No complaints here about how the $60,850 V-6 engine version of Porsche's Cayenne sport-utility vehicle behaves on the road. Now, if Porsche would iron out some of the details of user-friendliness in what the company has billed as a Porsche for soccer moms, we'd have something here.
The German sport car maker has nailed the driving dynamics side of the equation, at least as far as trucks go. The cornering is pretty flat, steering tight, brakes powerful and the overall ride, while stiff, is not punishing.
And the 3.2-litre V-6 engine, a modified version of the V-6 sold in the Cayenne's sister SUV (the Volkswagen Touareg), spins up a healthy 247 horsepower and 228 lb-ft of torque starting at 2,500 rpm (versus 220 hp/225 ft-lb in the V-6 Touareg).
So if that is all good, why serve up so many little irritants?
For instance, the coin holder is buried at the bottom of the glove box. Wouldn't it make more sense to have parking meter change handy? As it stands now, the driver needs to reach all the way across the centre console and shifter, open up the glove box and root around for quarters and loonies.
I know this because I found the coin holder when I went looking for the owner's manual to explain how the air conditioning system's temperature control system works. It isn't obvious. And after 20 years of reviewing new and used vehicles, when I come across an unintuitive device like this, I get irritated.
I bet soccer moms would, too.
I had figured out the temperature control button: just push it up or down. The tricky part is determining whether the control is sending things into hot or cold territory.
I learned a bar display shows the temperature setting. If a bar cannot be seen, the AC is at max; if all the bars are showing, the heater is running full-on. I'm sure this design makes immediate sense to someone.
Then, there's the remote key fob. Most of the time, the one for my tester didn't work. Over and over I punched and punched. Nothing. Nada.
I even checked out the fob's operation in the owner's manual, to make sure Porsche hadn't dreamed up some other trick. Apparently not.
The culprit was probably a bad battery. But I don't think batteries should fail in a brand new vehicle which, as equipped, lists for $67,685 (extras included 18-inch Cayenne Turbo wheels, driver's seat memory, floor mats, collapsible spare tire, power moonroof, heated front seat and steering wheel).
Granted, these are extremely small irritants, as are the audio controls on the instrument panel. The too-tiny buttons are hard enough to operate without gloves on; in winter, they would be impossible.
But these bits and pieces add up, especially in initial quality surveys produced by people like market research firm J.D. Power and Associates. I am not surprised to see Porsche ranked near the bottom of J.D. Power's most recent Initial Quality Study, with 159 problems per 100 vehicles.
The industry average for IQS in 2004 was 119. Only Volkswagen (164) and Hummer (173) scored worst.
The V-6 Cayenne, of course, is one of three versions of the Porsche SUV to come to Canada. The priciest of the bunch is the Cayenne Turbo (450 hp) at $125,100. In the middle is the V-8 Cayenne S, listing for $78,250.
Obviously, Porsche is playing at the higher end of the SUV market. No surprise there. Porsche is a premium brand, therefore its most expensive SUV should go against high-priced machinery such as the Mercedes-Benz G500 ($110,500, 292 hp) and Land Rover Range Rover ($98,000, 282 hp).
The V-6 Cayenne pushes Porsche down into the price range of the similarly sized Infiniti FX45 ($60,200) with its 315-hp V-8. I would also throw the Acura MDX into the mix, along with the BMW X5 V-6, Cadillac SRX, Lexus GX 470, Mercedes-Benz M-Class and the VW Touareg.
Without question, the Cayenne looks like a Porsche SUV. Some have argued this is not a good thing, that they don't like the styling. For me, it looks fine.
Porsche has equipped even the most basic Cayenne with loads of standard features, from an excellent all-wheel-drive system and six-speed Tiptronic automatic transmission, leather interior, power windows/door locks/mirrors and digital radio with in-dash compact disc player with 12 speakers.
The front seats are very firm and extraordinarily supportive. Lots of head and leg room, too.
Rear-seat passengers are well cared for, with a storage console, cup holders, vents and temperature controls. In the cargo hold, you get power outlets, cargo hooks and a tonneau cover to hide packages.
For safety, there is not only AWD, but stability control, dual side-curtain airbags that protect the outboard occupants and a load of other equipment. This is a safe truck, although it has not been crashed or rollover tested by the United States National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
I took the V-6 Cayenne through the usual urban paces, with no off-road portion (though I have driven other Cayennes in the bush). I can attest to the good grip of the AWD in slippery conditions and in higher-speed cornering.
Porsche Stability Management and Porsche Traction Management work together to orchestrate the efforts of a multiplate clutch that splits drive between front and rear wheels and the traction-control system, which plays with power delivery from the engine and braking on individual wheels.
It is a complicated arrangement, but the results are excellent. The car can control itself better on slick surfaces than the driver can.
The Cayenne's electronics balance power and grip against steering angle to maintain steady progress around slick corners. The traction management system is effective for controlling wheel spin on off-road bits and in winter start-ups.
There is a weight penalty for all the gizmos, both mechanical and electronic. The Cayenne weighs a hefty 2,170 kilograms, which among other considerations puts fuel economy at a mediocre 15.6 city/12.2 highway (litres/100 kilometres).
The Cayenne V-6 performs mostly as billed. The styling works, the performance is commendable. The devil, however, remains in the details.
Specifications
2004 Porsche Cayenne
Type: Mid-size luxury SUV
Price: $60,850
Engine: 3.2-litre inline V-6 (DOHC)
Output: 247 hp/228 lb-ft of torque
Transmission: Six-speed
electronic Tiptronic automatic
Fuel economy (litres/100 km): 15.6 city, 12.2 hwy
Alternatives: Infiniti FX35/45, Acura MDX, BMW X5, Cadillac SRX, Lexus GX 470, Mercedes-Benz M-Class, VW Touareg
Likes: Excellent driving dynamics; comfortable cabin; array of safety features; Porsche cachet
Dislikes: Little irritants like a faulty key fob and a coin holder buried in the glove box; Porsche's below-average IQS scores; mediocre fuel economy
