PORSCHE'S Cayenne is now available with a diesel engine. Gasp of breath. It is Porsche's first ever diesel car. Not long ago they said it would never happen. Pouring oily diesel into a Porsche? Akin to serving a haggis with chocolate sauce.
On the Cayenne's arrival at the LA Show in 2003 many scoffed at the idea of a Porsche that was not a sports car, but the Cayenne all-roader stacked up the company profits, takes 50% of sales today and gave Porsche enough cash to take control of the V
olkswagen Group. In case you don't know, that means VW plus Audi, Seat, Skoda, Lamborghini, Bentley and Bugatti.
Cayenne is built in Leipzig and was planned as a joint venture with VW's Touareg, and the latter was quickly equipped with a V6 three-litre diesel to offset the thirst and carbon emissions of a big 4x4.
Porsche said it was not interested in diesel for the Cayenne. It doesn't make diesel engines these days, but did make a diesel tractor 60 years ago. Yes, my other tractor's a Porsche.
In the past few years diesel engines have dominated 4x4s, taking 80% of the luxury sector in Europe and 86% in Great Britain. Tougher petrol prices and CO2-based tax have made a thirsty petrol 4x4 as popular as, well, a chocolate haggis.
Sales of new and old 4x4s have been diving anyway during the sudden shortage of money, as owners trying to offload them have discovered. Council estates are now awash with cut-price older 4x4s.
The V6 petrol and V8 Cayenne petrol models have been badly hit. Would you want to run a 550bhp Turbo S right now? There are also the awkward connotations of having an expensive vehicle if you are a boss who is having to lay off staff, or put them on a four-day week or lower wages.
Porsche could have done with a diesel Cayenne before the fan of disquiet blew the manure heap across the manicured lawn that is public sensibility. Today, though, it does have a diesel Cayenne, using the VW V6 from the Touareg and Audi Q7. It is a fine engine in them and it is a fine engine in the Cayenne, rescuing owners from heavy petrol bills.
Porsche says it has adjusted the power delivery slightly to suit the Cayenne but agrees the changes are "not significant". I suppose it would not do to put the VW/Audi motor into the more expensive Cayenne without claiming some changes?
Fitted with Porsche's Tiptronic automatic gears it costs £39,404. The 3.6-litre petrol Cayenne with Tiptronic shifting costs about £900 less.
The near four-figure premium for diesel is not unusual, but remember this is not a Porsche diesel, whereas the petrol V6 is thoroughly Porsche and in that sense is better value The two models look the same except for diesel-related details in the instrumentation.
The diesel Cayenne has a double laminate windscreen to keep diesel noise and vibration out of the passenger area, and there is additional noise insulation under the bonnet. It is a convincing package, with smooth running, a confident wuffle from the fat oval exhaust tubes and the prospect of 30mpg from this convincing all-rounder.
The VW engine technology, with a variable vane turbocharger, maximises low-speed pull and high-speed power and moderates consumption and emissions.
Porsche expects Cayenne petrol sales to plummet as customers go diesel. In A to B performance there is not much to choose between them. With 240bhp the diesel Cayenne Tiptronic manages 0-62mph in 8.3 seconds and a maximum of 133mph. The 290bhp petrol V6 Cayenne with manual gears is marginally slower to 62mph, in 8.5 seconds, and can reach 141mph. The diesel's torque of 405lb ft shades the 284lb ft from the petrol V6 and gives more pulling power, better trailer towing and a more relaxed performance.
Diesel takes the awards on mileage and carbon emissions. Figures of 30.4mpg combined and 244g/km CO2 look good when compared with 21.9 mpg and 310g/km for the petrol V6. Given the right conditions you can expect more than 600 miles between tank refills with the diesel Cayenne.
Many Porsche buyers take up the offer of a driving day at its Silverstone Driving Experience. Here you can experience the hill-holder mechanism. Automatic models, like the diesel, will stand still on an incline when you take your foot off the accelerator, by locking the transmission. Typically this is of use waiting in traffic, or making a hill start.
There is also a one-in-one downward ramp, too steep for the hill descent control in low-ratio gears. By careful use of the brake you can inch the Cayenne down the ridged 45-degree concrete surface.
Vehicle Porsche CayennePrice £39,404
Engine In-house Volkswagen Group 2,967cc V6 turbo diesel producing 240bhp
Top speed 141mph
Economy 30.4mpg
