CDMC

Hi,

I am a new member and Porsche owner, having purchased a 2008 Cayenne V6 with a 6 speed manual. I always envisioned when I purchased a Porsche it would be a 901 or 964. I currently have a 1992 BMW 535i manual, 1996 Toyota Landcruiser, and 2002 BMW 530i manual, all of which have a ton of miles on them and are getting a bit long in the tooth. As I sometimes need to carry clients in my car, I decided it was time to get something a bit newer and nicer.

I really love my Landcruiser and looked at getting a newer one. The 2005-2006 100 series drive nicely, are dead nuts reliable, and clean ones can be found for less than $25,000. Step up to the 2008-2009 200 series and you are looking at $40,000. The problem is the same as I have with my current Landcruiser, it gets 11 miles to the gallon. I wanted something big enough to carry two bikes in the back when going to the sierras (which my 10 year old son and I do nearly every other weekend in the summer).

The landcruiser being out, I turned my eye to smaller alternatives. On my list were decent to good handling, decent mileage, decent power, and if at all possible a stick shift. Wife 1.0 had a 2001 X5, which was a nice car, but having test driven a 2002 with a 6 speed years ago, I was left feeling for the first time ever that a car was better than a manual.

Knowing my want of Porsche, wife 2.0 suggested I get a 996 or Cayman. Unfortunately, I think middle age has crept in, I don't care for the 996 very much (nice fast cars with no soul) and the Cayman just wasn't hitting my practicality meter for a daily driver. So up pops the Cayenne. A locally owned, one owner car with all the service records and a 6 speed manual. I drove it, liked it, and then took the wife who groaned it was a 6 speed, drove it, and decided she liked it. An offer was made and the Cayenne purchased.

For better or worse, I dealt with all the Cayenne problems in the first week of ownership. Within 50 miles of purchasing the car, the center bearing started to knock. A call to Colorado driveshaft and a new one was sent then installed. I also noticed that it turned over a bit slow and the records showed the battery had not been replaced in the 6 years since it was bought. A trip to Autozone to purchase one of their Duralast AGM H8 batteries (a relabled East Penn Deka exact fit battery) and that was replaced. Finally, the OEM 17" Continentals were due for a review. After some research, I settled on the Pirelli Scorpion Verde A/S in the proper eurometric size (instead of the P metric they wanted to sell me).

Now having driven the car for a few hundred miles, I am really starting to enjoy it. It is a bit heavy feeling, but handles better than the X5 with a sport package wife 1.0 had. The X5 always felt a bit tall, where the Cayenne does not. The Cayenne is not a sports car or sedan (my 530i with a sport pack and Bilsteins handles far better), but it handles amazingly for what it is.

As some review I read have said, the 6 speed is a bit notchy. I will be changing the transmission and drivetrain fluids to Redline, which will hopefully improve that issue. Finally, the V6 is a bit harsh when pushed hard, it is not a BMW inline 6, nor does it have the refinement and eagerness of the V8 Cayenne I test drove: it does have great torque however.

All in all, I really like the Cayenne and am very happy with the purchase.

Cary

Hammer911

Welcome! I hope you enjoy the new ride. I have always liked that color!

phL

Sweet, love the color too

CaptJim

Thanks for sharing your story, we all have one. I look forward to hearing about the fluid changes in the transmission as I want to know if it changes the feeling is the stick. I have a GTS six speed, and about as many cars to take care of...

Juaneo'sPorsche

Welcome CDMC and congrats on the purchase! I just bought my '08 V-6 less than a week ago too. Same story, the wife suggested I go ahead and get the Porsche, the Cayman and Boxster were not practical (two kids), and I have to change the battery as well. But overall it seems like a fun truck so far. I can't wait to really test it. Enjoy it!

RESP

Nice Cayenne, and a great colour!
Enjoy the ride!

CDMC

Thank you for the welcomes. I never expected to have a green car, white has always been my color of choice. However, when a locally owned (read California Car), private party car with all the service records (both dealer and well respect Porsche Independent) shows up, and is very clean, the color rapidly moved down the list of important.

hahnmgh63

Congrats on the Cayenne. Cardan shaft & Battery taken care of and all is well. I swapped all of my fluids to Redline a couple of years ago ('06 CTTS), Tip though. In my manual cars I always felt they shifted better with Redline Gear oil or MTL depending on the application. Wonder if Porsche used Synthetic or Conventional in the Cayenne Manual gearbox?

Chris51080

Congrats on the new cayenne. Drive it and enjoy it.

I'd also like to know if the redline fluids help the shifter feel.

hpuck

Hi CDMC,

We just bought the same car - V6 6 speed. It is my wife's car.

The other day I wondered about the sport button - I don't have sport exhaust - and sure enough it provides an extra kick under acceleration and brought a smile to me. I won't tell my wife.

Plenty perky for me as well especially in 2nd and 3rd on ramps. 1st gear is not tall enough for my liking - like my 993.

Congrats!

Bill

CDMC

I was going to save it for another post, but here is what I have found on the gear oils. I posted the below on Bob is the oil guy, which is an oil nut forum that I have been a member of for more than a decade. Unlike the old days when there were mostly engineering types, the gene pool there has been watered down a great deal and I have received no useful feedback. I am planning on trying straight Redline MTL 75w-80 which has always worked well for me in ZF boxes.

Trying to figure out what oil to use for my 2006 Cayenne 6 speed manual transmission (uses some obscure Castrol/Porsche Oil called Burhma BOT 338 75W). Looking at ZF's list of approved lubricants (TE-ML11) they cross reference BP Castrol BOT 338 to BMW MTF-LT2, VW Oil No. N 05279800, and Castrol Syntrans B 75w.

I researched the [censored] out of it and there is very little information out there. Castrol's MSDS for the BOT 338 and Syntrans B 75w fluids show they have a thickness of 7.3 cSt @100c. The Fuchs MTF-LT2 apprpved oil is their Titan Sintofluid 75w-80 GL-5 which is thicker 9.4 cSt @ 100c, while Pentosin's MTF-LT2 oil is speced at 7.7 cSt @100c. Finally, Penrite specs their Progear 70w-75 as meeting the ZF TE-ML11 and MTF BOT 338 specs with a thin 6.9 cSt @100c.

I am debating between trying Redline (which I have had great luck with) and Fuchs. Looking at Redline, the D4 ATF has a thickness of 7.5 cSt @ 100c. MTL 75w-80 steps it up to 10.4 cSt @ 100c. For replacing MTF-LT2 oils Redline recommends either D4 ATF or MTL 75w-80. Dave Granquist at Redline has said that the MTL works well except in cold climates where the transmissions can get really stiff and suggests mixing D4 and MTL 50/50.

I am pretty sure the transmission in the Cayenne is an off the shelf ZF 6 speed, but so few have been made it has been impossible to determine what variant it is. I am guessing it is virtually identical to the version used by BMW (it is actually stamped VW on the side).

What do the BITOG members think for the oil choices? Fuchs or Redline? If Redline, which one or mix?

Thanks,

Cary

CaptJim

I agree, I start out in 2nd, 1st is low, just like for a truck when towing.