From 20 feet away, the 2024 Porsche Cayenne doesn’t look like a major redesign of Porsche’s midsize SUV. But Porsche Vice President Michael Schätzle maintains the Cayenne has undergone “one of the most extensive product upgrades in the history of Porsche.”
The 2024 model isn’t all-new. An all-new, all-electric Cayenne is coming, likely in 2025 or later. But the 2024 Cayenne will get a more extensive rework than the traditional mid-cycle refresh we see with aging models.
It is available to order now, with U.S. dealer arrival expected starting in this summer.
Subtle Evolution Outside
From the outside, the changes qualify as refinements. Character lines in the hood are more subtle. Advanced quad-projector headlights are visibly made of four separate elements, obvious even from a distance.
Porsche says the fenders are “more athletically styled,” though the difference is subtle. In the rear, the license plate holder has moved beneath the edge of the tailgate.
The changes inside are much more obvious.
Mix of Digital, Analog Controls
Porsche calls its new interior design approach the “Porsche driver experience.” It features a digital screen in place of the traditional instrument gauges. Drivers can personalize what it displays, though one option is to display a digital equivalent of the old gauges.
The gear selector has moved to the dashboard, opening up a more spacious center console. Designers sought to strike a balance between digital and analog controls. Porsche promises “Large, easily accessible controls combined with manually adjustable air vent controls and a haptic volume knob” along with the central touchscreen.
The front passenger now gets a screen of their own. The 10.9-inch passenger display can show video content the driver can’t see or display performance information to create nightmare back-seat drivers.
To the left of the steering wheel is a stalk controlling a new suite of driver assistance systems. They include a cruise control system that reads speed limit signs and takes them into account. Evasion Assist, Porsche says, “can help detect and support the driver in an emergency obstacle avoidance maneuver at speeds between 31 and 93 mph using targeted steering and braking inputs at speeds.”
Yes, 93 mph. Porsche knows why people buy their products.
Porsche InnoDrive isn’t quite a hands-off system, but it can help steer the vehicle through turns and maintain its distance from the car ahead, coming to a complete stop if necessary.
New Powertrains
The Cayenne will be offered with four different powertrains, all new. They take over for seven options available in the current model. Though, if the past is any guide, Porsche will add more variants over time.
The standard model comes with a single-turbo V6 engine now making 348 horsepower and 368 pound-feet of torque — 13 more horses and 36 more pound-feet than before.
The Cayenne S loses its twin-turbo V6, now jumping to eight cylinders instead. “With a maximum output of 468 horsepower and 442 pound-feet of torque, the new V8 makes 34 horsepower and 37 pound-feet more than its six-cylinder predecessor,” Porsche says.
The E-Hybrid plug-in electric model gets the same V6 as the standard model, paired with an enhanced electric motor for a total of 463 horsepower. Its battery capacity has grown, but Porsche hasn’t provided an EPA estimate of its all-electric range. Last year, it was capable of just 17 miles of all-electric driving.
A new suspension setup uses Porsche’s steel spring Active Suspension Management system again. But this time, shock absorbers get two separate valves – one for compression and another for rebound. As a result, Porsche says, “Comfort at slow speeds, handling during dynamic cornering, and pitch and roll management have noticeably improved.”
650-Horsepower, Nearly-$200,000 Turbo GT
The extraordinary Cayenne Turbo GT remains “still the top model in the Cayenne range for the U.S. market.” It gets 650 horsepower — up 19 from the 2023 model — from a twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8, good for 0-60 mph in just 3.1 seconds, and a top speed of 189 mph.
2024 Porsche Cayenne Pricing:
Porsche also charges a $1,650 delivery, processing, and handling fee on all Cayenne models.
| Trim Level | MSRP |
| Cayenne | $79,200 |
| Cayenne Coupe | $84,300 |
| Cayenne E-Hybrid | $91,700 |
| Cayenne E-Hybrid Coupe | $95,700 |
| Cayenne S | $95,700 |
| Cayenne S coupe | $102,100 |
| Cayenne Turbo GT | $196,300 |
