Car of the week – March 19th – Porsche Cayenne S

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  • The Porsche Cayenne S continues to set the benchmark for prestige vehicles that combine sporty handling with practicality.

    We live in an automotive age when less means more and, depending on which way you look at it, much better engines that now power some of the most desirable cars on the road.

    The V8 has long been king in this part of the world and still has a foothold with many enthusiasts, me included, much preferring the noise they make to that of the smaller six cylinder engines.

    – #Quiz360: WIN a group paintball session at Zayed Sports City

    – Car of the week – March 16th – Lexus NX 200t F Sport

    However, time moves on and manufacturers of performance cars have to fall in line with emission controls and, in many cases, that means downsizing and steering their business towards a new age of twin turbo charged V6 engines.  Thankfully, the V8 is not threatened with extinction just yet but the V6 is finding its way into more high quality cars than ever before.

    One of those is the latest Porsche Cayenne S which is now powered by a new 3.6 litre twin turbo V6 and if you have been a fan of the V8 powered Cayenne you may well turn up your nose at the thought that it has been ditched in the S (the Cayenne turbo still has a V8) for the smaller powerplant. 

    At this point I should point out that I made the mistake of buying one of the very first Porsche Cayennes which had a V6 engine and it was horribly under-powered. I got rid of it after getting tired of being overtaken by teenagers in clapped out Vauxhall Astras.

    However, the Cayenne and engine development have come a long way since those days so I guessed this new V6 would be impressive. 

    Let’s face it, the German marque is hardly likely to downsize its engines if it’s going to put people off buying their SUV and I got the chance to try it out for myself, courtesy of Ali & Sons, Abu Dhabi’s exclusive Porsche dealership. 

    This engine may be smaller but it has 20bhp more than its predecessor’s V8 and much better fuel consumption. 

    Ok, it doesn’t have the deep growl of a V8 but push it and this V6 has a good enough engine note to keep the smile on your face and prevent you bursting into tears at the thought of losing the beloved V8. 

    It has 420bhp, a large helping of torque at 550nm and will get you from 0-100kmh in a nifty 5.5 seconds. But the engine is not the only thing that is new about this latest Cayenne because the whole vehicle has been tweaked and it now looks better than ever.  

    This vehicle has been transformed from the ugly duckling it was at launch in 2002 to, in my humble opinion, the best looking SUV on the road. 

    The front and back have had a facelift to make the vehicle look sharper and more sophisticated. 

    There is a new bonnet, front wings, exterior mirrors with integrated indicators, headlights and modified air intakes. 

    There are daytime running lights with four LED spots and the rear light cluster is also new. Integrated tailpipes and new wheels complete a very classy, muscular appearance.

    The interior hasn’t changed that much because it would be pointless to mess around with a design which was already spectacularly good with the Porsche signature centre console, with all the controls at your fingertips, rising up towards the infotainment touch-screen. 

    Everything is designed around the driver to give the feel of sporty prestige and there is now a fabulous new multi-functional steering wheel inspired by the one used in the 918 Spyder.

    Attention to detail is a Porsche speciality and this interior is comfortable, luxurious, spacious and practical. The instrument cluster and infotainment is classic Porsche and this vehicle is bristling with the latest driver assist technology. 

    This car is a delight to drive with the power being delivered to the all wheel drive system via an excellent eight-speed tiptronic gearbox which adapts to your driving style. There are also paddle-shifts on the steering wheel if you want more direct control although I never really felt the need. It is best driven in sport or sport plus mode, unless you intend to take it offroad which I doubt many will, and it handles impeccably, courtesy of Porsche Traction Management, Dynamic Chassis Control, and Active Suspension Management.  

    The only thing this Cayenne lacks is a V8 and to be honest, you won’t miss it.

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