Astro

Just drove a friends Cayenne(2016) for the first time(his Panamera is in the shop and they gave him one as a loaner). Granted it's a totally different type of car, but I drive SUVs all the time. I can honestly say, while I would consider trading in my 996 for a Panamera, I would never even consider trading it for a Cayenne.

gnat

Any particular reason you are so anti-P!g?

There is actually a lot of overlap between the Cayenne and 996 crowds. It's obviously no 911, but you won't find a better handling SUV out there even without all the goodie options.

Hell, my diesel with zero suspension or performance options hung just fine with the 996s for a day of AutoX. Damn fine vehicle if you treat it like a Porsche.

Dennis C

We put over 140K miles on our first gen Cayenne S. It was a great SUV. Of course it's no 911, but it's great if you need an SUV.

Astro

I had a 2012 Ford Explorer for a few years and honestly I would take that over the Cayenne. Granted the Cayenne had a nice smooth engine, but it was more S than UV.

gnat

That is indeed true. The rake of the D pillar kills the cargo utility (Macao is worse), rear seats that don't fold flat, and non opening hatch glass are all stupid design decisions in my opinion.

Gonzo911

Don't forget the Cayenne also has that pesky IMS problem..:

rpm's S2

Totally confused by the OP's illogical straw man argument. Did someone ask you to trade your 911 for an SUV? These vehicles are apples and oranges.

The Cayenne is a very capable, comfortable, and well built SUV. I've been driving mine in ice and snow the pst three days with compltete confidence. It's no 911, but it is far more enjoyable to drive than any Explorer, MDX, X3, Tribute, Cherokee, or Grand Cherokee - all of which I've owned. And mine is only a base V6... the GTS and TT versions are ridiculous. Nothing that big should go that fast.

Boomvang

You should try my winter ride, a 2015 Subaru Forester XT. It's not a real monster by any means, but its' 250hp and 258 lb of torque let it get out of its own way quite well. I have added decent coil-overs and bigger rear bar, and the handling is much improved over stock. I even have gotten to like the cvt transmission, the XT iteration has three modes which allow either relaxed cruising or fairly aggressive shifting/engine mapping modes. The Cayenne is much more refined, but then it should be considering the cost of admission.

Astro

No problem. Simply putting it out there that if I was to trade my 911 for a larger Porsche, it wouldn't be a Cayenne(but it would be a Panamera).

FRUNKenstein

I bought my wife an older P!g this summer - an '06 S model. She's really hard on cars, so I don't spend a bunch of money on her cars. I learned my lesson with an E55 AMG she destroyed over the course of a year - no major accidents, just constantly doing things like driving across deep drainage ruts and having parking lot fender benders.

Anyhow, she hated it at first and wanted me to buy her another Explorer. Last week I listed the P!g for sale in Craigslist planning to replace it with a 2011 Explorer Limited and she went ballistic. Go figure. I had to sort out a few issues when I first got it, but it's actually now a pretty decent daily driver for her. It cleans up well and I have less than $10k total invested in it. Pretty positive experience thus far.

VivG

If I wanted a larger SUV, P!g would be high on that list (probably at the top, actually). Older ones are damn cheap nowadays. Definitely something to complement a Porsche sports car.

Macan in a couple of years seems like it'd be a fun option too - lot's of depreciation left still though. It's not super useful, I will admit - more a really expensive GTI than a utility vehicle, but that hasn't stopped everyone on (s)*** Hill from buying one apparently. On my 1.3 mile walk home from work, I saw four Macans going up the hill in a six block span (plus a Cayman and two 911s - an SC and a 996.1 cab).

Kris Murphy

I have a 2004 Cayenne S. Bought it 3 years ago with 80K miles on it, for $13K. Has 114K on it now.

It needs $1K-$2K of work each year, but I'm okay with that since the low initial price means no car payments. It had also been a CPO car right up until I bought it, so all of the stuff that typically goes wrong with it had been addressed.

I was really looking for a Tourag when I came across the Cayenne. Did not initially like it, but really love it now. I'll most likley be buying another one.

It can also haul a ton with the seats down. I also use it as a tow vehcile for my 996. It tows real well (just had to add the brake controller, which took all of 30 minutes to do).

MaddMike

Drove on as a loaner from the dealer. I have to say, I was not too impressed and my X5 was the better handler.

ourkind

I sat in one at the dealer while my car was being washed. Awesome interior, much nicer than my 2011 Jeep GC, didn't get to drive it though.

fpena944

Chalk me up as someone who saw no reason for the Cayenne's very existence when it was first released. Fast forward to today with two kids and the need for the extra room we ended up with a Cayenne TT. It's technically my wife's car but I still drive it when we're out as a family.

The thing is brutally fast and awesome. It's everything my 996 is not with all of the electronic aids, creature comforts, and additional size. It'll smoke my 996 in a straight line and who knows it might even beat it in the corners. Granted me 996 is much older and it doesn't make sense to compare the two but this truck does things you wouldn't think a truck could do.

One thing both of my P-cars do have in common though - AWESOME exhaust sounds. I have PSE and X-Pipe cats on my 996 so it has a high pitch exotic whine very similar to a GT3. The CTT has a full Fabspeed sport system that makes the most perfect V8 sound and shakes our dishes in the dining room when it starts. Love both cars and feel honored to have both in my garage.

I've never driven a base model Cayenne or S so don't know if they just aren't as convincing. But the CTT is the real deal!