Porsche Cayenne 2021 review: GTS

At just over 4.9m long, close to 2.0m wide, and nudging 1.7m high, the current Cayenne is substantial without venturing into over-size, seven-seat SUV territory.

The GTS is also offered as a swoopy five-door coupe, but the more conventional wagon version tested here still manages to dial up the performance personality.

Porsche’s ‘SportDesign’ treatment has been applied liberally, from the body-coloured front apron (with spoiler attached) to the tough (satin black) wheel arch mouldings, as well as specific side skirts and rear apron.

The GTS features tough (satin black) wheel arch mouldings.

Rims are 21-inch ‘RS Spyder Design’, also finished in satin black, the broad bonnet features a raised ‘power dome’ section in the centre, while the side window trims and twin dual-tube tailpipes look all business in high-gloss black. But it’s not just a cosmetic treatment. 

Large air intakes either side of the main grille include active flaps to balance adequate cooling and aero efficiency. When closed, the flaps reduce air resistance, opening as the need for cooling increases.

Large air intakes either side of the main grille include active flaps to balance adequate cooling and aero efficiency.

Air curtains also allow air to escape from the front wheel arches, accelerating it and helping it ‘stick’ to the car to reduce turbulence, the underbody is almost completely covered to cut drag, and the tailgate incorporates an integrated roof spoiler to help with stability. 

Inside the GTS continues the dynamic theme with leather and Alcantara trim (complete with ‘deviated’ contrast stitching) covering the seats. 

The tailgate incorporates an integrated roof spoiler to help with stability.

Porsche’s signature five dial instrument cluster under a low arch binnacle is presented with a hi-tech twist in the shape of two 7.0-inch configurable TFT displays flanking the central tachometer. They’re able to switch from conventional gauges, to nav maps, car function readouts, and a lot more.

The central 12.3-inch multimedia screen is seamlessly integrated into the dash, sitting above a broad, tapering centre console. Gloss black finishes, highlighted by brushed metal elements lift the air of quality and sense of occasion. 

The central 12.3-inch multimedia screen is seamlessly integrated into the dash.

When it comes to exterior colours, there’s a choice of seven metallic shades - ‘Jet Black’, ‘Moonlight Blue’ (our test car’s colour), ‘Biskay Blue’, ‘Carrara White’, ‘Quarzite Grey’, ‘Mahogany’, and ‘Dolomite Silver.’ Non-metallic black or whire are no-cost options.

Yes, this a Porsche, with all the performance potential and engineering integrity the name brings with it. But if that’s all you want you’d be reading one of our 911 or 718 reviews.

You’re here for a decent slab of day-to-day practicality to go with your B-road blasting ambitions. And the Cayenne GTS has been designed with family functionality in mind. 

There’s plenty of space for the driver and front seat passenger.

For a start, the car’s generous footprint, including a healthy 2895mm wheelbase, means there’s plenty of space for the driver and front seat passenger, and in this wagon version particularly, lots of head, shoulder and legroom for those in the back.

That said, Porsche describes the rear seating as a ‘2+1’ configuration, recognising the centre position is not an ideal adult-sized, long-distance proposition.

Porsche describes the rear seating as a ‘2+1’ configuration.Storage options include a decent glove box, a lidded compartment between the front seats (which doubles as an armrest), a small oddments tray in the front console, extra space under the driver and front passenger seats, door pockets with room for bottles front and rear, as well as map pockets on the front seat backrests.

The cupholder count runs to two in the front, and two in the rear, with connectivity/power options including two USB-C charging/connectivity ports in the front storage compartment, another two (power-only outlets) in the rear, and three 12V power sockets (two in the front and one in the boot). There’s also a 4G/LTE (Long Term Evolution) phone module and Wi-Fi hotspot.

Boot volume is 745 litres VDA (to the upper edge of the rear seats), and you can play with the space courtesy of manual fore/aft and backrest tilt adjustment on the back seat.

A netted section on the passenger side of the cargo space is handy for keeping small items under control, while tie-down anchors are in place to help keep bigger things secure.

Drop the 40/20/40 split-folding rear seat and capacity grows to 1680 litres (measured from behind the front seats to the roof), Utility is further enhanced by an auto tailgate and the ability to lower the rear by 100mm (at the touch of a boot-mounted button). Just enough to make loading big, heavy stuff that little bit easier.  

The spare is a collapsible space saver, and those keen on hooking up the van/boat/horse float will be happy to know the Cayenne GTS’s braked trailer towing capacity is 3.5 tonnes (750kg unbraked).

The spare is a collapsible space saver.

But bear in mind, while ‘Trailer Stability Management’ and ‘preparation for towbar systems’ are standard, the actual hardware isn’t.

The GTS sits in the middle of Porsche's six model Australian Cayenne line-up, and cost-of-entry is $192,500, before on-road costs.

That puts it in the same price (and performance) ballpark as the BMW X5 M Competition ($209,900), Maserati Levante S GranSport ($182,490), Range Rover Sport HSE Dynamic ($177,694), and Mercedes-AMG GLE 63 S ($230,400).

Quite the competitive set, and beside the powertrain and standard safety tech, covered later in this review, the Cayenne GTS boasts an impressive standard equipment list, including, leather trim (with Alcantara in the seat centres), as well as heated and eight-way electrically-adjustable sports front seats (with driver’s side memory). The Alcantara also extends to the front and rear (door) armrests, front centre console, roof lining, pillars, and sunvisors.

‘Comfort’ front seats (14-way electric with memory) are a no-cost option, which is nice, but I reckon front seat cooling should be standard, while it’s actually a $2120 option.

Also included is a leather-trimmed, multi-function sports steering wheel (with gearshift paddles), heated electrically-folding exterior mirrors, dual-zone climate control, rain-sensing wipers, a panoramic roof, twin hi-res, configurable instrument displays, keyless entry and start, a head-up display, and cruise control.

The 12.3-inch central multimedia screen provides access to the Porsche Communication Management (PCM) system including nav, mobile phone connection (with voice control), the 14-speaker/710-watt Bose ‘Surround Sound System’ (including digital radio), Apple CarPlay, and a range of ‘Porsche Connect’ services.

Also included are tinted LED headlights, featuring the ‘Porsche Dynamic Light System’ (adjusts dipped beam range in line with road speed), ‘four-point’ LED daytime running lights, tinted LED tail-lights (with three-dimensional P-O-R-S-C-H-E lighting graphics), plus four-point brake lights.

The GTS features tinted LED headlights.

Even in this premium part of the market that’s a healthy basket of standard fruit, but it’s worth noting the performance-enhancing, multi-data readout providing ‘Sport Chrono Package’ (as fitted to our test car) adds $2300. I reckon if you’ve come this far, it’s worth adding for that extra bit of fizz.

The Cayenne GTS is powered by Porsche’s (EA826) 4.0-litre V8 engine, an all-alloy, 90-degree unit featuring direct-injection, ‘VarioCam’ variable valve timing (on the intake side), and a pair of twin-scroll turbos to produce 338kW from 6000-6500rpm and 620Nm from just 1800rpm all the way to 4500rpm.

The Cayenne GTS is powered by Porsche’s (EA826) 4.0-litre V8 engine.

This engine is also used in several Panamera variants, as well as VW Group models from Audi (A8, RS 6, RS 7, RS Q8) and Lamborghini (Urus). In all installations the twin-scroll turbos are mounted in the engine’s ‘hot vee’ for optimal packaging and short gas paths (from the exhaust to the turbos and back to the inlet side) for quick spool up. 

Drive goes to all four wheels via an eight-speed ‘Tiptronic S’ (torque converter) automatic transmission, and the ‘Porsche Traction Management’ (PTM) system, an active AWD set-up built around an electronically-variable multi-plate clutch.

Porsche’s official fuel economy figure for the Cayenne GTS, on the ADR 81/02 - urban, extra-urban cycle, is 12.2L/100km, the 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 emitting 276 g/km of C02 in the process.

To minimise fuel use, at low engine speeds, under modest torque load, Porsche’s ‘Adaptive Cylinder Control’ interrupts the injection process for one of the cylinder banks, and the V8 temporarily becomes an in-line four. 

In a piece of typical Porsche attention to detail, while the car is operating in this mode the cylinder bank is changed every 20 seconds to ensure a uniform flow through the catalytic converters.

Despite this tricky tech, a standard stop/start system, and the ability to coast in certain situations (the engine is physically decoupled to reduce its braking effect), over a week of city, suburban, and some freeway running, we averaged 16.4L/100km (at the pump), which is a miss, but not a massive one, and we saw an average of 12.8L/100km over a weekend highway road trip.

Recommended fuel is 98 RON premium unleaded although 95 RON is acceptable at a pinch. Either way, you’ll need 90 litres of it to fill the tank, which is enough for a range of just under 740km using the factory economy figure, and close to 550km based on our real-world number.

This is where you have to suspend disbelief, because in a more logical world the idea of creating a high-riding, 2.1-tonne, five-seat SUV, and then engineering it to accelerate and handle like a low-slung, lightweight, sports car wouldn’t exist.

And it feels like that’s the mystery Porsche’s engineering boffins in Zuffenhausen were grappling with for the first half of the Cayenne’s (so far) close to 20-year lifespan. How do we deal with this? How do we make it look and feel like a Porsche?

Over the last 10 years the Cayenne has evolved into a unified, recognisably Porsche, dynamic package. And clearly, with the third generation version of the car, those white-coated techs have wrapped their heads around the concept fully, because this GTS is a great drive.

This third generation version GTS is a great drive.

First, some numbers. The ‘standard’ Cayenne GTS is claimed to accelerate from 0-100km/h in 4.8 seconds, 0-160km/h in 10.9sec, and 0-200km/h 17.9sec, which is properly rapid for such a solid beast.

Add the optional ‘Sport Chrono Package’ (which in part tweaks the chassis, engine and transmission tune) and those numbers drop to 4.5sec, 10.6sec, and 17.6sec, respectively. In-gear acceleration is similarly sharp, with 80-120km/h covered in just 3.2sec. In its indigenous habitat this is an autobahn left-lane bruiser, able to achieve a maximum velocity of 270km/h. 

The 4.0-litre V8 sounds appropriately gruff, with enough gas flow getting past the turbos to fire up the standard sport exhaust system, complete with twin dual-tube tailpipes.

Porsche collaborated with ZF to create the 'Tiptronic' sequential automatic transmission three decades ago and has been honing its performance ever since. More forgiving than the brand’s ‘PDK’ dual-clutch auto, this eight-speed is governed by an algorithm that helps it adapt to the driver’s style.

Trundle around in D and the transmission will shift for maximum economy and smoothness. Pick things up to a more enthusiastic pace and it will start to upshift later and downshift earlier. It’s simply brilliant, but direct engagement via the wheel-mounted shift paddles is always available.

With maximum torque of 620Nm available from just 1800rpm all the way to 4500rpm pulling power is strong, and if you need to light the afterburners for a safe overtake, peak power (338kW/453hp) takes over from 6000-6500rpm.

Porsche has gone to great lengths to keep weight under control. Sure, 2145kg doesn’t exactly qualify the GTS for the featherweight division, but the body is a steel/aluminium hybrid, with the bonnet, tailgate, doors, side sections, roof, and front wings in aluminium.

And thanks to adaptive air suspension, working in concert with a multi-link set-up front and rear, the Cayenne is able to seamlessly, and almost instantly, morph from serene suburban cruiser to a more buttoned-down, satisfyingly responsive machine.

Dialled in for comfort the GTS is quiet and soaks up city and suburban surface imperfections without a single bead or perspiration appearing on its forehead.

The multi-adjustable front seats feel as good as they look, and with the flick of a few buttons it applies a grippy bear hug. 

Head for your favourite set of corners and ‘Porsche Active Suspension Management’ (PASM) can drop the GTS an extra 10mm, and the precise electro-mechanically assisted steering combines progressive turn-in with good road feel.

And on top of all the technical help, including ‘Porsche Torque Vectoring Plus’ (to help keep understeer in check), mechanical grip from the monster Z-rated Pirelli P Zero rubber (285/40 fr / 315/35 rr) is immense.  

Then, when it comes to washing off speed, an especially important consideration given this car’s performance potential and towing capability, braking is professional-grade with large, internally vented discs all around (390mm fr / 358mm rr) clamped by six-piston aluminium monobloc (fixed) calipers at the front and four-piston units at the rear. They inspire confidence with a smooth, progressive pedal and strong stopping power.

The Cayenne hasn’t been assessed by ANCAP but scored a maximum five Euro NCAP stars when it was tested in 2017. And the GTS plays a solid, if not spectacular safety game.

Active safety tech includes the usual suspects like ABS, ASR, and ABD, as well as ‘Porsche Stability Management’ (PSM), ‘MSR’ (engine drag torque control), lane change assist, blind spot warning, ‘ParkAssist’ (front and rear with reversing camera and ‘Surround View’), tyre pressure monitoring, and trailer stability management.

‘Warn and Brake Assist’ (Porsche-speak for AEB) is a four-stage, camera-based system with pedestrian and cyclist detection. First the driver receives a visual and audible warning, then a braking jolt if there’s increasing danger. Driver braking is reinforced up to full pressure if necessary, and if the driver doesn’t react, automatic emergency braking activates.

But some crash-avoidance features you’d reasonably expect to see in the standard spec of a close to $200K car sit on the options list, or aren’t available at all.

‘Lane Keeping Assist’ will set you back $1220, ‘Active Lane Keeping’ (including ‘Crossroad Assist’) adds $1300, while ticking the ‘Active Parking Support’ (self-parking) box tips in $1890. And weirdly, there’s no rear-cross traffic alert offered, full stop.  

The scales start to swing back in the GTS’s favour when it comes to passive safety, with no less than 10 airbags on board (driver and front passenger - front, side, and knee, rear side, and side curtains covering both rows).

An active bonnet is designed to minimise pedestrian impact injuries, and there are three top tether points across the rear seat, with ISOFIX anchors on the two outer positions for safe location of baby capsules/child seats. 

The Cayenne is covered by Porsche’s three year/unlimited km warranty, with paint covered for the same period, and a 12-year (unlimited km) anti-corrosion warranty also included. Off the mainstream pace, but on par with most other premium players (Mercedes-Benz and Genesis being the exceptions at five years/unlimited km).

The Cayenne is covered by Porsche’s three year/unlimited km warranty.

‘Porsche Roadside Assist’ provides 24/7/365 coverage for the life of the warranty, and after the warranty runs out is renewed for 12 months every time the vehicle is serviced at an authorised Porsche dealer.

The main service interval is 12 months/15,000km. No capped price servicing is available with final costs determined at the dealer level (in line with variable labour rates by state/territory).