Preeble

So I've had the hybrid now for 1600 miles / 6 weeks. Here are some updated impressions (specific to the hybrid):

- I have averaged exactly 20mpg since I have owned the car. The mileage has been improving since I purchased the car, but I still haven't been able to approach the advertised 24mpg on a 'normal' trip. I wonder how much longer it will take the engine to loosen-up.

- While driving on the highway or on back roads, the car rarely goes in 'sailing mode' - you need to be driving down a fairly steep hill with your foot off the accelerator in order to 'sail'. Even at lower speeds (e.g., 40mph) on level roads, the car doesn't really sail in battery mode. The car does sail at slow speeds - 25-30mph and lower.

- The transitions between the engine turning off and on again are seamless - it is hard to notice unless you are paying attention to the RPM gauge.

- The VW/Audi V6 engine gives good power. As I am still in break-in, I really haven't pushed the car that much and thus haven't had the car in engine+battery mode yet. I will be curious to see if i can actually feel the difference. I wish that the gas engine and the hybrid motor would actually work together under a lighter throttle load (not just the 'flooring' mode)

- While the engine is nice, it is very quiet. I underestimated how much I miss the throaty V8 sound from my previous CS.

- As it is winter here in the NE, it takes about 5-6 minutes to warm up the car enough so that it can operate in hybrid mode (for example, if I am stopped, the engine will still run while I am warming up). I wonder how much the warmer weather will accelerate the process. This obviously affects fuel economy and in my relatively short 25 minute commute, I doubt that I am getting the full benefit of the hybrid

- While I am stopped (at a traffic light for example), I have noticed that my engine will cycle on and off for no apparent reason. I would expect the engine to remain completely off and perhaps this is an actual problem with the battery or the software of the car. i will have to get the dealer to look at it, but I suspect that they will not be able to find anything as this stuff is so new.

My verdict? I was originally excited to get the hybrid with the new technology, but I'm starting to think that the hybrid components don't add enough to the car - both in terms of fuel economy and in overall car performance. In real world driving, I'm not so sure that the hybrid will have better fuel economy than the CS.

In fact, I believe that part of my slightly improved fuel economy is occurring not because of the hybrid itself, but because of a change in my driving style in an attempt to get the car to use its batteries more frequently. I would assume that fuel savings associated with this different style would directly lead to fuel savings in the CS as well.

I will save my final verdict until I can put another few thousand miles on the car. I am looking forward to getting out of the break-in period so I can truly flog the car a bit.

rijowysock

sadly it seems the verdict of many others, i still dont understand the pricing point of the hybrid, considering the v6's are showing better gas mileage... the cayenne hybrid is at least better than the panamera hybrid which loses its pdk, has worse mileage, and is 95k...

i would think a "lax" driving style would save more gas in the v8 considering the car needs less throttle to get going.. think the prius and the m3 test that topgear did.

Mike in CA

Well, the TopGear test was a sham since they hammered the heck out of the Prius in an attempt to get it to aproach the M3's acceleration and then compared mileage; something it's obviously not designed for. It's never going to be considered a performance car. OTOH, my daughter gets 50mpg+ in her Prius, driven normally, and no conventional V8 car is going to achieve that, no matter how much less throttle it needs to get going. Still, I agree that it might be possible to achieve near Cayenne Hybrid numbers with a CS if it were driven with a very light foot.

Norsk

'11S - 3600 miles, 20.6 mpg, 1 qt. oil.

rijowysock

i meant CS to CS hybrid, the top gear test was just to explain the "why" factor, less throttle needed in the v8 ;-)

as far as actual driving, ive seen amazing numbers from the v6's compared to hybrids..

when i get mine i'll post up what i get as an average... but then again im heavy on the pedal.. (still get 29mpg in exige flooring it all day. LOL)

Blaine S

It really depends on how you drive the Hybrid. Great mileage is possible. But I agree after spending some time in a Panamera S - the V8 is capable of respectable mileage. The 2010 V6 I spent time in wasn't so great. I haven't driven the 2011 V6. Preeble - I do agree with a lot of your observations. My average over the last ~3500mi here in New England is better - about 23mpg with a short commute to work.

McQueen993

I am averaging 19.5 mpg in my '11 CS with lots of city driving (live in Manhattan). Coming from an RS4, I feel like I bought a hybrid! Almost 4k miles and 1 quart of oil.

Blaine S

If the 2011 V8s are getting 20-21 combined that is really good because I admit that the hybrid is not going to average that much better. To date my total average is only about ~22 mpg which I think is strongly influenced by my short 6 mi commute. I've seen the hybrid get 25-30 mpg on the highway (are the V8's close here too?) but if you drive around town a lot it does look like the new V8 vs. hybrid is almost a wash as far as mpg goes.

Norsk

The best highway mileage I have gotten is one 160 mile trip where I averaged 26.3 mpg, but that was helped by a tailwind. Credit the eight speed trans, engine just loafs along at low RPM's.

With max torque at ~ 3500 RPM, if left in auto you need a wide open highway to hit 3500, much less 6500 RPM.

Mike in CA

Very impressive and encouraging. That's as good as we have ever able to get with my wife's Highlander Hybrid and it has 130 less HP.

werthan

I was initially very unhappy with the MPG, but my new Cayenne Hybrid is getting around 25 mpg between city and highway driving. It drops substantially if I move to "sport" mode, dropping to about 16 MPG.

However, what is most impressive to me is that I have not changed my driving habits. My wife's Lexus 400h will get fantastic gas mileage, but only if you are careful (i.e., not accelerating off the start, etc.). So far, I have not had a problem, and very much like the silence of the hybrid.

That being said, I really don't know if it was worth it to give up PDCC etc. Extremely happy though.

flareak

to the OP: you will most likely get better mileage when it warms up. most hybrids are not in their peak efficiency in cold weather. My guess also is that your engine may be cycling at stops to provide heat to your cabin

Preeble

Interesting point about the heat, but what concerns me is that the engine is only on for 1-2 seconds before it shuts back off again, so I'm not sure if it is on long enough to make a difference for the heat. I will monitor though to see if that could be the reason.

matty67

Anymore updates? Since it's the Audi/VW 3.0T has anyone tried chipping it?

Preeble

I have thought about chipping it, but the quote I received from one supplier was very pricey (it was a Cayenne-specific tune).

My feelings about the hybrid still are the same - I think that Porsche needs to do a better job of having the electric and gas motors work together more often (for performance gains). I shouldn't have to floor it to get the two motors working together (yeah, i get that in sport mode, it comes on sooner, but I don't want to keep the car in sport mode all the time).

I should have gotten the V8.