I know...I know....no comparison...This is a Porsche forum. Wife says it's her turn for a new ride. She currently has a Lexus RX 330 which she loves. I must say that the ownership experience w' the RX has been a no brainer. Nothing besides scheduled maintenance since '05. Extremely reliable. Good soft cushy ride. Pretty boring. I rarely drive the car. I had her drive a Cayenne the other day. She had a big smile on her face after the test drive. First time for me being one. I was impressed. I sat in the back seat & was blown away with the comfort factor of the car. The car is no doubt bigger then the RX. We don't have kids. For her business, the RX is just fine & she likes the size of it. What's the overall experience of these cars (reliability, fun, around town, parking,highway)? We did drive the new RX after the Cayenne & even though she loved the Cayenne, she's still leaning towards the RX. I'm trying to sway her towards the Cayenne so I can drive it once in a while!!! Comments appreciated. This is my 1st time on the Cayenne side of Rennlist. I'm usually on the 997 side. Thanks!

 

RX

 

My wife drives an 08 GX470 which lease ends next month. She loves it but always complains about how the brakes suck.
I had a Cayenne loaner for a few days a she loved it.
So we are going to LA Auto show tonight to compare SUV's.

 

One of my business partners has an RX. We take it up skiing a LOT! After spending some time in it I finally quit giving him a hard time about his "Chick-UV". Nice car, plenty of options, and nothing really "wrong with it"

I do think it is fairly generic "cute ute" with typical "cute ute" handling. The big difference you will see with the Cayenne is the handling, even in every day situations.

Porsche beat out Lexus a few years ago on "initial quality" so for the newer models "anything goes" as to which one will be the better ride.

 

This would be a no-brainer for me. Toyota/Lexus make a quality product, no question. My wife has a Highlander Hybrid, and it's been trouble free, but every time I drive it I think "very competent appliance", not something that's fun to drive. Beyond that, I've never been a fan of the sloped "fastback" treatment on the RX; a triumph of form over function. I would much rather own the Cayenne.

 

As Cole pointed out, the RX is a woman's truck...period. The Cayenne, on the other hand, swings both ways and is more fun to drive. Wait a minute, these trucks are not at all equal! Hey, am I on Candid Camera?

Having stated the above, if you opt for the RX you may look a little weird driving it around populated areas (if you'd really want to drive it in the first place). The Cayenne will give both you and your wife loads of pleasure in many ways but at a higher initial cost and higher maintenance costs.

 

What MY are we talking about here? If it's an older 04-06 V6, I wouldn't exactly call that "fun to drive".

 

Totally disagree. If you are not having fun driving it, you are not trying hard enough

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEyZu5WcupI

 

My wife drives our Cayenne every day, and she loves it. We were just driving it yesterday and she told me how happy she was with it. In fact, she said she wants to get a brand new one in a couple of years. We may have to get a turbo this time...

 

RDX

 

as far as points to convince the wife:
seat comfort
the touch screen PCM
the looks
the brand name backing your decision and their strong resale values
the back seat space (also the storage space, sliding/reclining back seats to aid)
8 speed gearing on Cayenne will give better "Actual" highway speeds mileage.
does the RX have a standard power liftgate?
TPMS on RX doesn't tell exact PSI but instead Low/Not (from what i remember on drive)

does the RX have LED DRL's and Tails?
Airbags and safety features in Cayenne i feel are better.
the luxury feel and where it is built

The RX base is 10k cheaper... but take into account AWD on cayenne, 25hp more, much better towing if needed/used, better interior and ride on cayenne, larger gas tank on cayenne.. and the fact you'll both have gorgeous Porsche's..... the V6 is a safe bet!






once i drove the 11' V6 i feel every other similarly priced SUV fails in comparison and several much more expensive SUV's also fail in comparison.

i would go as far as to say the 11' V6 is the best dollar for sense SUV on the market right now... (IF your smart with option choices (remember NEED vs WANT as they add up VERY fast)

I'm coming from a 997 as well (had both 997.1 and 997.2) and the 11' Cayenne even in BASE trim feels just amazing: the sound of the door closing , the layout of the console, the in dash screen for stereo and other settings, the comfort of even the base 8 way seats, vehicle size, and so forth...

Also given the popularity of the vehicle, if you buy a V6 smartly (not overboard with options and negotiate the price (5-6% off) I personally feel the loss is going to be VERY minimal over the next few years, maybe 2% loss over 1 year on a 6% negotiated price not factoring TTT, and not more than 5% over 2 years.... (note, an affordable V6 is impossible to find on dealer lots so must be ordered... if potential buyers see your car at lets say 45k when all the v6's on lots are 55-65k and its in good condition with favorable options they will pick your used car on value alone...) this is the same justification i chose when buying my 997.2 non S and after 16 months/16k miles I only lost about 1k not factoring in scheduled maitenance)


keep in mind the cost of a v6 after discount with minimal options will be around 50k, so hopefully this is within your budget allotted.

 

Rijowysock....great post & good arguments in favor of the Cayenne. Glad you finally sold your 997. That was a gorgeous car. We haven't driven the V6 car since the dealer only had a V8 S car on the lot. We're hitting the LA Auto show on our way into town for turkey tomorrow. Should be nice to check all the cars out. I think we need to drive both cars a time or two more before we pull the trigger. Thanks for all the good input. Keep em coming! Happy Thanksgiving to all!

 

V6 is hard to find, i had to do some calling to get some in car time with one.... accelerating doesn't feel "slow" feels about the same as the 10' V8... i will however say putting the gas down at 70mph is where the lack of HP shows... the RX would have more of problem tho, 25hp less and right around the same weight.

 

I traded in my 08 Lexus GX470 on my 08 Cayenne GTS. No comparison. The Lexus is smooth and easy to drive but extremely boring. The Cayenne gives you the feel of the road and handling the Lexus could only dream about. Go with the Cayenne, you won't be sorry.

 

Rijowysock post is very thoughtful and thorough. It is hard to argue against a Cayenne. I custom ordered a fully loaded CS for my wife but Rijowysock makes a very good arguments in favor of need vs want. Where were you when I custom ordered mine. I could have saved tons of $$ on our Cayenne. It was very hard to resist options like the BURMESTER (the best audio system on this planet), full leather, pana roof, PDCC, PTV and walla they add up to > 30K over base price.