2009 Porsche Cayenne

My first classic sports car was a Porsche. It was a rusty and battered 1961 356 “bathtub” coupe. I bought it out from under a stack of firewood and pushed it home. But the sturdy little car gave me years of enjoyment and mechanical experience before I traded it to another enthusiast who was looking to experience the Porsche mystique. I got an Alfa Romeo as my half of the trade, and that opened an entirely different love affair from my end.

Porsches are idiosyncratic sports cars. With old ones like the 356 or early 911, you have to learn special skills to drive them fast, but they reward you with fantastic performance when you drive them right. That’s one of the reasons people love Porsches – not just anyone can hop in and go fast. There’s an initiation period.

Like many lovers of old Porsches, I blinked a few times when the boys from Stuttgart decided to jump on the SUV bandwagon. What could they possibly be thinking? But then last spring, I participated in a journalists’ track day at Laguna Seca raceway and I got the chance to take a Cayenne S out for hot laps with a Porsche driving instructor there to coach me around. The experience was nothing short of amazing. The coach kept urging me to go faster, to take the Cayenne farther out towards the edge of control. I think any other SUV would have spun, crashed, rolled, or otherwise given up the ghost, but the Cayenne cut hot laps like a 944.

So fast forward to this week – the biggest snowstorm in 40 years in the Pacific Northwest – and I have the Cayenne GTS for evaluation. The GTS uses a normally-aspirated 4.8-liter V8 engine, making 405 horsepower and 369 pound-feet of torque. Power is delivered to all four wheels through a 6-speed manual – yes, I said manual – transmission. You can still get an automatic “Tiptronic” box if you want one, but Porsche’s standard Cayenne GTS is a three-pedal car.

The basic Cayenne GTS will do 0-60 in 5.7 seconds, and has a governed top speed of 157 MPH. It retails for a handsome $70,900 - tall money compared to most SUVs, but right in there for Porsches and for the class of SUV in which the Cayenne competes. Did I mention 405 horsepower?

Inside, the Cayenne is pure Porsche. Leather-covered surfaces, all modern conveniences such as satellite radio and navigation, heated seats that will roast your hiney if you crank ‘em up, and very comfortable accommodations for adults in all 5 seats.

The Cayenne comes with brakes big enough to stop a locomotive and tires capable of delivering a commanding performance on the race track. Oh yeah, you can raise and lower the suspension if you buy that option.

The model I tested was tricked out with many fun options, including the leather interior ($3,170), Xenon HID headlights ($1,560), Bluetooth hands-free phone system ($3,070), heated seats and steering wheel ($560), Satellite radio ($750), dynamic chassis control ($3,510), and a Bose surround sound stereo ($1,665). There’s more, such as moonroof and floor mats, but those are the biggies. So the test car booked out at a breathtaking $87,740.

But for that money you get an SUV that will shame most sports cars on a race track and as I have discovered, handles winter weather like a champ. The Cayenne simply laughs at snow and ice. My old 356 was also great in the snow, as you would expect from any German car. The combination of narrow tires and the weight of the engine right over the rear wheels gave the old bathtub surprising get-up-and-go on slick surfaces. Just don’t ever lift off the gas in a corner!

The Cayenne, on the other hand, has state-of-the-art traction control and stability management, mated to full time AWD. The Cayenne will still slew a bit if you lift off the gas on ice, but then it gets itself back under control very nicely. To stay on an icy road in the old cars you need to have Stirling Moss driving skills, but in the Cayenne you just have to avoid being stupid.

One thing I must describe is the transmission. It’s incredible to find an SUV with a manual gearbox these days, and the shifting action is great on the Cayenne. The gears are well-selected for acceleration and smooth street and freeway driving.

The place where Porsche couldn’t work its magic was in the clutch. The laws of physics work against the Cayenne here. With its curb weight at nearly 5,000 pounds and 369 pound-feet of torque coming from the engine, the clutch on the Cayenne is a serious chunk of hardware, and you can feel it. There’s no getting around the fact that the Cayenne shifts like a truck. This is not a bad thing per se, but everything else about the Cayenne is nice-nice Porsche sports car goodness, so the shifting takes a bit of getting used to.

With gas prices back down to 2004 levels (for now, anyway), the stated fuel economy of 11/17 (or 13/18 with the Tiptronic transmission) probably won’t scare away buyers who are otherwise ready to plunk down 70 to 90 thousand dollars on a Cayenne.

So, to the bottom line. This is a great, fun SUV. It’s got a lovely interior and when the weather’s dry, the Cayenne GTS is a real screamer. It’s also capable, safe, and confidence-inspiring on ice and snow. This SUV is worthy of the Porsche crest on its nose. If you’re shopping the high-end SUV market, make sure you drive the Cayenne before you make your choice. If you’re a sports car enthusiast, you’ll like what you find.

Written by Jeff Zurschmeide of northwestautoreview.com