Finally, a cure for those who think the standard Cayenne looks a bit stodgy.
The Porsche Cayenne broke ground in the early 2000s as a purpose-built performance SUV with Germanic build quality and some pretty good off-road clout. As a machine, it was tough to fault. I know, some of you are saying, “Yeah, while it’s all working!”, but bear with me. The thing about the original Cayenne however, was that it was not the most stylish car in the world. Over time, the Cayenne has adapted its look, but it still carries that SUV profile. Now, the 2020 Porsche Cayenne Coupe adds some style flair to the lineup.
The headline here, naturally, is the car’s design. Take a normal Cayenne, give it a sloping roofline, sharper lines and an adaptive rear spoiler, and you arrive at the Cayenne Coupe. That spoiler lifts 5.3 inches while you’re driving faster than 56 mph to increase downforce on the rear axle.
Why do you need downforce? Porsche touts not just the dynamic looks of the Cayenne Coupe, but its performance as well. You get bolstered sports seats inside, as well as a standard Sport Chrono Package that optimizes the chassis, engine and transmission setup for sportier driving when the mood takes you.
Then there are the engines. The standard Porsche Cayenne Coupe comes with a 3.0-liter turbocharged V6 unit. As the entry-level version, you get 335 horsepower and 332 lb-ft of torque. That power allows for a Porsche-claimed 5.7 second 0-60 time and a 151 mph top speed. That’s not bad, but not really anything that will set your pants on fire. For that, you need the 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8-equipped Turbo model.
The 2020 Porsche Cayenne Turbo Coupe manages 541 horsepower and 567 lb-ft of torque. If you’re thinking, “That’s more like it!”, then you’ll also enjoy the 0-60 sprint. According to Porsche, that comes up in just 3.7 seconds, on the way to a top speed of 178 mph.
Pricing and availability
Even though the roof has been lowered, you still get 22 cubic feet of standard cargo space. Fold the seats down, and that increases to 54.3 cubic feet. In the Turbo model, you lose a foot of cargo space. However, while it’s still reasonably practical, don’t expect this Porsche to come cheap.
In fact, the 2020 Porsche Cayenne Coupe starts off at $76,550 — including a $1,250 destination fee. That’s a whopping $10,000 more than the ordinary Cayenne. Step up to the Cayenne Turbo Coupe, and the price skyrockets to $131,350. And that’s before you start down Porsche’s options lists, which can send that price into the stratosphere. I had to stop at $180,000, but if money is no object, the 2020 Porsche Cayenne Coupe looks a lot more interesting than your standard performance SUV.
The Cayenne Coupe will be available in Fall 2019. Stay tuned for more updates!
