Porsche Chayenne

Ten years ago, the idea of a Porsche sport utility vehicle would have seemed absurd. And the reason is not that it lacks experience with off-road cars since their engineering have developed all-wheel-drive military vehicles. It’s more that, compared to General Motors, Toyota or Daimler-Chrysler, the automotive giants, Porsche represents a tiny fraction of the production volume. For 50 years, the company has produced quick, nimble, small sports car, or in other words, the opposite of the SUV’s. When Porsche decided to invest in an SUV and a new factory to build it, it became clear the times, as well as our taste, have changed.

And now, after creating the most anticipated new Porsche in decades, the company is proud that its SUV is what many expected it would be: technically slick and remarkably fast, with on-road handling that beliesits bulk. Also, the Cayenne delivers what most SUV buyers demand, including decent cargo space, more than enough capability for casual off-road use, and impressive towing capacity.

When it comes to pricing, Cayenne is a true Porsche. A very expensive Porsche. With tax and license, a loaded Cayenne Turbo can crack the $100,000 barrier, and that alone will knock it off most shopping lists. But for the connoisseurs, the Porsche Cayenne will be truly appreciated for its performance and driving satisfaction.

Porsche Cayman

In comparison of the engine, The Porsche Cayman is positioned between the Boxster and 911. Still, it has its own different personality. It is snappier, easier, and not burdened by heavy weight hanging out the back and the need to manage the effect of that weight.

The Cayman is strictly a two-seater because the engine sits where the rear seats would otherwise be. This means that the engine is not quite readily accessible, although there's a way into the oil filler via the boot. Under that long tailgate, is revealed a generous luggage area to supplement the front 911/Boxster-sized boot. Like all other Porsche, the Cayman is not very big, which makes it very practical and usable. And for all its obvious Boxster genes, the Cayman is very much its own car with its curvaceous rear wine and neat fastback roof. As with other Porsches, there's a movable rear spoiler, which deploys above 120km/h.

Going back to were we started, the engine, the Cayman has 3.4 litres, a mix of the cylinder barrels of a 911 with the crankshaft of a Boxster. A 911 engine is of 3.6 or 3.8 liters and a Boxster S has a 3.2-litre engine. It's a strange thing, but even though today's Porsche engines are water-cooled, they still overlay their intake and exhaust notes with a breathy whine like that of the giant air-cooling fans of old.

Basically, the Cayman is a mix and it doesn’t have a huge number of new and unique parts. In short, the Cayman is a structure two and a half times stiffer because it’s just a Boxster with a roof. In turn, that means that the driving experience becomes much more focused because its suspension can have tauter, sportier setting.

Porsche Cayman reaches a maximum speed of 275 km/h and gets from zero to 100 km/h in 5.3 seconds, even if the fuel thirst is low for such pace. The Cayman is especially good with the optional Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM), but unlike a 911, it works well enough without it, thanks to a ride that's firm but seldom turbulent. PASM makes the Cayman sit 10mm lower, and in its Sport mode it tautens the damping. And it feels absolutely fantastic when you have the Chrono option (complete with stopwatch for timing your hot laps).

Bottom line, Porsche Cayman is a remarkable illustration of a rigid, solid-roofed bodyshell's advantages. The Cayman S has all the positive Porsche attributes you could want, and none of the snags. It's not the fastest Porsche, not the fiercest, not the most breathtaking. It is a pooling of other Porsche parts, which means that the Cayman is not expensive to develop but it will generate big profits. The new car, by the way, takes its name not from a tax-haven archipelago, but from a type of crocodile.