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2011 Porsche Cayenne S (photos)

Porsche updated its Cayenne SUV for the 2011 model year, giving the S trim model torque vectoring for its all-wheel-drive system and new cabin tech. With Porsche DNA, this model handles better than most rival SUVs.

Wayne Cunningham
Wayne Cunningham reviews cars and writes about automotive technology for CNET's Roadshow. Prior to the automotive beat, he covered spyware, Web building technologies, and computer hardware. He began covering technology and the Web in 1994 as an editor of The Net magazine.
Wayne Cunningham
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Although it uses the same engine as the previous model, Porsche updated the all-wheel-drive system and cabin tech for the 2011 Cayenne S. It also gets some minor exterior changes.

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The Cayenne has a unique look, with body styling that fits in with the company's sports cars, making it unmistakeably a Porsche.

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The 4.8-liter direct injection V-8 in the Cayenne S produces 400 horsepower and 369 pound-feet of torque. Fuel economy, at 16 mpg city and 22 mpg highway, is reasonable for an engine of this power.

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With its standard SUV form factor, the Cayenne S seats five comfortably, with room for cargo in the rear.

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The Cayenne S employs a substantial amount of suspension technology to help it handle off-road situations or hard cornering. Porsche added torque vectoring to its all-wheel-drive system.

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Although a nice-sized cargo bay, the shape of the rear hatch cuts down on usable room above the window level.

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This row of LED parking lights make up part of Porsche's current design language.

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With a mountain mode for the suspension and descent control, the Cayenne S lays claim to real off-road prowess.

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With its air suspension at its highest setting, the Cayenne S maximizes ground clearance.

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The lowest setting for the air suspension is intended for easy cargo loading, not driving.

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The Cayenne S is also a luxury vehicle, as can be seen and felt in the cabin. Quality materials, such as leather and aluminum cover surfaces and are used for switches.

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This wheel offers not controls for cabin electronics, although a multi-function wheel is available. Shift paddles sit behind the horizontal spokes.

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Showing its sporting heritage, Porsche puts the tachometer front and center, with the speedometer off to the right.

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A display in the instrument cluster shows various cabin tech information, making it easy for the driver to keep eyes on the road.

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Along with navigation, this instrument cluster display also shows phone and audio information.

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Porsche uses an eight speed automatic transmission in the Cayenne S, a new gearbox with high gears for freeway speeds.

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The navigation system not only renders buildings in downtown areas, but shows rich topographical information in the mountains.

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The Cayenne S uses traffic information to dynamically calculate its routes, avoiding traffic jams.

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The car's phone system copies over contact lists from paired phones, making them available on the LCD.

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XM satellite radio is one of the available audio sources. We found this interface easy to use.

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The Cayenne S includes iPod integration, with this interface for browsing music libraries.

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Our car had this heatmap for sensing objects around the vehicle. A rear view camera is available, as is blind spot detection.

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