PORSCHE

Cayenne: how the famous German SUV became even sportier

Just after the Cayenne's world premiere took place 20 years ago, it was hard to imagine a Porsche product portfolio without it. Delivery figures for the first generation of the SUV surpassed even Porsche's own expectations. However, when work on the creation of its successor began in 2005, the plan was not just to maintain the attributes of the first Cayenne. Fundamental changes were also made, in particular to the design and transmission.

The first Cayenne, known internally as the E1, was created under the design leadership of Harm Lagaay, and from 2004 onwards Michael Mauer became responsible for the design of Porsche models. Its concept was to take the Cayenne idea further, although the designers of the second generation (E2) of the car launched in 2010 faced the same challenges that existed with the first Cayenne. That is, the doors were identical to those of the sister model VW Touareg, built on the same platform, which limited the design options. “However, in the case of the second Cayenne, the economic success of the model gave us a little more creative freedom,” Mauer recalls today.

Recognizable flyline and lower seat position...This meant that more work could be done on various elements. The doors remained unchanged, but the windows changed. At the front, the outside mirrors have been moved from the corner of the window to the shoulder of the door, creating a more dynamic appearance and making room for additional side lights on the A-pillars. At the rear, the side windows have been pulled up behind the doors; the Cayenne's roof spoiler has been extended further back; the taillights were positioned a little higher and the D-pillars were angled more. The result was an elongated window geometry and a roofline - known as a flyline at Porsche - that sloped visibly towards the rear. This made the Cayenne appear to be moving fast even when stationary.

Porsche designers were also free to add many personal touches to the interior: “The seat position was completely different”, explains Mauer. “In E2 you sit inside the car, not on top of it. That was a marked difference for the E1.” The lower seat position was also visually enhanced by the center console that rose forward. This was based on the center console design of the Panamera sports sedan (launched in 2009) in a conscious effort to create a brand identity. At the same time, the second Cayenne gave Porsche the opportunity to use its own instrument panel, with the rev counter positioned in the middle, in familiar Porsche style. The steering wheel was borrowed from the iconic 911 sports car. “That disconnect no longer exists for customers with a 911 and a Cayenne in the garage,” says Mauer.

Even more agility on the road and reliability off-road... In technical terms, Porsche has also taken new directions with the second Cayenne. For example, even with the exclusion of the low-range gearbox that had made the first Cayenne one of the best off-road vehicles, it still displayed the performance expected of a Porsche. Oliver Laqua, involved from the beginning as a developer and currently general manager of the vehicle project, clearly remembers the transfer case debate: “In the further development of the electronic control systems, we have taken a big step forward in terms of control of quality and speed. As a result, we were able to have the same off-road capability as the E1 in the new design of the E2 without a transfer case or low gear, and so we achieved great weight savings.” The first use of an 8-speed Tiptronic in combination with the new all-wheel drive controlled with Porsche Traction Management (PTM) gave the new Cayenne electronically on-road agility and off-road reliability. The new PTM also allowed for lighter driveshafts in the front axle driveshaft tubes, and also a lighter axle drive. In addition to the transfer case waiver, Porsche has reduced the weight of the new Cayenne by 33 kg on the transmission alone.

Efficiency was at the center of discussions at E2, and lightweight construction was sought elsewhere as well. The bodywork lost 111 kg, with 39 kg being saved on the flaps and doors alone. The tailgate - which happened to be all aluminum, as well as the fenders - weighed half as much as on the first Cayenne. Together with the Tiptronic and the new engines, this consistent lightweight construction has led to significantly lower fuel consumption figures. Thermal control, variable deceleration fuel cut-off and start-stop function further reduced fuel consumption. The biggest contribution was made by the new automatic transmission. Only the initial model of the Cayenne with its new 3.6-liter V6 engine and 300 hp was delivered with the factory 6-speed manual transmission. This adjusted the car's consumption to the NEDC (New European Driving Cycle) with 8.9 km/l, within the valid range for the time. If the customer ordered the optional 8-speed Tiptronic, consumption would be 10.1 km/l - around 20% below the first entry-level Cayenne.

First hybrid Porsche to enter series production...The new Cayenne S with its 400 hp 4.8-liter V8 consumed 9.5 km/l - 23% less than its predecessor. The new Cayenne Turbo also benefited from the same V8 petrol engine, but offered 500 hp) of power. Along with the Cayenne Diesel (245 hp), the most economical in the category was the 380 hp Cayenne S Hybrid. Porsche's first series-produced hybrid model had a NEDC consumption of 12.3 km/l. The powerful parallel full hybrid could be used more flexibly and efficiently than the power distribution full hybrid most competitors had at the time. The Cayenne S Hybrid can reach 60 km/h in all-electric mode. Boosting, energy recovery and deceleration allowed for a sporty and efficient driving experience. As a result, the second generation of the Cayenne laid the groundwork for Porsche's successful electrification strategy 12 years ago. And the fundamental changes made between generations were appreciated by our customers. The E2 allowed Porsche to nearly double delivery numbers compared to the first Cayenne. Between 2010 and 2017, a total of 535,903 copies of the model assembled at the Leipzig factory were delivered.

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