy to back off without the transmission getting jumpy. Selectable drive modes are offered, but you'll only ever need Sport on the street. (Comfort is comparatively dull and Sport Plus is high-strung.)

The adjustable chassis height and four terrain modes that optimize traction and throttle settings give the Cayenne legitimate off-road ability absent in many of its rivals. And that's before you factor in standard all-wheel drive and up to 9.4 inches of ground clearance from the optional air suspension. It's not a Jeep, but this optional package makes it more capable than its direct rivals.

The seats are a fairly generic shape but quite comfortable with firm cushioning, moderate thigh bolstering and thigh extenders. Some of our test drivers, however, wished for more lateral support under hard cornering. Lumbar support can get pretty aggressive if you need it to.

The air suspension absorbs bumps with quick, tight compression. The ride is firm but not hard, jarring or shaky. It's more like tight and controlled. Its quickness and responsiveness soak up road rash, too. Porsche expertly manages the trick of combining the sort of firm, controlled ride that conveys sportiness with excellent comfort.

There's a bit more ruckus than you might expect of a Porsche, mostly wind noise, followed by white noise fizz from the road. However, it's not enough to impede a conversation at normal voice levels, and it's negated somewhat by the satisfying engine and exhaust noise. The suspension keeps things nicely damped despite the huge wheels, with not much vibration.

The airflow is surprisingly weak at lower settings, but cranking up the fan speed also cranks up the fan noise. This system does not move a lot of air otherwise, but it cools the cabin nicely. A set point of 75 degrees actually feels a bit on the cool side. Seat heaters are a stand-alone option ($530) and work quickly.

The center console buttons and functions have haptic feedback. The knurled dials, rocker and roller-type controls are nice, but some are placed awkwardly and tightly in front of the gear selector. And these are redundant controls; most drivers will default to the steering wheel controls.

Getting in or out is easy at the vehicle's standard height and even easier when you lower the body via the adjustable suspension. The relatively low seat bolsters make it easy to slide into and out of the seats. The doorsills are narrow enough not to provide an impediment, but the rear seats are perched slightly higher on a raised platform.

There's a wide range of seat adjustment, whether you like to sit low, sports-car style, or perched high in conventional SUV style. The power-adjustable steering column also means anyone can find a comfortable, confident driving position.

The wide, straight and horizontal instrument panel feels almost like the cabin of a small aircraft, but the dashtop is angled down and creates a nice visual space. A broad center console creates some distance between the driver and the passenger. There's plenty of elbow room in front and back and ample rear legroom and headroom, too, even for 6-foot-tall or taller riders.

An expansive windshield and angled dashtop offer a good view of the hood, which in turn gives a good sense of the space around the front side fenders. But the comically thick rear pillars interfere with visibility to the rear sides. And blind-spot monitoring isn't included here either.

Build quality is excellent all around as you might expect from Porsche. The interior handles and surfaces feel rock-solid, and the knobs and switches have a confident heft. Detail worth noting: the window seals. They open and close with a damped quality and tight seal that no doubt helps keep plenty of outside noise at bay.

The center console is large and bulky but not especially roomy. There's enough space for a couple of wallets and phones but not much else. A phone cubby and two cupholders with anti-tip claws sit behind the gear selector, and the door pockets offer molded spaces wide enough for medium-size bottles.

The Cayenne's 60.3 cubic feet of maximum cargo space isn't exceptional — some compact crossovers offer more. But the shape is useful, and the netting helps make use of the wheelwell space. The adjustable air suspension can drop the load height, making it easier to load heavy or bulky items, but it's a pricey option.

Standard Isofix anchors are easy to access at the base of the rear seat cushions but are nicely hidden out of the way behind plastic tabs. The upper anchors are easily located on the rear seatbacks, and there's enough room for large rear-facing seats to fit without impinging on the comfort of front-seat occupants.

Like the last-generation model, this Cayenne can tow up to 7,713 pounds, a pretty stout number for a turbo V6-powered SUV. The hitch package comes with a seven-pin wiring socket and is pre-wired for any electric trailer brake controller you may want to add.

The widescreen 12-inch touchscreen display is excellent, with crisp map colors and graphics and a customizable home screen using drag-and-drop tile icons. Keep microfiber towels on hand, though; finger smudges collect and show up quickly. The standard 10-speaker audio system sounds fine but distorts as volume increases. Serious music lovers will want the optional Bose or Burmester upgrade.

Bluetooth and Apple CarPlay come standard, but Android Auto is still absent. Controlling smartphone features through the Cayenne's native PCM system is easy and seamless enough, though.

The automatic emergency braking comes standard, but most everything else — blind-spot monitoring, lane keeping assist, parking sensors, adaptive cruise — are options. It's unsurprising given Porsche's traditional sales model, but we think that blind-spot warning should come standard given the Cayenne's poor rear-side visibility.

The native system responds well to normal speech patterns, but it offers a fairly narrow range of commands for controlling audio sources, routing navigation or placing calls. The voice button can be held to break through to Siri on an iPhone, but Android users will lament the absence of Android Auto's similarly expansive voice commands.

The base Cayenne is nothing to sneeze at, with plenty of performance coming from its turbocharged 3.0-liter V6 engine (335 horsepower, 332 lb-ft). Nineteen-inch wheels are standard, as are LED headlights, partial leather seats and a 12.4-inch touchscreen, among other features.

The Cayenne S comes with a twin-turbocharged 2.9-liter V6 engine (434 hp, 406 lb-ft), different 19-inch wheels, an adaptive suspension — dubbed Porsche Active Suspension Management, or PASM — tinted taillights and a panoramic roof.

The E-Hybrid is powered by a turbocharged 3.0-liter V6 engine aided by an electric motor (455 hp, 516 lb-ft combined). A plug-in hybrid, the E-Hybrid can drive about 27 miles on all-electric power before the gas engine switches on. It adds PASM and the Sport Chrono package as standard equipment.

The Turbo replaces the V6 engine with a twin-turbo V8 engine (541 hp, 561 lb-ft). Over and above the standard Cayenne, the turbo includes upgraded front sport seats, a panoramic sunroof, adaptive LED headlights, an air suspension with PASM, upgraded brakes, front and rear heated seats, and a 14-speaker Bose audio system.

Many features that come standard on upper trim levels can be ordered as stand-alone options. Indeed, like other Porsches, the Cayenne is one of the most customizable vehicles you can buy.

Then you've got even more choices from a dizzying options list. It starts with two main packages — Premium and Premium Package Plus — and then goes to a huge list of stand-alone choices. All serve to enhance the Cayenne's performance, technology and audio, comfort, safety, and exterior and interior style. All for a price, of course.