New here as the Cayenne forum looks hoppin! Long long time Porsche 911 SC owner and am familiar with the brand and some of the Porsche oddness.

We started looking at Volvo XC90s with the V8... Then it hit me to look at the Cayenne as it has a substantially better towing capability than the XC90 (5000 vs 7700). Right now we tow a 5000 lb travel trailer (rarely) with the wife's Escalade ESV, but I need to steal her car to go solo or with the kids, which is a PITA. This would be a mid-life hauling teenagers and towing "fun things" as needed. Also this would allow me to sell a FSJ Cherokee and Cadillac DTS and consolidate into one car.

I went and drove a 2006 Volvo XC90 and 2005 Cayenne S yesterday and was amazed at the huge differences in the SUVs. I was very impressed with the Cayenne's power, braking, and handling for what it is! After doing some research on here and other places... I'll skip the V8 (GTS manual) and just be content with a 3.6 with manual and call it a day.

Any hidden concerns with a Manual shift Cayenne?

Here is the tough part... What is a reasonable price for a used 2008-2010 V6 Manual with ~100k (normal mileage range)? The values seem all over the place... I've seen 18k-6k for similar Cayennes, there is no rhyme or reason to it? Honestly, I'm thinking 6-9 would be reasonable. I mean the Base has the crappiest radio I've seen in a modern luxury vehicle perhaps ever. Plus how many people desire a manual for a V6, I find it interesting Porsche even offered this.

Any insights are greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

 

Sorry for the title typo... The 2088 Cayenne has not been released yet

Also to consider... I could blow two XC90 V8s into a wall for the price of a Cayenne... Just to keep it in perspective. I expect maintenance for a Volvo to be close compared to a Cayenne V6. Volvo owners will understand that statement.

 

Despite being european SUV's of similar size and weight they are very, very different cars. If I were you, I would not consider any XC90 except for a 2008-2010 V8 or one of the 2018+ T6's or T8's and ditch it before the warranty expires. Supercharged and turbocharged engine with electric drive system out of warranty? No, thank you.

The Volvo does a better job at:
-Comfortably carting passengers around
-Blending in with any crowd (it dresses up and down very nicely)
-Interior cargo volume (the space, speed and ease of folding seats down is far superior)
-Safety features (like BLIS, auto collision avoiding, etc.)

The Cayenne is better at:
-Literally everything else

Volvo is people and passenger focused to a fault. Porsche is machine and profit focused to a fault. If I were putting a solo teenage driver behind the wheel of one it would hands down be the XC90. Especially the 2018+ models. The level of safety they have baked into it is unparalleled and it is hard to put a price on mitigating the risk of a teenager's stupidity and lack of experience.

If you are definitely buying old enough to go naked on a warranty, then the reliability and maintenance costs are a wash between the two if you are choosing a V6 cayenne and v8 xc. We hardly ever see people with transmission issues with the manual Cayennes on here, but that is also because they were produced in very small quantities. You are going to have your work cut out for you finding a good a one without a ton of effort and travel.

 

Agreed! Again, I was floored on how well mannered the Cayenne was compared to other SUVs... Makes the last few Escalade ESVs we have owned look like trash even with the magnetic shocks. I'm not picking on the Escalade as it is generally better than the cheaper Suburbans and other truck based big bodies.

True. Oddly there are three GTS 6 speeds for sale at the moment, which I thought would be the holy grail. After reading the words of warning here... I'll be content with a V6.
Here is one FS, but look at the ownership cycle... IDK if it is a lemon, or just people hate it!
https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/d...1402/overview/

https://www.carfax.com/VehicleHistor...&partner=CDM_O
Sat on dealer lot FS for like 7 months then back to auction for another dealer to purchase.

And this one is just a ripoff, that is in Gen3 money. Looks Purple to me...
https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/d...6423/overview/

 

The Cayenne is a heavy vehicle. I'd skip the 6 and only buy an S or GTS. If you want a manual transmission, the 957 GRS is an awesome vehicle. If you can find one with PDCC, the handling will amaze you. I almost went this direction myself when buying my 957 (only generation of interest to me) but inevitably the 550 HP of my Turbo S (pre-mods) won out over the MT. If towing, the air suspension is also a huge plus that you won't find in the base V6.

 

... yeah, some of the GTS's are actually pretty reasonably priced. Tempting!

Agreed 957 (Gen 2?) all the way.

To note, I have seen some of the V6 Base models without auto climate control... Really? Again the cheap radio and no auto climate control? Come on now, that is not what is to be expected from any Porsche product as these are not budget Kias! Aren't the buyers looking for strippers going to go VW Touareg?

 

What's your budget? nychase has a really nice Turbo S for sale around $37k and there's another higher mileage (low 100s maybe) one available too for less. If you really want a MT, I say go for the GTS. Looks great with the Aero body work from the Turbo, is the only one with the PSE exhaust, has the air suspension for towing, and enough HP to actually drive like a Porsche.

 

Here is the one I keep staring at. Dealer serviced, sold at dealer, and local. Plus the color combo is perfect as I really like the tan/camel interior. Auto 2010 GTS

https://www.porschetysonscorner.com/...-18037969.html

Also I imagine they may offer a real Porsche extended warranty. Maybe... It is still old after all.

Adding:
Price points:
V6 <10k
S <15k
GTS <20k
... Yes, some of the CTTs are very affordable, but I am scared of maintenance.

The less spent the better as any of this Cayenne money takes away from the 3 car garage/workshop outbuilding I plan to build this winter... Too many toys. It makes for a compounding money pit.

 

Looks nice. The cloudiness inside the headlight can be corrected by removing it and swishing around alcohol inside, then letting it dry back out. That one doesn't have PDCC though. I looked at a few on eBay for you too, but none seem great. The red one there has clearcoat failing on the rear spoiler, the silver one must have spent a lot of time outside in TX as the headlights are badly yellowed, the dark olive one is really pretty but doesn't have the tow package, etc.

Try to find one from a warmer climate as they are less likely to have the bore scoring issue. 2009 or newer gets you the touch screen, color display.

 

V6 manual is the basest of the base models. On a Porsche, a brand notorious for endless options packages that can nearly double the base MSRP, don't expect much. This is no Hyundai.

Keep in mind that the actual towing capacity of the V6 is less than the 7700lbs for the V8s. I think it's around 6000 - it is in the manual.
Also, in that same page with the fine print it does state that limits are 3500lbs for trailer with no brakes, 5k for trailer with brakes, and 7700 for trailer with weight distribution and brakes (again, less max weight for V6).
A lot of the vehicles that advertise 5k towing capacity will also opaquely mention somewhere that with weight distro you can tow 7-8k. You could say that VW/Porsche marketing is slightly deceiving here, but it is what it is.

But, at the end of the day, I got my 08 GTS not only because of the rated capacity but also because I know it has more than enough brakes for any situation including towing (many other cars have brakes with little overhead built in), and the integration you get with factory towing package - transmission mapping, alarm, power liftgate limits (power liftgate will pop open but not raise from the remote button with trailer attached - smart!), etc. I've also read that supposedly on the 2008+ models ABS accounts for trailer sway in emergency braking situations.

I have no experience with Volvo's, but the Cayenne totally blew me away so far 9 month into my ownership. Towed a VW Jetta the other day and the Cayenne hardly noticed the extra 3500+ pounds in the back, only a 2-3mpg hit, too.

 

Great info as always TY!

Roger that for 2009+ Seems like a good feature bump for the same price point vs 2008.

Good to know on the V6. I saw that weight dist hitch clause today as well in researching. 5k with trailer brakes. 7710 (IIRC) with weight distribution.

I will be towing an old 1948 Spartan Mansion 30' travel trailer (think Airstream) which is dry at 4200 and figure loaded with junk about 5500. I do have the Blue Ox weight distribution hitch setup, so no problem there. So it should be spot on IMO. It has been an easy tow with different vehicles over the years, but they have all been truck based. The only drama is when the wind gets nasty and the crosswind starts shaking things up. In summary, with the V8 and weight dist I think the Cayenne would be good to go for our towing needs given a std Class III hitch and 7 pin connector.

Porsche and options... Crazy town. Benefit of a GTS package is that it seems to be all encompassing for options..(?)

Thanks again for all the input!

 

Generally if you are talking about how loaded a Cayenne might be with options it looks like this:

V6 < S < GTS < Turbo < Turbo S

A Turbo and Turbo S will always have air suspension, heated seats, full leather interior, etc. A GTS is more likely to have these things, but not guaranteed.

 

Newb Q: How can I tell if the Cayenne is equipped with the PDCC vs air ride?

The wife and I had a long talk yesterday over what we would like in the Cayenne. Of course clean and something we can live with for numerous years. But it came down to if it is a Porsche, it deserves to have a manual shift. We both grew up on manuals and it just feels right to both of us. Even having the option on an SUV is a huge plus!

There are two GTS 6 speeds out there at the moment. Having conversations on both at the moment with the owners. We will see what happens.
And a couple V6 manuals are out there.
(I'll post links later)

Luckily there is no rush to buy so I can keep my eye open as things come available.

 

Unless it has been fudged, the simplest way is by the PDCC logo on the silver air suspension and ride control surround (look just below the Sport button on this photo).


More invasively, there would be what looks like 2 Power Steering fluid reservoirs visible on the driver's side under the hood. Unfortunately, you can't see the PDCC Reservoir without removing a couple of the beauty panel covers on that side, but if you know where to look you can get a glimpse of whether it exists or not by just removing the one clip in panel to expose the Power Steering Reservoir.

(Image borrowed from RennTech.org)

Under the car, you can also see a number or braided stainless lines that carry the high-pressure hydraulic fluid for the system.

 

Awesome information! TY!