Out of all the mutant coupe SUVs out there, Porsche’s interpretation seems like the most well thought out so far. They’ve taken a while to get to this point, allowing competitors like the BMW X6 and Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe run away with the market, which is exactly why the Zuffenhausen automaker had to relent - we’re imagining this to be in protest.
When it comes to what you’d expect to see in a luxury SUV given an unnecessarily sloping roofline, the new Cayenne Coupe hits all the right marks. The most redeeming attribute about this new body style is the fact that little else was changed apart from the roof, much like what done when the Panamera sprouted a wagon-like Sport Turismo variant.
As with all makeshift coupe derivatives of existing vehicles, the typically ample headroom is compromised over the standard Cayenne. But that said, it should still very comfortably at least 2 grown adults in the rear row, they probably just need to remember to bend forward to scratch their head. The rest of the cabin bear no changes over the standard Cayenne at all, even down to the material choices and accents (per trim choice).
Because the rear window now tapers much more sharply toward the belt line, Porsche have incorporated a fold-out rear wing and a fixed spoiler on the roof. Anything forward of the B-pillar, though, has not seem to have undergone any meaningful change, mimicking the standard Cayenne in every discernible way.
Past the B-pillar, however, and you’ll also notice that the rear wheel arches have been flared up slightly, perhaps to match the redesigned rear bumper and tailgate. Accordingly, a new set of rear doors had to be fitted to accommodate the altered roofline.
As before, the new Porsche sits on the MLBevo platform, with which it shares with other high performance SUVs from the Volkswagen Group such as the equally coupe-like Audi Q8 and Lamborghini Urus. Here’s it has been lowered by 30mm over the Cayenne SUV. Now that Porsche has officially joined the party, picking between the three cousins might come down to a matter of preference.
For now, the Cayenne Coupe has been revealed in entry level guise as well as the quicker range-topping Turbo, the former receiving a 3.0-litre turbocharged V6 petrol with 246kW and 450Nm while the latter gains the 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8 that outputs 410kW and 770Nm. These figures, you’ll notice, line up exactly with their non-coupe counterparts as well as the aforementioned Lambo and Audi. No surprises there, either.
Both the V6 and V8 send power to all four wheels via an 8-speed automatic transmission supplied by ZF, and in the Turbo, this combination can throw the Cayenne Coupe to 100km/h in just 3.9 seconds and a top speed of 285km/h.
Before long, though, we expect to see the rest of the Cayenne range to be fleshed out with the new Coupe body style, including diesels-powered versions and plug-in hybrids. In European spec, even the base Cayenne Coupe receives a generous helping of standard equipment such as 20-inch alloys, adaptive dampers, all-round parking sensors, a panoramic glass roof, and Porsche’s Sport Chrono Package.
For more on Porsche cars, check out our Showroom.
