I'm coming out of a 2014 Ram Laramie Longhorn 4x4 and into a 2016 Cayenne. I do like, and need, the hauling abilities of a pickup bed so I decided to simply buy a trailer for my wife's Jeep Grand Cherokee. Fortunately for me, I have an acre in Texas that includes a large gated area in the back yard for storing the trailer. I know that's not an option for everyone but you can also consider a fold up trailer from Harbor Freight. They are actually fairly decent.

 

Hey vbb - I feel your problem.

We have a Cayenne (my DD with over 200,000 km on it) and just purchased a Macan GTS for my wife's DD.

Too bad the Macan is too small, as it is so much fun to drive!
We used to have 5 vehicles for our very small family - sports car, family car, SUV, stake truck and highway cruiser.
We decided to downsize our fleet to one vehicle each and that's when we replaced 3 vehicles to the Cayenne.

Our solution for anything which needs a truck (or other vehicle need our Porsche's don't meet) is to rent a pick up, cube van or truck to meet the need as required.

After all, it is your DD which you will see most often, so get the one you will enjoy the most

 

This is a great post, and it looks like you went through a very similar thought process to me. A main part of the reason for the shop is that I want to drive a Porsche all the time, but don't want it to be a 911 every day. But when you come back to it, it is kind of nice having a vehicle with the utility range of a truck, the space of a CrewMax truck, and just a little bit of the "I'm not so worried about it getting damaged" feel (though I do take care of all of my cars). I would not be shopping for a base Cayenne, nor would I be shopping for a new one. A used TT or GTS would be what I'd want... but for now, the plan is to just keep the truck.

Why? Because I sort of went another direction recently and sold my 997 C2 for a 997.1 TT!

 

I just completed the weird cross-shopping and ended up with a 2016 CD just two weeks ago today.

I have my 2012 Touareg TDI waiting to be bought back by VW. The Treg TDI was awesome and I wanted both diesel and as close to the mpg as it got along with a 7,000 lb tow capacity-both of these were must-haves for me.

I initially thought about a Range Rover Sport with a Td6. The wife would not let me buy one-ha! I'll admit, I couldn't go with one for whatever reason. I was almost set on waiting for a 2018 GMC Canyon Denali with a Duramax motor. I thought I could live with a 0-60 mph in 9.2 seconds, the 7,600 lb tow and the 20/29 mpg I wanted. I thought I could until a week before, I was following some buddies to the snowmobile trailhead and realized what a great vehicle my T3 TDI was and had also realized that between the buyback, any compensation I would get from buying a used 15 or 16 CD, that my total out of pocket cost would be maybe $15K at the very most, not bad for a newer and superior vehicle in the CD. I'll admit, I am in love with my CD and with Cayenne's in general and while I appreciate Porsche's for what they are, I have never aspired or wanted to have one but the Cayenne is just something else.

I considered a new F-150 3.5L EcoBoost-24 mpg didn't do it for me.

Ram 1500 EcoDiesel-the VM Motori 3.0L motors are not known for being good motors and like the F-150, I didn't really want a full size truck. The promise of 28-29 mph hwy and a tow capacity that I needed was tempting though.

Sierra Denali, again, only 24 mpg hwy.

Yukon Denali-same as the Sierra.

There really is nothing else in the 7,000 lb tow range that is not a full-sized something that called out to me other than the CD. After having had a 2012 T3 TDI, there was no way I was going to go with the VW VR6 3.6L gas motor that has been around since Hitler committed suicide. I'll admit I'm hooked on the TDI power. I considered the Cayenne S but at 24 mph hwy, even if one were to show me the excel spreadsheet counting down every penny for the cost of gas vs diesel over 10 years, the feel of the diesel is just what I want.

Ford is coming out with its Ranger that may have a diesel and the F-150 is rumored to have its version of the 3.0L diesel coming as well. We'll see how things go.

 

I find some humor in that since I own a 2015 S, which believe was first year rated at 24 mpg on the highway. I have upwards of 14k on it and tracked every fillip in it. I have quite a few all freeway trips and to date my best tank was 19 mpg and only one tank got that. I even had a 2016 S loner and got same fuel economy as my 2015. My driving style makes them suck fuel down but an all freeway tank means cruise control but I have noticed it is the higher speeds I tend to maintain that makes it drink fuel during trips. Same cruising speeds and driving style nets me high 20s when had a ML diesel.

I much prefer the driving characteristics of diesels but the choices for new ones is less than appealing to me after all these scandals and such.

 

You know the type. The type where everything has to make some sort of (financial) sense to them or it doesn't get done. It is amazing that these types own Porsche's or boats given that they care so much about where every penny goes and not without some sort of justified-justification to the point of self-righteousness.

I could not care less about the breakdown or amortization over 10 or 20 years of the cost-benefit ratio of gas to diesel engine, just that the MPG's are better and I have to fill up less often and just like the feel of the motor.

 

I like the torque "curve" of Diesel engines and a few other characteristics but mainly that torque. I actually can care less about the fuel economy of anything but I track my fillups and miles due to work which in turn makes me know my mpg. Now range is something I did care about back when I drove a lot more. I would drive an f250 Powerstroke back then over my more efficient cars because the truck would go around 600 miles between fillups and the other vehicles would not.

 

Tracking fillups and MPG can also be your first clue to engine troubles; that's why I've always tracked my mileage.

 

True, it is why I usually leave the PCM screen to show the Ave MPG. I do the same on the boat doing everything I can to try and get 3.0 mpg.

I just can't be bothered with doing the manual calculations anymore. I will for the next fill up as I have the vehicle screen set to track the mileage since I filled up.

 

True. or at least for some situations. My fuel economy changed none with first engine v. second.

 

It does it all and nearly goes anywhere.... Cayenne FTW

 

Right on!

In the 3 1/2 years since I traded in my Tundra, I have never once said to myself or thought 'I wish I had a pickup truck right now.'

The snowmobile trailer has done every job and if I've needed mulch, I have a brother in law and friend with pickup trucks to borrow. They would love to have a Cayenne loaner to drive while I put their truck to work.

 

Welcome to the Interwebs, right?

 

Currently have an 06 Silverado DuramaxAllison extended cab 4 X 4 which is my winter time DD. Started with 71 Silverado 4 X 4 beater while teaching school which shared DD duties with a BMW2002 in cold snowy NH. The PU was used for fire wood, hauling trash and recyclables to land fill, lawn chair cruises thru the woods, etc. I found once I had a PU, and got rid of it, I had to get another. Kinda like the Porsche addiction. Rather tough to put a skid of coal in a non-pickup, or haul a skid of scrap iron to The Metal Guy, or stapping on an Fisher 8 footer on a Cayenne.
Two different animals serving different purposes. And don't forget, it's easier to intimidate in a pick up.

 

Right on. I realize that there are those that need to air out the grievances-like me as I can't be calling the kettle black so I just have to laugh every time there is "that guy" who begins with the whole cost analysis . . .