2020 Porsche Cayenne Coupe trades capacity for comeliness
Love the high-riding nature of an SUV but don't need so much cargo space or practicality? Boy, has Porsche got a new rig for you.
Roll your eyes all you want, readers, the "coupe"-flavor SUV is here to stay. Or, at least, it's not going away anytime soon. The success of crop-topped high-rollers like the BMW X6 and 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLC Coupe means that others are getting in on the fun, and Porsche's the latest, unveiling this, the 2020 Cayenne Coupe.
Already among the more spirited drives in its category, the Coupe flavor of the Cayenne gets a more purposeful look to match. At its highest, it's 20 millimeters lower than the regular Cayenne, but the roof sweeps starkly down from there, thoroughly cropping rear headroom and cutting out a good chunk of the rear cargo capacity along the way: 22 cubic feet with the seats up, down from 27.
The Coupe's roof is 20mm lower than the regular Cayenne's, and reduces rear cargo space from 27 cubic feet to 22.
To help offset the loss of rear headroom, Porsche lowered the rear seats by 30mm. Not enough for me, sadly, as I couldn't comfortably fit in the back of the Coupe. For reference I have no problem in the regular Cayenne, but then I do sit taller than my 6-foot height might indicate. Most normal humans won't notice the difference. They will, however, notice the new rear bench, which has a plastic tray separating left and right seats, meaning this is now officially a four-seater. The standard Cayenne's rear bench is still available as a no-cost option, but the sliding mechanism was nixed in search of that extra 30mm.
Optionally, those seats feature inserts wrapped in Porsche's iconic "pepita" pattern that everyone (including myself) will just keep on calling houndstooth.
The Coupe packs more standard features than the regular Cayenne, including sporty choices like PASM active suspension and the Sport Chrono package, plus 20-inch wheels as standard. However, step up to the Cayenne Coupe Turbo and you get 21-inchers at all four corners, with the option of moving up even further to a very comely set of 22-inchers that you can see on the orange car pictured here. The rear bodywork of the Coupe is 18mm wider to accommodate these massive rollers.
A glass roof is standard, but to save weight Coupe buyers can spec out a carbon fiber slab instead as part of a series of "lightweight sports packages" -- somewhat curious nomenclature for a vehicle that weighs somewhere north of 4,300 pounds. The carbon roof and the other lightweight tweaks shave about 45 pounds off that figure.
Power comes from either of the Cayenne's pair of engines, starting with the 3.0-liter, turbocharged V6 with 335 horsepower and 332 pound-feet of torque. The Cayenne Coupe Turbo steps up to the 4.0-liter, twin-turbo V8 with 541 horsepower and 567 pound-feet of torque. That's plenty of power, but other than the more aggressive wheels and standard active suspension, don't expect the Cayenne Coupe to drive any differently than its normal-bodied cousin. The Coupe has exactly the same suspension hardware and tune, meaning this one's all about the look.
And how much will the look cost you? The starting price of the 2020 Porsche Cayenne Coupe is $75,300. That's almost $10,000 more than a base Cayenne, but remember you're getting a few choice options thrown in the mix. The Coupe Turbo, meanwhile, starts at $130,100, and don't forget the extra $1,250 delivery on both. Look for these Coupes in dealerships this fall, and idling down posh city streets soon thereafter.
