Today this car is arguably one of the SUVs with the most sporty genes. Although it was controversial among fans at the beginning of its launch, it is indeed a typical example of a successful car story, and it is the Porsche Cayenne.
Cayenne R&D background
Porsche is a traditional sports car manufacturer known for producing premium sports cars. In the early 90s of the last century, due to high product prices, family infighting and low production efficiency, Porsche's sales fell sharply, suffered serious losses, and the brand fell into an unprecedented crisis and even went bankrupt. In order to survive this difficult situation, Porsche urgently needed to introduce a new low-cost model to expand its market share, and in this context, at the 1993 North American Auto Show, the Porsche Boxster (the predecessor of the Porsche 718) was born.
Since the mid-nineties, several German car giants have stepped into the field of urban SUVs. Mercedes-Benz released the ML-Class in 1997, and the BMW Group is working on its own X5 with Range Rover technology after acquiring Land Rover in 1994. At the end of 1997, Porsche announced that it was about to develop a new SUV. As soon as this news came out, it instantly detonated public opinion. Despite Porsche's self-confidence, Ferry Porsche (whose father created the Porsche brand and his son designed the Porsche 911) once said: "If you build a Porsche off-road car to our quality standards and have a Porsche coat of arms on the front cover, people will buy it." But people have the preconceived impression that Porsche should only build luxury sports cars, "Porsche wants to build an SUV? How is that possible? This must be crazy and hard to imagine." ”
With no experience in the development of SUV models, Porsche decided to find a partner to work with the car. Volkswagen, led by Ferdinand Piech (Ferry Polcher's nephew), is also planning to enter the luxury car segment. In June 1997, the two parties officially reached a cooperation agreement and started a project called "Colorado". The two companies have established a 300-person R&D team at Porsche's R&D center in Weissach in Stuttgart to build the PL71 platform. This is the production platform for the Volkswagen Touareg, Audi Q7 and Porsche Cayenne.
First generation Cayenne (2002-2010)
In September 2002, the first five-seater SUV of the Porsche brand, the original Cayenne, was unveiled at the Paris International Motor Show.
The exterior adopts a streamlined design like a sports car, rendering a strong sense of sportiness. The front of the car uses the same design language as the Porsche 911 and Boxster, with the fenders and headlights at the highest point higher than the front lid.
Developed and produced on the same platform as the Volkswagen Touareg, the doors and front windshield of the original Cayenne are identical to those of the original Touareg.
The original Touareg and the original Cayenne
The interior was also strongly influenced by Volkswagen. Porsche's iconic five-link instrument cluster layout has also been changed accordingly.
Power is the Cayenne's core selling point. The standard version is equipped with a 3.2-liter V6 engine with a maximum power of 250Ps and a peak torque of 310Nm. In addition to the basic model, the more powerful Cayenne S and Turbo versions are also available. The Cayenne S is powered by a 4.5-liter V8 engine with a maximum power of 340 PS and a maximum torque of 420 Nm, while the Turbo version uses a engine of the same displacement with a maximum power of 450 PS and a maximum torque of 620 Nm.
In 2006, Porsche launched the Cayenne's flagship model, the Cayenne Turbo S. The car is equipped with a 4.5-liter twin-turbo V8 engine with a maximum power of 521Ps, a peak torque of 720Nm, and a top speed of 270km/h. At the time, the car became the world's fastest original SUV.
In addition to its power, the Cayenne is also equipped with a full-time all-wheel drive system. The center differential is in the form of a multi-plate clutch, which not only distributes torque between the front and rear axles, but also locks it manually if necessary, while the rear axle can also be optionally equipped with a differential locking mechanism.
This all-wheel drive system gives the Cayenne a good guarantee of stability on the road and has room to play on off-road roads.
In 2007, the original Cayenne received a mid-life facelift, with the main focus on appearance and power. The headlights, taillights, and bumpers have been redesigned, but the interior has not changed significantly.
In terms of power, the standard Cayenne has been replaced with a 3.6-liter V6 engine with a maximum power of 290 ps, while the Cayenne S and Turbo have a displacement of 4.8 liters with a maximum power of 385 ps and 500 ps, respectively.
The first generation of the Cayenne was an instant success, and the car was well received at the time, with sales not only not sluggish, but even rising. From 2002 to 2010, the cumulative global sales exceeded 270,000 units in eight years.
Porsche had also planned a derivative of the original Cayenne, the Cayenne Cabrilet, but this project was not carried out and was hastily completed after a prototype was built. The open-top Cayenne prototype is currently in the Porsche Museum.
2nd generation Cayenne (2010-2017)
In March 2010, the second-generation Cayenne was unveiled at the Geneva International Motor Show.
The exterior of the car has been completely redesigned, the overall visual effect is more compact and dynamic, and it has become more youthful and stylish compared to the previous model.
The interior is completely detached from the shadow of the public, and the sense of luxury and texture has been greatly improved. The design concept is closer to Porsche's sports car models, with an integrated centre console and vertical air conditioning vents as classic Porsche design elements.
The standard variant is powered by a 3.6-liter V6 engine with a maximum output of 300 ps, the Cayenne S is powered by a 4.8-liter V8 self-aspirated engine with a maximum power of 400 ps, and the Cayenne Turbo is powered by a 4.8-liter V8 twin-turbo engine with a maximum power of 500 ps. There is also a Cayenne S Hybrid with a 3.0-litre V6 supercharged engine from Audi.
On June 26, 2010, the second-generation Cayenne was officially launched in Chinese mainland. Although the official name is "Cayenne", everyone is still used to calling it "Cayenne". In China, only the basic model, the Cayenne S and the Cayenne Turbo have been introduced, with prices ranging from CNY 866,000 to CNY 2,035,000. It was from this time that the Cayenne became one of the must-buy models for successful people and local tyrants in China. And at that time, the Cayenne was extremely popular in China: if you wanted to pick up the car, you had to wait in line until a year later.
On the eve of the 2012 Beijing Motor Show, the second generation of the Cayenne GTS made its world premiere.
The car is equipped with a high-tuned version of the 4.8-litre V8 self-aspirating engine with a maximum output of 420PS, mated to an 8-speed Tiptronic S transmission. Thanks to this powerful powertrain, the Cayenne GTS accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 5.7 seconds and reaches a top speed of 261 km/h.
In October 2014, the second-generation Cayenne received a mid-life facelift. The facelifted model gets a larger front grille and a new look at the LED taillights.
In terms of power, the Cayenne has entered the supercharged era: the old 3.6-litre self-aspirated engine has been replaced by a 3.0-liter supercharged engine, while the 4.8-litre self-aspirated engine has been replaced by a 3.6-liter V6 twin-turbo engine.
Between 2011 and 2016, the second-generation Cayenne sold a total of 400,000 units worldwide. Before the launch of the Porsche Macan, the Cayenne accounted for almost half of the brand's sales. For every 10 Cayenne produced at the Porsche plant, three are shipped to China. Today, China has also replaced the United States as the single largest country in the world in terms of Porsche's sales.
第三代Cayenne(2017-至今)
On August 29, 2017, Porsche unveiled the third-generation Cayenne at its headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany. The car is based on the Volkswagen Group's MLB Evo platform and uses a large number of lightweight materials. The interior and exterior styling and all three major parts have been newly developed, and they are also equipped with many new technologies.
The exterior design is similar to that of its predecessor, with a longer, wider and shorter overall shape, further enhancing the sporty look. In terms of details, the opening area of the front grille has become wider and the visual effect is more aggressive. The rear adopts the popular through-type taillight design.
The following year, the Coupe was also introduced with a fastback styling design.
The interior has changed quite dramatically, with a large number of touch-sensitive designs and a stronger sense of technology overall. On the center console is a 12.3-inch high-definition touchscreen that covers most of the vehicle's settings.
The technology of the third-generation Cayenne has been significantly improved, with all chassis systems being newly developed, with the exception of the standard active PASM shock absorber system. Electric rear-axle steering is also available on this generation, and Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control is also available as an option.
In terms of power, the base and Cayenne S are equipped with an EA839 engine, with the base version using a 3.0-litre single-turbo engine and the Cayenne S using a 2.9-litre twin-turbo engine. The Cayenne GTS and Turbo models are powered by a 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbo engine. The current generation of the Cayenne has replaced the Turbo S with the addition of a plug-in hybrid version of the Cayenne E-Hybrid.
At the 2023 Shanghai Motor Show, Porsche made the world premiere of the Cayenne facelift. The car has a new exterior and interior design, and the upgrades to the power and chassis systems are quite noticeable.
The exterior has been tweaked for the grille, body surrounds, bonnet and headlights, while the three-section air intakes are larger overall and incorporate LED daytime running lights. The headlights have also been upgraded to matrix LED light clusters.
The interior has undergone a radical change, from the dashboard to the centre console, which has been completely redesigned: while retaining the Cayenne features, it has borrowed elements from the Taycan to enhance the comfort and functionality of the sporty luxury. For the first time, the 10.9-inch passenger display, available in the front seats, displays performance data and allows for separate access to the operating infotainment system.
For Porsche, the Cayenne is a huge significance, and for the past 20 years, the Cayenne has been the backbone of Porsche, supporting half of the brand's sales. Today, the Cayenne is another very important presence for Porsche, in addition to the supercar label.