2024 Porsche Cayenne First Test Review: Pay to Play
This sporty midsize SUV isn’t cheap, but it drives like a genuine Porsche.
Pros
- Exquisite handling
- Immaculate powertrain tuning
- Fantastic build quality
Cons
- Expensive to start, more so with options
- Low-resolution backup camera
- Some exterior plastic trim looks cheap
Porsche models come in a dizzying alphabet soup of variants. T, S, GTS, Turbo, and Turbo S trims just scratch the surface of a roster that also includes GT and E-Hybrid flavors of the German automaker’s sporty cars and SUVs. With so many iterations, it’s easy for base models to get lost in the mix. Perhaps that’s why this 2024 Porsche Cayenne arrived in our fleet optioned with some of the coolest—and most expensive—features on its options list.
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Driving the 2024 Porsche Cayenne
Porsche has upgraded the base Cayenne for the 2024 model year by tweaking the SUV’s 3.0-liter turbocharged V-6 engine. Output rises to 348 hp and 368 lb-ft of torque, gains of 13 hp and 36 lb-ft of torque. On the street, the 2024 Cayenne feels quick, though not devastatingly so. Rather than drag races, the powertrain’s strengths are making passes on the freeway or utilizing the excellent all-wheel-drive system while rocketing out of a corner. The V-6’s smoothness and linearity wouldn’t be possible if not for the eight-speed automatic transmission’s quick and decisive shifts.
That said, the entry-level Porsche Cayenne still delivers a 0–60-mph time of 5.1 seconds, the same as a 2019 Cayenne we tested previously. The quarter mile flies by in the same 13.7 seconds as the old engine tune, although the 2024 Cayenne crosses the finish at 101.1 mph instead of 100.7 mph. Acceleration from 0 to 100 mph improved by 0.1 second to 13.4 mph.
It’s clear the new power went to offset some weight gain—the new one tipped our scales at 4,888 pounds against 4,676 for the older model.
This 2024 Cayenne’s exhaust doesn’t sound quite as good as the sonorous twin-turbo V-8 engine in the Cayenne S, but its ride and handling chops makes you at least temporarily forget it has more powerful siblings. In terms of rigidity, few mainstream luxury SUVs feel as well built as the Porsche Cayenne. This solidity lends itself to fabulous ride comfort and chassis control; our test car rode with enough compliance to absorb road imperfections without giving in to body roll in corners.
Making use of Porsche’s optional air suspension system, which is bundled together with adaptive damping and Porsche Active Stability Management, the Cayenne is well suited for a breadth of driving situations. The quickest way to change the Porsche’s drive mode settings is to twist the dial on the lower right side of the steering wheel between Normal, Sport, Sport+, and Off-Road settings. This changes the suspension's reaction to surfaces and powertrain behavior, as well as ride height for better aerodynamics or additional ground clearance.
Normal is all most drivers will want or need for daily use, but we found ourselves switching to Sport to get a little more responsiveness. Even when ratcheted up to Sport+, which lowers the SUV and increases the throttle sensitivity, among other changes, the Cayenne continues to balance agility and comfort to an impressive degree. In corners, Porsche’s SUV feels pointy and immediate, like an overgrown hot hatchback. The steering is direct and feelsome, too.
The drive mode dial is contingent on optioning the Sport Chrono package, which also brings analog and digital stopwatches, a Sport Response button that temporarily elevates the Cayenne to its most aggressive settings for 20 seconds, and launch control.
It’s bonkers how capable this base-level model is. Our test car’s abilities were also bolstered by the automaker’s dynamic chassis control, active roll stabilization, rear steering, and Pirelli P Zero Corsa tires.
All of these performance upgrades cost $8,370, but our test results demonstrate that the enhancements yield objective results on top of subjective fun. A 2024 Porsche Cayenne S we tested with all-season tires is the most dramatic point of comparison: On our figure-eight miniature test circuit, this V-6 model put down a blistering 24.1-second lap. Not only does that annihilate the 2019 Cayenne’s 25.0-second time, it also trounces the 2024 Cayenne S on all-season's 25.6-second best lap. To put a fine point on it, this 2024 Cayenne matched an Aston Martin DBX707 around the figure eight, putting it in league with one of our favorite performance SUVs of all time.
How Luxurious Is a Well-Optioned 2024 Porsche Cayenne?
Draped in optional ($850) Algarve Blue Metallic paint and sporting a fresh-looking black and Mojave Beige leather interior ($4,180), our 2024 Porsche Cayenne loan car looked rich and handsome. It also sported 22-inch wheels from Porsche’s Exclusive Design program; they look like upsized Fuchs pieces from the 1960s, adding another $4,220 to the Cayenne’s MSRP.
Getting the best interior features doesn’t come cheap, either. Our rather lavish test car’s 14-way power adjustable seats with memory functionality is a separate option from seat ventilation ($1,290 and $850). Tacking on the Premium package bundles together other goodies we wouldn’t want to skip, like the upgraded Bose audio system, ambient lighting, heated rear seats, a slick panoramic roof, and adaptive cruise control. These comfort and convenience upgrades pump up the Cayenne’s price tag by a further $3,590. We know this is a Porsche, but we’re still surprised more of this equipment doesn’t come standard.
At least the standard features you do get have been improved. The 12.3-inch infotainment touchscreen’s graphics are sharp, and the menus are about as easy to navigate as an iPhone’s. The 12.6-inch digital instrument cluster is legible and looks authentic to Porsche’s branding even if we somewhat miss the old five-pod layout.
Porsche has bolstered the Cayenne’s safety suite for 2024, even though we’d rather drive any P-car manually than let it handle any tasks. Standard blind-spot monitoring is the feature we’re most grateful to have equipped and the indicators are highly visible on the side mirrors. We also tried the lane keeping assist while using adaptive cruise control. The Cayenne accelerates and slows itself down in a way that feels natural, a boon to drivers stuck in traffic while commuting or on the way back from a spirited drive in the canyons.
There’s very little we don’t like about this 2024 Cayenne, but the backup camera feed looks awful, as if it’s a couple generations old. On the outside, there’s some cheap-looking plastic trim underneath the spoiler, to the right and left of the rear glass. On the upside, a 360-degree camera system is available, but we didn't get a chance to experience it and so we can't comment on its image quality.
Is the Porsche Cayenne Worth the Money?
If you want a Porsche Cayenne, you better really want a Porsche Cayenne. Following the sporty midsize SUV’s most recent refresh, prices start at $80,850. The one we tested here stickers for $104,200 after a heavy dose of extra features, which is a bit more expensive than a no-options Cayenne S. That V-8 model starts at $97,350 and boasts impressive performance right out of the box, with a tasty exhaust note to match. Those who are also shopping outside Porsche showrooms should also consider other luxury midsize SUVs with lower starting prices, such as the BMW X5, Range Rover Sport, and Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class. They may not have the Porsche crest on the hood, but these other models also deliver prestige, luxury, and performance.
With the rational thinking done, it’s hard to not succumb to the emotional tug of the 2024 Cayenne. While it’s pricey and lacks a lot of standard tech, no luxury midsize SUV can match its level of driver engagement and well-rounded poise. As tough as it is for our value-oriented brains to admit, if you have the cash, the well-sorted Cayenne is well worth the money.
Billy Rehbock's passion for cars started with his dad's Volkswagen Jetta GLX, his mom's Cabriolet, and his own Hot Wheels collection. A USC graduate with a Master of Science in journalism, he's an associate editor for the MotorTrend Buyer's Guide and covers everything from sports cars to SUVs.
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