Porsche Cayenne Turbo S: World's Fastest SUV

Motoring Channel Staff - 22/Apr/2008

Beijing, China — Porsche has retained the mantle of 'fastest production SUV' after it launched the Cayenne Turbo S at the 2008 Beijing Auto Show.

Powered by an earth-shaking twin turbo 4.8-litre V8 petrol engine, the new model destroys the zero to 100km/h sprint, taking just 4.8 seconds, and has a top speed of 280km/h (174mph). 

Not bad for a vehicle that weighs more than 2.3 tonnes.

Porsche launched the new 2008 model Cayenne Turbo S at the Auto China 2008 motor show in Beijing because there has been a surge in demand for luxury cars in China.

The Porsche Cayenne Turbo S was previously only available as a 2006 model, but Porsche will launch the new model in Europe in August 2008, followed by other major global markets, including North America and Asia. 

Benefitting from all the best performance upgrades used on cars like the Porsche 911 Turbo, the new Cayenne Turbo S features advanced suspension with auto leveling and ride-height control, Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM), and Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control (PDCC).

It may be an SUV, but Porsche has equipped it with racing technology.

Sitting on oversized 21-inch alloy wheels, the new range-topping Cayenne can be ordered with massive ceramic composite brakes that measure 410mm and 370mm in diameter front and rear, clamped by 6- and 4-piston calipers respectively.

The German sports car maker, most famous for its 911 coupes and Boxster convertibles, has tweaked the 4.8-litre V8 engine which features "two parallel exhaust turbo loaders" to deliver more power than ever before in a Porsche SUV.

Power has risen from a storming 368kW (500hp) in the standard Cayenne Turbo to a diabolical 404kW (550hp) @ 6000rpm in the Cayenne Turbo S. 

Peak torque has also been given a promotion, rising from 700Nm to 750Nm @ 2250rpm, providing the Cayenne Turbo S with a 4.8 second benchmark sprint, and a top speed of 280km/h. 

The power increases come from a reprogrammed engine control unit (ECU) and an all-new exhaust system with four aluminium end pipes.

It features an full-time 4WD system that apportions torque between the front and rear axles 38:62, favouring a rear-wheel drive bias for improved handling.

A heavy duty 6-speed tiptronic S automatic takes care of the gear shifts.

This overweight German is arguably the most potent SUV ever built, and will no doubt take it's fellow country-man to pieces, the Mercedes-Benz M63 AMG which is powered by a non-turbo 6.2-litre V8 with 375kW.

Porsche's new Cayenne Turbo S is two tenths of a second quicker to 100km/h than the Benz M63 AMG, handing bragging rights to the Porsche.

Despite the increase in power, Porsche claims fuel consumption is the same as the standard Porsche Cayenne Turbo's 14.9L/100km, but it does churn out a lot of carbon dioxide - more than a kilogram of CO2 every three kilometers, or 358g/km.

On top of hard core Cayenne's performance upgrades, Porsche has also face lifted the model to fall in line with the rest of it's SUV range.

The last Cayenne Turbo S model was released in 2006 and so the new 2008 model gets the new look headlight design. The large 21-inch SportPlus alloy wheels shod with 295/35 R21 tyres set the scene, while the front end gets Cayenne Turbo inspired air intakes and grille sections.

Of interest to luxury car buyers, of which Porsche is hoping it will find many in China and other emerging Asian markets, the Cayenne Turbo S gets a range of high end equipment, which is as follows:

Touch-screen satellite navigation with hard drive
Voice activated car systems with voice recognition
MP3 connections
Bluetooth phone
Television (analogue + digital)
Bose 14-speaker surround stereo
DVD player
Leather upholstery

In short, the new Cayenne Turbo S is the king of the performance SUV hill. 

It's the fastest, most powerful, and probably the best handling SUV ever made and until Ferrari or Lamborghini release their 'rumoured' SUVs, it will probably remain so.

Porsche has indicated that the Cayenne Turbo S will begin sales from August 2008 with an international base price of €111,400 (A$187,801).

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