Inside, I was surprised that my tester didn’t really have the swathes of carbon-fibre and Alcantara suede I’d come to expect from the Porsche GTS models. That’s not to say the two-tone black and tan leather interior is bad, it just doesn’t look that special. It feels more Lexus than GTS and while the materials used are all of top-notch quality and the fit and finish is where’d you’d expect it to be for a $140,000 SUV, I wanted to feel a little different when stepping in. There are other options, of course, and if I were to opt for a GTS I’d be going another way. Hopefully, the drive would make me forget all about that.
Otherwise, the Cayenne gets Porsche’s latest infotainment system; big 12.3-inch display with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. It also provides a tiled interface that’s much easier to navigate than in previous Cayennes and looks a whole heck of a lot sharper as well. Coupled with the almost fully digitized gauge cluster, the cockpit of this Cayenne is one techy place.
Adding to the tech is a much simpler gearshift surround. The Cayenne used to be very button-heavy and while I actually don’t mind traditional hard buttons, it was a busy, busy place. Now, that’s almost all been replaced by a single touch panel. Some toggles remain – for your climate control and volume – and the switchgear used is given a billeted aluminum look that I love.
Stepping into the back seat is pretty much as expected; they’ve mounted the seats low enough but I still wouldn’t ask my taller friends to spend too much time back there. It’s not super comfortable and with that sharply-raked rear window, the view out rearwards isn’t ample. Heads are liable to get in the way, especially since there’s no digital rear-view mirror to get around that. What you see through the mirror is what you get.
Back seat passengers do get their own digital climate controls and heated seats, however, so it’s not like this is a back row meant to go unused.
Then, of course, there’s the power. Which at 453 hp and 457 lb-ft of torque, is ample. That’s 4.0 litres of twin-turbocharged V8 grunt under the hood and while it’s not like Porsche has historically been about big engines (grant tourers like the 928 aside), they aren’t a company to do things in half measures.
In that vein, the V8 is a gutsy one that makes its power nice and low in the rev range so power is available just as soon as you dip that throttle. Power is sent to all four wheels via an 8-speed automatic with the requisite paddle shifter accompaniment. While I’d like to see a slightly better paddle set than the plastic items found here, I can tell you they came in to play more here than they ever have in any SUV I’ve driven. It’s also too bad the Cayenne doesn’t get the dual-clutch PDK treatment other Porsches do.
Still, SUV-coupe or no, the Cayenne remains a Porsche and it remains an incredibly good driver. Power from the V8 is delivered with a proper punch – especially when in a more-aggressive drive mode – and the powerband is so flat and linear that power just keeps coming on, and on and on. It’s so long-legged that if ever you were to level the “Grand Tourer” title at an SUV – remember what “GTS” stands for – this would be it.
It should also come as little surprise that with the exception of maybe the BMW X5M or X6M and more haughty stuff like the Lamborghini Urus, you won’t find an SUV, anywhere, that handles like this. The steering is a little light on feel, betraying the Cayenne’s more mass-appeal SUV background at times, but learn to trust it and you quicky finding yourself scything through turns that shouldn’t be so easily conquered by a vehicle of this size. The adaptive dampers and air-suspension and various electronic chassis aids combine to provide a wonderfully tractable chassis that works in concert with the powertrain to “shrink” the size of the Cayenne, and that is a very good thing.
I remember way back when and early on in the Cayenne’s lifespan, a magazine put one against a Mitsubishi Lancer EVO on a racetrack and the Cayenne went shot-for-shot, eventually setting the faster time. It doesn’t take much more than a few miles through a few turns to realize that this is an SUV not to be messed with.
Specifications sheet of 2022 Porsche Cayenne GTS Coupe AWD
The question I do still finding myself asking, however, is this: regardless of the fact that the first “modern” GTS model from Porsche was the Cayenne, in this day in age, is it how I’d order my Cayenne? With stuff out there like the Turbo S E Hybrid that is now the power darling of the group – and provides the benefit of short-term EV motoring – is that the more appealing option, even at 60-grand-and-change premium? I’m just not sure.
Not to mention that since you can now get any Porsche in GTS spec – including the Taycan EV and Panamera – the Cayenne is no longer the only model to select if you need to move bodies but also have a performance bent to your ride. But while the competition is stiffer for the Cayenne GTS now, that doesn’t change the fact that it’s darn good.
We like
No big SUV should drive this well
Coupe-like looks
High-class interior
We like less
Snug back seat
Shallow cargo bed
The competition
Audi RS Q8
BMW X6 M
Mercedes-Benz AMG GLE 53 Coupé
See also: 2022 Porsche Taycan GTS Sport Turismo First Drive: An EV That Pretends It Isn’t One
See also: 2022 Porsche 718 Boxster GTS 4.0 First Drive: Naturally Aspirated, Naturally Gifted
