The 2020 Porsche Macan GTS hides performance behind the numbers

[BLANK_AUDIO] When you buy a ticket to go and see your favorite band, they also throw in the support acts [UNKNOWN] early and you see somebody else as well. It's the bonus, if you like. Well, that's sort of what this review is because we're actually out in [UNKNOWN] to drive Another car entirely. The 718 [UNKNOWN] GTS, and also in fact, the [UNKNOWN] GTS as well. But Porsche has decided to do a full-on GTS launch, so this is the Macan GTS, and we thought we'd drive that as well. I actually rather liked the previous Macan GTS. It sits in that genre of practical performance that makes an RS4, or even a Hot Hatch appealing. You can have your load space and eat it, or something like that. The turbo was and is at the top of the Macan range, but the GTS seemed to be more engaging and lively. So I have mildly high hopes for this new one. [SOUND] Before we get into the technical details, I want to just talk a bit about the spec of this car. Now you might thinks as a [UNKNOWN] as bling as you could get because it's Miami blue. Which I actually rather like. And it's got the 21 inch wheels on it. Also in silver rather than the standard black. However, on this launch there is a car that is, well, considerably more look-at-me. Have a look at this. The color of both body work and wheels is member green that I think you'll agree is quite something the rest of the spec of this car well it's a very nice place to be certainly in here we've got an outcome Tara where we've also got this black brushed aluminium which looks almost like sort of Brushed silk velvet on a top hat. Not the most relatable suddenly there. Hashtag make top hats great again. There are an awful lot of buttons in here. I drove the, base to Lisa version of this and the first thing that jumps out he got all these buttons down here, of which I have say I'm a fan. I would rather have lots of buttons and one big touchscreen And this has got a touchscreen, but again it's got things like you can just adjust the volume with a simple rotary switch. You don't have to start sliding up and down on some imaginary scale on the screen there. And when you do want to use the touch screen, actually this rather sort of old fashioned in a way looking gear selector is quite easy to rest your wrist on there. And then Tapping the screen like that rather than hovering around and getting thrown off by bumps. Talking of buttons, there are a couple of hidden ones on this. If you want the heated steering wheel, you might find it by accident, because it's back here. Sort of odd place for it. Also you might not be able to work out how to open the boot from the outside. [MUSIC] The best thing about this interior though are the eight way adjustable sport seats. They don't look like sort of bucket seats, they're not sort of one piece backs or anything. You've got these These headrests are separate, but you get into them and they instantly just hold your abdomen perfectly. [SOUND] Anyway, this new [UNKNOWN] has got a 2.9-liter turbocharge V6. Now you might remember, the old [UNKNOWN] had a 3-liter turbocharge V6. The difference with this is the turbocharge has moved Into the center of the so-called hot V. Mike, you get with the Mercedes, ubiquitous four liter engine. The launch is that, in case you don't know are that essentially it shortens the path from the exhaust side of the engine into the turbo charges meaning they should respond more quickly. And this is certainly a very responsive engine. [MUSIC] The figures for the GTS are 375 brake horsepower, and 383 pounds of torque, which doesn't actually seem like that much Fro and RS for puts out 444 brake horsepower and eaten the jumped up hot hatch like the a 45 S has over 400 brake horsepower and that just 15 kilos shy of two tons. The mechanic is not a lightweight, all of which makes it not a 60 mile an hour time of just four and a half seconds if you stick school kroehner Quite remarkable. [MUSIC] I've got a seven speed PDK, it requires reving but it's also very happy to rev this engine. [MUSIC] And it feels like that is where the GTS's speed comes from, you really have to use the gears and live in the top end of the rev range rather than leading on a low down torque. It makes it feel lively on the road, which is nice. One area that this engine isn't quite as good as the old turbocharged D6 is the sound. [SOUND] It's not bad. I'm used to get some pops and crackles on the overrun and a trailing throttle into the corner. But A bit like the current new Cayenne that V8 doesn't sound as good as the old V8 in that. I think some of it obviously must come down to the GPS, the gas particulate filters that are now fitted to this car. And it just muffles the sound a bit, it takes away particularly I think Think some of the bass it feels like with the noise, which is a shame, but there we are. [NOISE] [MUSIC] And what about the handling? Well, that's a real surprise for many ways because when you know that this car weighs nearly two tons, the fact that it does shrink around you is Quite extraordinary. I've driven other big cars on this particular bit of road and they always feel like a bit of a squeeze. [SOUND] The car that we've got has got the standard suspension set up for a GTS so that's with PASM with the 15 millimeter drop in ride height. But the steel springs rather than the air suspension, which is optional. Certainly I don't think you need the air suspension for any extra ride comfort. This has been really very impressive. There's been quite a lot of cobbles in some of the towns and road works and broken surfaces and this has ridden with a plumb [MUSIC] When you ramp up the pace with a Sport Chrono you get this little dial down here for sports and sport plus. They say sport plus is really only for track, but on the road I think actually you still need the sport plus setting just to really tie it all down. In sport, particularly over the big bumps, you just, you feel a bit of a weight. Still it can be quite nice in terms of feeling your roll and stuff but you still get that with [INAUDIBLE] plus. You just get more control as well. And that's when this is certainly at its most impressive. You can really lean on the front end. There's none of that sense of it just wanting to plow on. Really gets into corners. And actually with the PTV plus, the Porsche Tour Vectoring, you can drive it on the exit as well. Amazing as well, the steering's not just accurate. You actually get the sense there's a bit of sort of feel. You can sinse how hard you're pushing those front tires. Which is like. Overall, I still quite like the normal college GTS but I can't say it reaches guilty pleasure status like the old one that I think the more muted and totally flat soundtrack is a large part of that. However, what remains true is that this is a car that shouldn't be dismissed because of its on paper numbers. 375 brake horsepower pushing two tons might not sound like a very sporty recipe, but the reality is much more rapid than you think. And as we've discovered, the reality can also be much more member green than you'd ever think possible. So just go easy on the configuration. [MUSIC]