Think Porsche and the car that automatically springs to mind is more than likely the venerable rear-engined 911. Even so, the marque’s real hero is arguably the Cayenne.
Porsche was teetering on the brink of bankruptcy at the turn of the millennium, prompting the Zuffenhausen carmaker’s brain trust to conceive a new volume-selling model to broaden the brand’s target audience.
Unlike all other Porsche models that started life at the Weissach Development Centre, the Cayenne was developed in secret at a facility in Hemmingen – a small town about 10km away. Strict security measures were adopted to keep the project confidential, including mirrored windows, fenced grounds and vigilant security guards.
The first-gen Cayenne launched in 2002 and – even though the inevitable sceptics brayed that it wasn’t “a real Porsche” – the model line has proved a runaway success, with more than 1.5 million sold over the past 23 years.
We’re now witnessing the most significant evolution in the sporting SUV’s timeline with the next-generation Cayenne, which makes the switch from combustion engines to a full-electric power train.
I join a group of select international media to preview the new EV. Hunkered down a few metres from us at the Porsche Experience Centre in Leipzig, Germany, is a prototype of the all-new, battery-powered Cayenne. Its bodywork is swathed in psychedelic livery, partially concealing some of the vehicle’s details. The reason for this is that the production version won’t be revealed to the world until mid-November.
Although the Cayenne EV shares its PPE (Premium Platform Electric) architecture with the electrified Macan that The National sampled in April last year, the platform has been significantly re-engineered as the Cayenne has a broader job description than its junior sibling. It must fulfil the role of both performance SUV and genuine all-terrainer, as Porsche markets the Cayenne as a do-everything chariot.
In case you’re worried that ditching petrol power in favour of a pair of electric motors has diluted the Cayenne’s capabilities, you needn’t be. The flagship Cayenne Turbo packs over 800hp, which can be amped up to almost 1100hp for brief bursts via an Overboost function.
Even though the Cayenne Turbo weighs close to 2.7 tonnes (Porsche hasn’t disclosed the exact figure for now), it rockets from 0-100kph in a hypercar-matching sub-3 seconds and blasts past 200kph in fewer than 8 seconds.
The Cayenne EV is equipped with a 113kWh battery pack that sits below the passenger cell, keeping the vehicle’s centre of gravity low. Porsche quotes a touring range of 600km-plus on a full charge. Its 400kW charging capability means a sub-16-minute zap at an appropriate fast-charging station can take the battery level from 10 per cent to 80 per cent.
Another noteworthy development is an 11kW inductive charging pad that will be offered as an option with the Cayenne. Substituting a conventional wall-box, you simply plug it in and place it on the floor of your garage. Every day, when you return from work, you simply drive your Cayenne over the charging pad – there’s no need to mess around with any cables. Leave the vehicle overnight and it will be fully charged by the time you depart for the office in the morning.
Porsche has thrown a veritable barrage of tech at the Cayenne EV, enabling it to handle like a highly capable grand tourer, yet also conquer far harsher terrain than one could imagine. Among the new Cayenne’s highlights is optional Active Ride suspension, which almost magically negates body roll under hard cornering, while also flattening out the ride over corrugated mud and gravel tracks.
For now, we can only witness all this from the passenger seat, with Porsche’s factory drivers demonstrating the Cayenne’s breadth of capabilities. Our first experience is on an off-road track that throws up 80 per cent inclines, wheel-articulation tests, water crossings and side-incline obstacles. The Cayenne romps across it all without breaking a sweat.
However, the real surprise is the Cayenne Turbo’s eye-watering pace and agility across Porsche’s Leipzig handling track. Making a mockery of its estimated 2.7 tonnes, the test driver flings the big SUV into each bend sideways at speeds that seem entirely implausible. After a couple of tyre-smoking laps we trundle back into pit lane.
Conclusion? The electrified Cayenne is a bewilderingly rapid and capable SUV. Buyers in the UAE will need to exercise patience, though, as local deliveries won’t begin until the second half of 2026. The EV models will also supplement the existing petrol-powered Cayennes rather than replacing them.
