Porsche's newCayenne will go on sale next year with updated styling, a more powerful range of engines, and an advanced roll stability control system.

Porsche released these pictures and details of the Cayenne, saying that the new Cayenne is more distinctive now, four years after its debut. The front end gets narrower headlamps and projector-beam headlights on the Cayenne and Cayenne S models (Turbos get xenon dynamic-cornering headlamps). New air intakes and an egg-crate grille blend into more pronounced fenders.

All Cayenne engines for the 2008 mode year offer direct injection. The new 3.6-liter V-6 found in the base car has 290 bhp, an increase of 40. Porsche promises 0-62 mph times of 8.1 seconds, a second quicker than before, and a top speed of 141 mph, up 8 mph from the previous V-6 Cayenne.

The Cayenne S, meanwhile, gets a new 4.8-liter V-8 with Variocam Plus valve control and puts out 385 bhp, up 45 from the previous V-8. The 0-60 mph run now takes 6.6 seconds, faster by 0.2 seconds, and the S will reach a top speed of 157 mph, up from 150 mph.

The Cayenne Turbo adds twin turbos to the V-8 engine for 500 bhp, with a 0-60 mph time of 5.1 seconds and a top speed of 171 mph - down a half-second and up 6 mph from the previous Turbo.

All Cayenne models get stability control, with roll stability control programmed in as an option. Stability and traction control are standard, along with anti-lock brakes. And European Turbo models get a sort of LoJack system, based on GPS, that will not allow the car to start unless an electronic card is present.

Pricing ranges from $43,400 for the Cayenne, to $57,900 for the S, to $93,700 for the Turbo.

Who would have guessed, lo those five years ago, that Porsche would have a hit with its large SUV?



Not many people were enthusiastic about the Cayenne, as it would be named, when Porsche announced plans to build it and sell it alongside the iconic 911. But the critics may have been right in some respects, they have been proven wrong in sales. Porsche has sold nearly 150,000 Cayennes since it came on the market in August 2002. And today, forty percent of Porsche's sales are Cayennes.



In Detroit earlier this year, a revamped Cayenne was unveiled. TheCarConnection drove it recently in the south of Spain, and found the updates to the SUV worthwhile.



The Cayenne's most visible change is its new nose, taillights, and its new extended roof spoiler. The facelift gives it an updated look and improves aerodynamics too-the sport-ute's drag coefficient has fallen from 0.38 (V-6) and 0.39 (V-8 models) to 0.35 for all three 2008 models.



Directly injected



New engines and a new anti-roll stability control system have also been added. Porsche has upgraded the Cayenne's engines with direct fuel injection for increased power and torque and for better fuel economy and less exhaust emissions.



As before, the base Cayenne (about $43,300 in the U.S.) has a V-6, but its displacement has been increased from 3.2 to 3.6 liters. Power and torque have increased to 290 hp and 283 lb-ft for better performance, and acceleration from 0-60 mph has dropped from 9.0 to 8.1 seconds. Porsche says the V-6 Cayenne's top speed is up from 133 mph to 141 mph, too.



The 4.5-liter V-8 in the $57,900 Cayenne S has been replaced by a new 4.8-liter variant with 385 hp and 369 lb-ft of torque. With this engine-equipped with VarioCam Plus Valve Management-the S reaches 60 mph in 6.5 seconds and a top speed of 156 mph.

The Cayenne Turbo ($93,700) returns with a twin-turbo version of that V-8. This SUV needs only 4.9 seconds for the sprint to 60 mph and reaches a top speed of 171 mph. Even though the performance is improved, Porsche says that the fuel consumption is down up to 8 percent for the average European cycle.



Porsche's new active anti-roll system, which can be combined with the optional Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM, $2,990), is combined with an air suspension. Porsche calls its new system PDCC-Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control-and has priced it from $3,510 on all models. It adds active anti-roll bars that reduce body roll and improve off-road grip.



Rolling, rolling, not rolling



During our first drive with the new Cayennes, the new engines shone. But the PDCC system stood out the most. Body roll is greatly reduced-so much, that you easily forget you are driving a large, 5,000-pound heavy SUV.



We also liked the base Cayenne with the upgraded V-6 engine this time around. It's powerful enough and agile and offers most of its torque between 2,000 and 4,000 rpm. Like the Cayenne S, the base model comes standard with a six-speed stick shift. The V-8 bi-turbo is teamed to the Tiptronic six-speed automatic, which is available as an option for the other two models.



The new Cayenne and Cayenne S come standard with H7 headlights with projection technology, where the light beam is projected directly to the road ahead and not via a reflector or lens. The Cayenne Turbo gets bi-xenon headlights with dynamic curve lights. The new Cayennes also get LED rear lights and brake lights. The latter are activated in 0.1 milliseconds, giving drivers behind the car more time to react, Porsche claims.



Standard features include an alarm system, tinted heat-insulating glass, air conditioning, electric windows and front power seats. Options include an automatic tailgate, the Panorama Roof system, Porsche's multimedia package and a Bose sound system with rear seat entertainment (both standard on the Turbo), as well as an off-road anti-lock braking system and Trailer Stability Control.



2008 Porsche Cayenne

Base price: $43,300 (V-6)

Engine: 3.6-liter V-6, 290 hp/283 lb-ft
Transmission: Six-speed manual, all-wheel drive
Length x width x height: 188.9 x 75.9 x 66.9 in
Wheelbase: 112.4 in

Curb weight: 4,763 lb
Fuel economy (EPA cty/hwy): N/A

Safety equipment: Dual front, side and curtain airbags; anti-lock brakes, stability and traction control

Major standard features: Air conditioning; power windows, mirrors and locks; electric rear defroster; anti-theft system

Warranty: Four years/50,000 miles

Greenpeace's timing couldn't have been more laughable. We're gathered behind the security gates of Porsche's Weissach technical center, part of a select group getting an in-depth look at running prototypes of the Porsche Cayenne Hybrid.

Meanwhile, a few dozen kilometers away in Zuffenhausen, protesters are brandishing signs and screaming "Climate Pigs!" in the faces of bemused Porsche executives. Apparently the pickets don't know that Porsche sports cars are considerably more fuel-efficient than the cars they compete with. And they must not realize how close Porsche engineers are to releasing hybrid technology into the market in not one, but two cars: the Porsche Cayenne sport-utility and the Porsche Panamera sedan.

For several years, Porsche has been researching hybrid powertrains with VW and Audi, studying the technology with an eye toward improved fuel-efficiency and greenhouse gas reduction. In 2005, work began in earnest on a production-ready Porsche Cayenne Hybrid.

Strong, Yet Simple
One of Porsche's primary aims has been the creation of a so-called "full" or "strong" hybrid (the terminology is evolving with the technology), with enough capacity to propel the car electrically with the gasoline engine turned off. The Porsche engineers have also sought to utilize as much of the original Cayenne as possible in order to preserve essential Porsche driving characteristics, reduce complexity and keep development costs down.

To these ends, Porsche started with the base-model Cayenne with its direct-injected, 290-horsepower 3.6-liter V6 and six-speed Tiptronic automatic transmission. The newly redesigned engine's narrow vee-angle of 10.6 degrees leaves sufficient room under the hood for Porsche's sizable "Hybrid Manager" electronics module and power inverter.

The V6 engine sits in the standard location, but the transmission has been scooted back almost 5 inches. The resultant gap has been filled by a 51-hp (38 kW) three-phase electric motor-generator (MG), the output of which has been largely determined by the space available for the nickel-metal hydride (NI-MH) battery pack. A fully reinforced "crash box" containing 240 battery cells that put out a combined 288 volts DC is firmly mounted under the cargo floor where the spare tire usually sits.

The Critical Difference
This layout is conceptually similar to that of the 2007 Honda Civic Hybrid, which also sandwiches its MG between the internal combustion engine (ICE) and the transmission. The drawback to Honda's approach is that the electric motor and engine are always connected. Even when fuel to the engine is cut during electric-only operation, the crankshaft and pistons continue to spin, creating friction and sapping power.

Porsche solves this by placing a computer-controlled "disengagement clutch" between the motor-generator and the V6 engine, allowing the ICE to be entirely disconnected and shut down during electric drive mode. When the engine is required to accelerate the car or recharge the battery, engagement shock is mitigated by careful control of the clutch and the automatic transmission's torque converter.

The Porsche solution's only significant limitation is its inability to operate the electric motor and ICE at different rpm and blend them to maximize fuel economy. It also cannot propel the vehicle on electricity while the ICE charges batteries. To do these things, a Toyota-like system featuring a second MG and a continuously variable transmission is needed, and Porsche rejected this approach for reasons of cost and complexity.

Riding Impressions
Porsche didn't let us drive the Cayenne Hybrid at its Weissach proving ground, but we did go for a brief ride. Our driver told us that a fully charged battery can propel the Cayenne in electric mode up to about 30-35 mph. Indeed our ride stayed all-electric as we wound our way through the Weissach campus at low speed. When coasting, the ICE can remain off at speeds up to 75 mph.

Mashing the throttle results in a seamless leap of acceleration, and there's no perceptible delay as the gasoline engine fires up. Start/stop events at intersections and while coasting down hills are accomplished without a stutter, too. But since we weren't at the wheel ourselves, we suspect that the driver can sense momentary discontinuities in the operation of the powertrain and regenerative brakes that the passenger cannot. Porsche didn't confirm or deny this, saying instead that more fine-tuning of the system is needed.

We were permitted to "drive" a Cayenne Hybrid on a dynamometer programmed to duplicate a small portion of the test loop used to determine European fuel-economy ratings. It was impossible to determine much in such a lab setting (don't touch the steering wheel!), but the benefits of staying in e-mode for as long as possible were easily seen. Driver 1 had a full charge and achieved 28 mpg, but Driver 2 started with only 50 percent in the electric "tank" and achieved only 20 mpg, as the engine was more often needed to propel the car and recharge batteries.

Porsche engineers say that they have produced 24.4 mpg on the U.S. "FTP" city test (one of five tests used to determine EPA fuel-economy ratings), and this represents a 36 percent increase over the standard Cayenne V6. This increase suggests that the Cayenne Hybrid's city rating could rise from 14 mpg to 19 mpg. And Porsche is still tweaking the system for better performance.

Secondary Systems
All hybrids must have regenerative braking capability, as this is the primary source of the electrical energy required to recharge the batteries. In the Porsche hybrid system, the Cayenne's all-wheel-drive system is particularly advantageous, as the participation of all four wheels makes the recharge effort more fruitful and also provides an improved measure of dynamic stability during deceleration. The Cayenne's conventional braking system carries over intact, so performance in demanding real-world situations should be as good as ever.

Making a Cayenne drivable when the engine is switched off naturally requires some careful modifications. The brakes retain their vacuum booster, so an electric vacuum pump is needed. Porsche's standards for steering performance led hybrid engineers to reject electric-only steering assist, so another electric pump develops hydraulic assist for the Cayenne's standard ZF steering rack. The air-conditioning compressor and an oil circulation pump for the automatic transmission have been electrified as well. Low rolling resistance tires are being considered.

Coming Soon, but When?
Work continues on Porsche's hybrid system, as the engineers seek improved durability and refinement. In its current state of development, the Cayenne Hybrid is packing about 250 pounds of additional weight.

Porsche is not ready to give us answers to our "When?" and "How much?" questions. It would only say that the Cayenne Hybrid will hit the market "before the end of the decade," adding that the "USA has the highest hybrid sales potential."

Porsche continues working on a parallel path toward lithium-ion batteries for their hybrids, but admits we won't see results until after 2010. When lithium batteries are ready, a battery pack of the same size as the current one will provide 74 hp (55 kW) of electric propulsion — enabling another huge step forward in overall efficiency.

The Porsche Cayenne Hybrid seems just about ready for prime time, but we have yet to see how much Porsche-ness remains in the driving experience. Greenpeace's Climate Pig slur notwithstanding, Porsche is dedicated to coming to market with the real thing.

Cayenne SUV Gets Sports Car Upgrades

ATLANTA, SEPTEMBER 7, 2007 - Porsche underlines the real sporty edge of its successful Cayenne series with the addition of a new model to be unveiled at the Frankfurt International Auto Show next week and going on sale in 2008: the Cayenne GTS boasts a specially developed chassis with permanent all-wheel drive, a V8 engine that offers a sizeable increase in horsepower and for the first time in North America will be available with a six-speed manual transmission.

With its lowered body, the new Cayenne GTS reveals a distinctive front and rear look combined with striking wheel-arch extensions that provide plenty of space for the standard 21-inch alloy rims with 295/35 R21 tires. Redesigned front and rear seats reflect the sportier personality of the new model. Two new paint finishes will be introduced with the Cayenne GTS: Nordic Gold Metallic and GTS Red.

In the United States and Canada the Cayenne GTS will come with Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM), an electronically controlled damping system and complete with air suspension as standard.

The 2009 Cayenne GTS is scheduled to make its North American debut in March of 2008 at a U.S. price of $69,300.

Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, Stuttgart, has extended its third model line by the addition of the top of the range Cayenne Turbo S. The Turbo S, the most powerful Cayenne of them all, is driven by a 4.8 liter V8 engine with twin turbo forced induction, delivering 550 hp (404 kW).

The Turbo S is Porsche’s response to the wishes of its customers. There is huge demand, especially in the new emerging markets of Eastern Europe and Asia, for exclusive sports-style SUVs with top quality physical handling dynamics. Despite the fact that Porsche has managed to give the new Turbo S even better drive performance than the regular Turbo model (500 hp / 368 kW), the fuel efficiency figures for the Turbo S are exactly the same as those for the Cayenne Turbo (as per the calculation methods stipulated under the New European Operating Cycle – NEFZ).

From the outside, the Turbo S can be recognized by its 21 inch SportPlus alloy wheels housed within its painted wheel arches and by a sports exhaust system with four tail pipes made from aluminum investment casting. The air intake grills and wheel arches are painted the same color as the car body. The new understated yet elegant “lava gray metallic” paint option is exclusive to the Turbo S.

All models of the Turbo S have a chassis which benefits from air suspension, not to mention suspension leveling and ride-height control, along with Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM), which – once again as standard – is combined with Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control (PDCC) and Servotronic speed-sensitive variable power steering.

With the introduction of the Porsche Ceramic Composite Brake (PCCB) as an option, Porsche underscores its leading position as a provider of ultra durable brake disks made from carbon fiber ceramic composite. When the 2009 range is introduced, this high tech brake disk – originally developed for the motor sport sector – will become available for the first time in a sector other than the sports car sector, namely in the elite, top quality physical handling SUV sector. The front axle ceramic disks are 410 mm in diameter, whereas the rear axle disks are 370 mm in diameter. Deceleration takes place via six-piston calipers at the front and four-piston calipers at the rear. The PCCB is available as an option on other Cayenne models such as the Cayenne S, GTS and Turbo, subject to wheel sizes of at least 20 inches.

The high quality character of the new Cayenne top-of-the range Turbo S is emphasized by the standard equipment of the interior, the front sports seat with Comfort Memory Package, rear seating with individual seat contours, aluminum door panels showing the name plate together with leather upholstery in two exclusive dual-color combinations (black / Havana and black / steel gray) plus a leather steering wheel with padded center.

The latest generation of Porsche Communication Multimedia System Management (PCM) inclusive of navigation module with hard drive provides a full range of new, easily accessed functions actuated via a touch-screen. As with all other Cayenne models, the Cayenne Turbo S also comes with the option of voice actuation with full word recognition for navigation system destinations, universal audio interface (with MP3 connection), cell phone link-up via Bluetooth and a TV module for both analog and digital terrestrial signals. Offered as standard, the BOSE® Surround Sound System with 14 speakers features enhanced 410 Watt output and is now capable of reproducing music from audio and video DVDs in 5.1 Discrete Surround Format.

The Turbo S’s enhanced performance relative to that of the regular Turbo model is due to its modified exhaust system and improvements in engine control. In addition to the performance improvements, there has also been an increase in maximum torque by 50 Nm to 750 Nm within an engine speed range of 2,250 rpm to 4,500 rpm.

The Porsche Cayenne Turbo S can accelerate from zero to 100 km/h in 4.8 seconds and its top speed is 280 km/h. The Turbo S will be introduced into the market as from August 2008. The international basis price is EUR 111,400.

Stuttgart. The Executive Board at Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, Stuttgart, has given the go-ahead: from February 2009, the sports car manufacturer will offer a Cayenne with a diesel engine and thus extend its range of drives for the sporty all-terrain vehicle further, once again. This decision was taken in response to changed legal regulations especially in European markets, resulting in tax incentives for vehicles with diesel engines. Furthermore, Porsche's stake in the Volkswagen Group, the world’s largest manufacturer of modern diesel engines for passenger cars, has opened up new opportunities to utilise diesel technology.

Porsche will equip the Cayenne with a three-litre V6 turbo diesel engine with 240 hp (176 kW) supplied by Audi AG, a subsidiary of the VW Group. The average consumption of the Cayenne Diesel is 9.3 litres per 100 kilometres, with CO2 at 244 grams per kilometre. The spontaneous throttle response and the high torque characteristics of this diesel engine deliver the required performance levels for a sporty all-terrain vehicle such as the Cayenne. The substantial torque of a maximum of 550 Newton metres complements the sporty chassis dynamics and provides a high degree of control to offer driving enjoyment that is typical of Porsche.

In response to customer demand, the new Cayenne model will initially be offered in Europe. Preparations for market introduction in other countries are underway.

The Porsche Executive Board is confident that it will maintain the long term market success of the Cayenne series in the long term with the low-consumption V6 turbo diesel. In the last financial year 2007/08, 45,478 units of this series (which currently incorporates five different models) were sold - more than ever before in a financial year.

With the introduction of the Cayenne Diesel, Porsche is consistently continuing its commitment to reduce fuel consumption. As early as Spring 2007, the sports car manufacturer had equipped the new generation of the Cayenne series with engines with petrol direct injection that consume up to 15 percent less fuel in real-world driving conditions. Since the summer of 2008, Porsche has also offered the most recent generation of the 911 series with direct-injection petrol engines. The sports car manufacturer is also working on another Cayenne variant with hybrid drive that will consume less than nine litres of fuel per 100 kilometres and will be launched onto the market at the end of the decade.

The new Cayenne with diesel drive will be available from dealers from February 2009 onwards. Equipped with the proven Tiptronic-S automatic gearbox as standard, the Euro base price will be EUR 47,250. In Germany, the Cayenne with diesel engine including 19 percent VAT and country-specific equipment costs EUR 56,436.

Introducing an exclusive series of models to be produced only in a limited edition, Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, Stuttgart, is expanding its successful range of SUVs: Production of the Cayenne GTS Porsche Design Edition 3 with its exclusive features will be limited to just one thousand numbered units.

With this new model, the Cayenne is continuing the innovative design line already initiated successfully with the Cayman S Porsche Design Edition 1 and the Boxster S Porsche Design Edition 2. The clear handwriting of the Porsche Design Studio based in Zell am See, Austria, one of the world leaders in industrial and product design, comes out clearly from the start in the choice of the Cayenne’s paintwork colour, Lava Grey Metallic emphasising the sporting and purist look of the car, design stripes at the side and on the engine compartment lid highlighting the exclusive origin of this very special Cayenne. The 21-inch SportPlus wheels featured as standard are also finished in this special exterior colour.

The elegant look of this new model is rounded off by bi-xenon headlights featured as standard as well as dark privacy glazing to the rear of the B-pillar and the “Cayenne GTS“ model designation in black with a red “S” at the rear. An extended roof spoiler with its double wing profile fixed in position is available at no extra cost.

Exclusive black leather upholstery with red contrasting seams on the instrument panel and doorsills further enhances the appealing looks of the 405-hp Cayenne GTS Porsche Design Edition 3. The padded three-spoke multifunction steering wheel, in turn, raises the car’s unique sporting character to an even higher level.

Electrically adjustable sports seats with a comfort memory package and high-rising side supports offer the driver and front passenger optimum seating comfort and very good support at the sides. The front headrests proudly boast an embossed Porsche logo, the centre seat sections front and rear are finished in slip-proof alcantara. The same material gives parts of the centre console and door linings as well as the inner sections of the door handles and the complete roof lining a discreet but sophisticated touch of class and elegance, while carbon trim bars bear clear and convincing reference to motorsport. The Porsche Design Edition 3 model designation, finally, stands out clearly on the rev counter, the front door entry trim and the placard in the glove compartment with the serial number of the vehicle embossed on the surface.

The unique experience in sound so typical of a Porsche comes, first, at the touch of a button from the sports exhaust system featured as standard and, second, from the Bose 5.1 Surround Sound System with no less than 14 loudspeakers and overall output of 410 W.

Not only this kind of sound, but also the outstanding performance of this special model with its 4.8-litre 500 Nm (369 lb-ft) V8 arouses particular emotions. On the road, this means acceleration from a standstill to 100 km/h with six-speed Tiptronic S featured as standard in the Cayenne GTS Porsche Design Edition 3 in just 6.5 seconds, as well as top speed of 251 km/h or 156 mph.

By tradition, every Porsche Design Edition comes as standard with unique Porsche Design accessories. The Porsche Design Chronograph exclusively matching each model, for example, stands for particular class and style. In the case of the Porsche Design Edition 3, the Porsche Design Studio has created a Type P’6612 automatic chronograph featuring a light titanium casing measuring 42 millimetres in diameter and further enhanced by a metal strap with DLC (diamond-like carbon) coating. This special coating carried over from racing engines gives the titanium body of the watch its characteristic colour, while the exclusive face of the chronograph takes up striking design features from the interior of the Cayenne.

Another perfect match for this very special vehicle is the four-piece luggage set bearing the Porsche Design Edition 3 label and made up of three trolley cases varying in size as well as a functional briefcase. With the exception of the largest trolley case – offering a capacity of 62 litres – all items may be used on aircraft as carry-on travel baggage.

The market launch of the Cayenne GTS Porsche Design Edition 3 in Germany starts at the end of May. The base price in the Euro area including the chronograph and the complete set of cases is Euro 79,100.-, the retail price in Germany including 19 per cent value-added tax and national specifications is Euro 94,344.-.