2024 Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid Review

It’s no secret that when Porsche introduced the Cayenne to their range in 2002, it played a large part in turning the then fledgling manufacturer around.

That, and their epic Boxter – but that’s a review for another day.

Although still the same 3rd generation Cayenne that came out in 2017, the new 3.2 facelift has just dropped in Australia and we have one of its new powertrains on test today – the Cayenne S E-Hybrid Coupe.

Although a raft of improvements across the range has been actioned by Porsche, there’s no escaping the fact that the Porsche Cayenne is more expensive than ever, with the range now starting at $140,200 before on-road costs.

But is the Porsche Cayenne still the benchmark performance SUV? Let’s talk about that in today’s review!

How much does the Porsche Cayenne cost?

Porsche definitely has a ‘choose your own adventure’ when it comes to their Cayenne’s.

The benefit of that is that every Porsche Cayenne is almost certain to be unique. You can choose what you want, and what you don’t.

The downside however is that prices can get expensive quickly if you start to choose a lot of options.

Below are the base prices of each variant. Today, we’re testing the Cayenne S E-Hybrid Coupe, with it’s options again listed below.

2024 Porsche Cayenne Price

• 2024 Porsche Cayenne: $140,200
• 2024 Porsche Cayenne E-Hybrid: $155,900
• 2024 Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid: $178,300
• 2024 Porsche Cayenne S: $181,000
• 2024 Porsche Cayenne Turbo E-Hybrid: $288,400

2024 Porsche Cayenne Coupe Price

• 2024 Porsche Cayenne Coupe: $148,300
• 2024 Porsche Cayenne E-Hybrid Coupe: $161,600
• 2024 Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid Coupe: $185,100
• 2024 Porsche Cayenne S Coupe: $190,000
• 2024 Porsche Cayenne Turbo E-Hybrid Coupe: $297,200
• 2024 Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT: $366,200

Note: Prices do not include on-road costs.

Options fitted to our Cayenne S E-Hybrid Coupe:

• Sports exhaust system incl. sports tailpipes in Dark Bronze - $6,870
• E-Hybrid exterior differentiation in Acid Green - $0
• Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control (PDCC) - $5,720
• Interior package in matt Carbon-Fibre in Neodyme - $3,570
• Tinted HD-Matrix LED headlights - $990
• Tinted LED taillights incl. light strip - $850
• Four-zone automatic climate control - $1,720
• Active Lane Keeping incl. Intersection Assist - $2,860
• Passenger display - $2,000
• Ambient lighting - $600
• ‘PORSCHE’ logo LED door courtesy lights - $1,560

Total cost of options: $26,740

What's new for the exterior of the Porsche Cayenne?

Okay, so the Porsche Cayenne is not cheap. Hardly newsworthy at this point, however.

It would be criminal not to comment on the looks of the Porsche Cayenne – especially the Coupe we have here – as it is genuinely one of the most beautiful SUVs on the road.

The front has been updated with new LED headlights, with Matrix LEDs now standard across the range.

The side of the Cayenne is long and elegant to say the least, and at 4,930mm long and 1,676mm wide, the Cayenne Coupe is not far off in size to a Toyota Land Cruiser 300 Series.

The Cayenne also comes with huge 21” wheels as fitted on our Cayenne – finished with Acid Green brake callipers – which signify that this is a plug-in hybrid variant of the Cayenne.

Interestingly, the Acid Green flares all around the Cayenne S E-Hybrid we have here are a no-cost option and well worth the flex if you want to show the world how ‘green’ you are.

The rear is a literal work of art, however. Normally, I suggest SKIPPING the Coupe versions of any SUV.

They make the SUV less practical due to the swooping roofline, and usually cost a lot more. In this case, the Coupe adds a hefty $6,800 to the price of the Cayenne.

However, it looks so damn good (and comes with an ‘active aero’ spoiler that activates at ~100km/h) that it is well worth the money.

What’s the interior like of the Porsche Cayenne?

Like I said earlier, it really is a choose your own adventure when it comes to the interior of the Porsche Cayenne. Our Cayenne S E-Hybrid is relatively low-to-mid spec’d, and therefore we expect this to be reflective of a lot of buyers.

In all honesty, the interior feels like a German interior. That is to say, well built and solid, though a ‘German rainbow’ (shades of black) and not much… flair?

The buyers of a Porsche Cayenne are likely not going to care about this; and like I said, there are plenty of options should you want to spice things up a little.

For example, we have the addition of a passenger display – which has intentionally bad viewing angles so you as the driver can’t peer over and watch what your passenger is watching.

They have access to telemetrics, or can watch their own videos for longer journey’s. It’s a neat option, but also not necessary for most people.

The leather seats – even the standard ones that we have – are incredibly comfortable and supportive. As someone prone to back-aches, over my hundreds of kilometres of driving I experienced 0-issues, with more adjustability than I could poke a stick at.

Ergonomics are not missed for the steering wheel either, which my Fiancee and notorious amateur car critic deemed ‘perfect’. It really is, with plenty of controls meaning you never have to take your hand of the steering wheel.

And you don’t ever really want to, considering how almost perfectly contoured and designed the steering wheel is. If you don’t get the hype, go to your local dealership – and you will afterwards.

Technology is good, with a large 12.3” infotainment display with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Which is great, now that the Cayenne also scores a wireless charger across the range as part of its facelift.

In front of the driver is a new 12.6” digital instrument cluster too, which is very customisable but also simplistic and intuitive to use. It is a shame, however, there is no heads-up display – at least, as standard.

In the centre is the trademark Porsche double grab-handle, signifying it’s relatively capable off-road prowess and heritage. You’ll also see a panel for touch sensitive buttons, such as heated seats.

In an almost teasing way, you can also see the unlit buttons for the cooled seats, which are an optional extra.

The centre also has a couple of cupholders with an adjustable arm-rest, and 2x USB-C living underneath. There are also 2x 12v sockets up-front, so charging should never be an issue.

What are the back seats like in the Porsche Cayenne Coupe?

Often the second row (and sometimes third row, if the manufacturer is sadistic enough to include a 3rd row) are heavily compromised in the Coupe as the tapering of the roof line begins somewhere not far after the B-Pillar of the car.

Clearly, Porsche have recognised this – and have thankfully made a second row that is very roomy even for most fully grown adults.

At 5’11”, I have plenty of leg-,toe- and even head-room behind my usual sitting position.

Our tester also has the optional quad-zone climate control, though I would suggest this is a mostly unnecessary option unless your often carrying people in the second row who are fussy about their own temperature.

The seats are the same nice leather as up-front, and with air-vents in the centre and b-pillar, there’s no shortage of staying well climatised back there.

Two more USB-C ports can be found, along with a 12 volt socket and netting for the map pockets.

It is a little on the dark-end with the black interior, however – even with the standard fixed panoramic sunroof.

What’s practicality like for the Porsche Cayenne Coupe?

There may be less compromises for the Cayenne Coupe versus a regular Cayenne, but compromises still do exist.

And that is really reserved for practicality, which for a large SUV like the Cayenne isn’t exactly stellar at 565L of space with the second row up, and 1475L of space with it folded.

For comparison, the regular Cayenne gets 772L of boot space with the second row up, and 1702L of space with it folded. So, significant difference.

Still, thanks to the standard air-suspension found on the Cayenne S and up, you can drop the rear or raise it up to help with loading heavier items which is a cool party trick.

What’s under the bonnet of the 2024 Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid?

Some of the biggest changes for the new Cayenne are not just skin deep.

The drivetrain, across the range, has been updated with more power and torque.

Arguably the biggest (and best) change is the standard S variant, which drops the 2.9L V6 in favour of returning the bi-turbo 4.0L V8.

However, if you opt for the e-Hybrid, that means you’ll be adding an electric motor sandwiched between the engine and transmission and adding a 25.9kWh Samsung sourced battery pack which lives underneath the boot floor.

This powertrain also uses a 3.0L V6 Twin-Scroll Turbocharged Petrol Engine, and combined puts out some wicked figures; 382kW of combined power and 750Nm of combined torque.

Alone, the engine outputs 260kW of power while the electric motor provides 130kW of power.

It also has a WLTP range of about 81km, which in our testing we got around 78km – so quite close.

It’s a complicated system, but one that makes a lot of sense especially if you are like the average Aussie and travel less than 40km a day.

Theoretically, you can drive entirely electrically until you run out of range or call on the engine for more oomph, in-which case, you have a big turbo-V6 at your call.

How does the Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid Coupe drive?

I’d be totally lying if I said I wasn’t a little disappointed at first that Porsche didn’t give me one of their V8 powered Cayenne’s.

I’m not here to save the environment this week, I’m here to drive a bloody Porsche. However, I am happy to report that I’m willing to eat my words.

It helps we have an optional sports exhaust; I can’t lie. It’s an option I would highly recommend, because higher-ups have mercy – this thing sounds epic.

Of course, not at first. Taking off with a full battery nets you a rather serene and sedate drive, without a whisper coming from the engine bay. The Porsche Cayenne Plug-In Hybrid System is totally happy to drive it’s claimed 81km of WLTP electric-only range without calling on its engine.

For the daily commute, it makes the drive actually incredibly good. No fumbling with a sports tuned engine and transmission, just an EV driving experience.

However, hit the non-descript boost button in the centre of the drive mode selector, and be prepared to be rocketed into your seat.

Porsche, and their ownership group Volkswagen, have quite a lot of experience in making plug-in hybrids, and the Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid is clearly where they have spent a lot of resources developing something epic.

When combined with hard up-shifts through the 8-speed torque converter transmission, the Porsche Cayenne feels far nimble than it has any right too. And when combined with the optional PDCC (Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control), essentially active roll bars, the 2,410kg kerb weight of the Cayenne S E-Hybrid is almost completely lost.

There is no reason the Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid should be able to take Saucey Corner as well as Jacob and I took it in our full YouTube review; but it did.

In fact, the only real downsides of the driving experience are in the active safety systems. Although we had the optional Active Lane Centering, it really doesn’t do much… at all.

In fact, I thought my tester was just broken – but alas, a quick google search seems to confirm it’s a universal experience that it will simply bounce you off the lane wall when you get to close too it.

So yes, skip that option.

Other than that, driving the Cayenne has confirmed that it really is a marvel of engineering when you do want to have a bit of fun in a large family SUV.

Now, we need to test the top-spec Cayenne Turbo GT for… scientific reasons.

Is the Porsche Cayenne safe?

The latest facelift has not been crash tested by ANCAP or Euro NCAP, however the pre-facelift received a 5-star ANCAP score in 2017 based on Euro NCAP testing.

How much does the Porsche Cayenne cost to run?

The Porsche Cayenne range comes with a 3-year, unlimited kilometer warranty.

Compared to other rivals like BMW and Mercedes-Benz who offer a 5-year warranty, the 3-year warranty offered by Porsche certainly trails behind.

Pricing of servicing varies state-by-state, so contacting your local dealer will be the best indication of getting servicing costs.

Services are required every 12 months or 15,000kms; whichever comes first.

Should you buy a Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid Coupe?

Let’s be honest; if you can afford a Porsche Cayenne in the first instance, you’re not going to be put-off by its relatively big price-tag or extensive options list.

Pricing aside, the Porsche Cayenne is a true jack-of-all-trades. A family hauler? Absolutely. A corner carver? You bet. A comfortable cruiser? Yep!

The interior is refined, the ride is fantastic, and there’s no denying it looks incredible.

It’s an SUV even if you wanted to hate it, you simply can’t. It’s just too good at what it’s designed for.

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