Porsch

Very true.

pfbz

Exactly...

Yeah, I get that it has an ~8K tow rating.
And i get that it looks cool pulling into the racetrack towing your Porsche racecar with a Cayenne.

But a pickup just works SO much better for this kind of application that almost everyone who tows regularly goes that route.

And yes, i had a 2004 Touareg V8i with air leveling, locking cases, etc. and did occasionally use it to tow lighter loads. But no freaking way was I picking up bobcats at the rental yard with it. Had an F350 back then, F150 Ecoboost now. Both are enormously better tow vehicles not to mention have the extra space that is needed for other cargo when going to the track, going camping, going to the mountain house, going to a construction site, etc...

ozziegt

Definitely do a car seat fit test before purchase if you are going to be using a rear-facing car seat.

nal13

We just bought a 2018 macan as my wife's daily. It comfortably fits two car seats, although it is slightly more cramped then the X5 that we got rid of. The trunk is small by SUV standards. The Macan drives like a sports sedan and is more nimble and sporty then the Cayenne. However I would recommend the Cayenne. For a family hauler, the Macan is just to compact. We fortunately have Tahoe which is fantastic for lugging the family from point A to B.

raclaims

I had a cayenne early when they were first released and hated it.

I have a Macan GTS now and freakin' LOVE IT!

Drives like a sports sedan, super comfy, insanely good in snow, bike rack and back seat...all the SUV you need and yet drives incredibly well.

Steering and all controls and brakes feel very 911.

Yes you feel the weight on cornering but it's massively better than any other SUV I've ever driven.

Really, the Macan is superb

CarGuyNVA

I second that. Coming from two Cayenne Turbos to a Macan GTS, I agree wholeheartedly. The overall dynamics of the Macan (GTS in particular) are just incredible, especially for an SUV.

Petza914

We downsized to our 957 Cayenne Turbo for family vacation hauler duty from an Infiniti QX56 (this was the big one before the renaming and numbering happened a couple years ago). The Cayenne is the perfect size for a vacation car for our family of 2 adults and 2 teenagers. For shorter trips with less stuff, the rear cargo area is sufficient - for longer trips or those with more stuff, we load up the Yakima Skybox (beach gear, golf clubs, ski gear, etc).

If we had one more kid, or a pet, it would be too small and you'd have to go bigger (Infiniti, Escalade, Navigator, etc).

I think the Macan makes a perfect DD (in fact I want to get my wife one, but she won't give up her 997), but it's too small for longer trips or family vacations; for that you need the Cayenne or larger, depending on your family size.

Seanlabonte

I am in a similar situation and needing to upgrade to an SUV with a 3rd baby on the way

Being that I work at a Porsche Audi dealership we have been kicking around the many choice's we are surrounded with. I used to own a Q5 (2016) and that has left a bad taste with us because the suv was not "sporty" and the suspension was too soft. With a toddler and a baby at the time it was not big enough to store a stroller and the toddler's essentials at the same time when traveling, which meant packing the back seat around the kids like a gypsy caravan. The newer Q5 is a vast improvement as far as handling and power but size-wise is still lacking, we are still thinking about possibly going with a SQ5 as the upgraded looks and power would be a compromise to the size, especially now since my kids are older 9 and 7. With all 3 of them being boys we can travel light.

Macan also being a choice for us (S or GTS) makes as much sense as the SQ5 but interior room is that much smaller (for a family of 5). If we only had one kid it would be more than adequate considering the stroller would go in the back and we would still have room their as well as around the back seat of the vehicle (gypsy stuffing lighlty)

Cayenne and Q7 being the next step up - Q7 having a 3rd row is great to have but with 3 boys the electric folding seats are way to tempting for them to be used as pneumatic fun slides when no one is watching. Which means they will lay in the folded-up position 99% of the time we own it which is a bit of a waste but gives us a ton of room to store strollers, groceries, BMX bikes, etc... Q7 is a bit intimidating for my wife though, she was able to drive a friend of hers Q7 for a while and it was not confidence building for her. Granted she is coming out of a A3 which handles the road like a loose roller skate and with both arms extended out to your sides you can reach both door handles no problem (still manages to hit curbs... )

Cayenne seems to make the most sense for us, not wanting a huge SUV but still having enough room to seat 5 comfortable and have enough storage space in the rear for a stroller and other items without having to stuff everything in there. Price range is decent and comes with all the options we would ever need and styling wise it looks amazing. Sportiness and handling is a huge upgrade with the base 2019 feeling more like previous years Cayenne S model and better choices in wheels and interior colors is a plus.

Just my two cents based on my experiences.

kayjh

pokingaround

Isn't the new Macan more of a refresh, with the primary updates being the interior (dash and center stack) and engines to match the new Audi-sourced line up? i.e. wouldn't ride quality be more or less the same since it's the same platform?

wwahl

What he drove was without AS. That would make a huge difference no matter what the year Macan.

pokingaround

Wasn't and wouldn't question that. I was questioning the parallel he seemed to be drawing between the changes in the Cayenne, which is entirely new, and those in the Macan, which is not.

Vise

Agreed, the 2019 Macan is a refresh with some updated tech + design elements but the same platform. While there may be tweaks I don't think anyone should expect it to drive substantially different than the 2018 and earlier models assuming a like for like spec.