2021 Porsche Cayenne Review

If you want a midsize luxury SUV that makes you grin every time you slip behind the wheel, your best bet is the 2021 Porsche Cayenne. With handling that's as dynamic as a Cirque du Soleil performer and a range of available engines that starts out at 335 horsepower and ends at 670 hp with the Turbo S E-Hybrid, the Cayenne deftly combines sports car performance with SUV utility.

Granted, the Cayenne is a Porsche first and a SUV second. If you want acres of cargo space, maybe a Cadillac Escalade is more your thing. Even so, the Cayenne is well appointed, comfortable and practical. A new GTS model also debuts for 2021 that bridges the gap between the V6-driven Cayenne S and the über-powerful Cayenne Turbo.

The Cayenne is more expensive than competing midsize crossovers, and the extensive options list can put a significant dent in your wallet. But it's the price you pay for an SUV that is far more enjoyable to drive than rivals and that allows for deeper customization for a truly tailored experience.

The value of the GTS specifically lies on what you expect from your Cayenne. If you just want a quick SUV with a fun-to-drive character, the Cayenne or Cayenne S will suffice. For buyers who desire a sporty daily driver and don't need the face-melting acceleration of the Cayenne Turbo, the GTS provides an appealing middle ground. No matter which version you get, make sure to leave some wiggle room in your budget if you want advanced driving aids or performance upgrades.

The Cayenne range includes V6, V8 and plug-in hybrid powertrains. The new Cayenne GTS uses a turbocharged 4.0-liter V8 — the same engine found in the Turbo and Turbo S E-Hybrid models — but at a less potent tune. With 453 horsepower and 457 lb-ft of torque, the GTS slots between the Cayenne S (434 hp) and the Turbo (541 hp).

Though the GTS is not significantly more powerful than the Cayenne S, Porsche estimates it will make the 0-60 mph sprint in 4.5 seconds, or 4.2 seconds with the Sport Chrono package (which will be standard on the Cayenne GTS Coupe). Compare this against the Cayenne S time of 4.9 seconds, or 4.6 seconds with the Sport Chrono pack.

Of course, the GTS isn't just about upping the speed quotient. An air suspension equipped with the Porsche Active Suspension Management system is standard, allowing you to switch between a comfortable and sporty ride on the fly. The GTS comes standard with the Sport Design package that is optional on other Cayenne models. It includes a more aggressive front fascia, along with black-painted accents and tinted headlights and taillights.

The GTS also receives the Sport Exhaust upgrade, which features quad tailpipes on the outer edges of the rear bumper. If you buy a Cayenne Coupe — it's a Cayenne with a more coupe-like sloping roofline — you can additionally specify dual center exhaust pipes via the Lightweight Sport package. Faux suede interior accents and standard sport seats constitute the changes inside the cabin.

If you want a luxury crossover with the dynamics of a sports car, look no further — the Cayenne's sterling handling abilities justify the Porsche badge. Performance upgrades are available on the base Cayenne, ensuring superlative handling abilities regardless of engine choice. From behind the wheel, the Cayenne feels more dynamic and engaging than its direct rivals. The Cayenne GTS is even more so.

On the road, the thrust from the V8 seems worthy of the price of admission alone. It rockets to speed from a standstill — we wouldn't be surprised if our Sport Chrono-equipped tester's quoted 0-60 mph time of 4.2 seconds is a little conservative — and power doesn't peter out when you ask it to perform an overtaking maneuver on the highway. Stumbles are few, but worth pointing out. If you don't give the pedal a firm press while accelerating from a stop, the transmission upshifts too early, and you're stuck hunting for power at the bottom of second gear. The auto stop-start system is also a little unrefined, turning the engine off before you come to a stop. Prepare for a jerky restart if traffic ahead moves forward as you're braking but need to speed up again.

In contrast to its sometimes confused transmission, we found no similar incongruities with the Cayenne GTS' standard adaptive air suspension. In the default suspension setting, the GTS feels a little stiffer than other midsize SUVs, but it never feels floaty — something that cannot be said of some air-equipped competitors. We're willing to accept the slightly firmer ride, and we think buyers looking at this performance-oriented model will too.

Selecting the most aggressive of the three suspension settings comes with a negligible penalty to ride comfort, but a noticeable improvement in handling feel in corners. While the standard drive mode produces moderate body roll, the Sport Plus setting does an excellent job controlling these undue body motions. Credit is partially due to our tester's Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control, which adds active anti-roll bars to help suppress lateral movements.

We also sat planted thanks to our tester's 18-way sport seats, which allow front occupants to change the angle of the side and thigh bolsters, among other fitment adjustments. While the standard Cayenne seats are quite comfortable, our editors have found their bolstering to be a little too tame for aggressive driving. These upgraded seats solve that issue, making them ideal for the GTS buyer.

A 12.4-inch touchscreen dominates the Cayenne's dashboard. It is loaded with one of the best infotainment systems in the class, with attractive graphics, intuitive operation, standard navigation and a customizable home screen. The haptic buttons surrounding the shift lever look high-tech, but their haphazard arrangement is a blemish in an otherwise flawless cabin.

Three sounds systems are available, starting with a standard 10-speaker that sounds fine at low volumes but distorts audio as you turn it up. Our GTS tester included an upgraded Bose audio system, which delivered booming bass and plenty of sound, though some vocal-heavy tracks produced tones the system was unable to reproduce. We think most buyers would be served well by the Bose system, while true audiophiles or those with varied musical tastes might want to spring for the fancy Burmester system.

The Cayenne offers a comprehensive set of advanced driver aids. They're typically optional and expensive, but at least they're generally more capable than what you'd get from more budget-friendly SUV alternatives. Porsche's InnoDrive system, for example, allows the Cayenne to provide some semi-automated acceleration, braking and steering in low-speed traffic. In the case that a driver does not respond to vehicle prompts, the Cayenne can stop in its lane, activate the emergency flashers and contact emergency services.