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April 3, 2008 http://www.thecarconnection.com/fullreview/porsche_cayenne_2003

  Marc K. Stengel
EditorMarc K. Stengel

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I’ve known this guy Billy Edwards for years, and I’ve always marveled at the tumbleweed quality of his escapades. He’s constantly long-legging it behind the wheel of some vehicle. Once it was the Borrow, Alaska-to-Key West, Florida, run in the newly debuted Ford Explorer back in the early ’90s. For many years it was the One Lap of America race in various Porsches. He’s a motorsports radio talk-show host, a performance driving instructor, a raconteur, a schemer in the most entertaining sense of the word.

This year, he was also my host, of a sort. “How’d you like to test-drive the new Porsche Cayenne Turbo?” he asked over the phone. He’d called to recruit me for the third running of Porsche’s Drive for Hope, a cross-country automotive trek to benefit the Hope Foundation’s cancer research efforts.

“You bet,” I answered instantly, winking with delight.
“I’ll slot you in for the Shenandoah leg. The off-road leg. You game for that?" There was a hint of dare in his voice.

“Heck yeah, I’m game,” I puffed back. “I’m up for that.” Or I would be. I had three months to think about it — about diving into the gorges of the George Washington National Forest behind the wheel of a coveted, nearly $90,000 hot-rod SUV — and to wonder why in the world anybody would do such a thing.

What the heck?

Of course, everyone throughout the automotive firmament is wondering precisely the same thing about Porsche’s own decision to build the Cayenne in the first place. Available with a choice of twin-turbo or non-turbo V-8s, the Cayenne is either a 450-hp SUV or a 340-hp one, an $89,000 SUV or a $56,000 one, respectively. The twin-turbo I drove for 14 hours and 400 miles on and off rural Virginia blacktop was bristling with technology: There’s dual-range four-wheel-drive; computerized descent control; 100-percent locking center differential; active suspension; ride-height control; adjustable suspension damping, tunable on-the-fly; six-speed Tiptronic gear shifting; electronic stability control; side-curtain airbags.

GET CURRENT PRICING GET AN INSURANCE QUOTE   I’ve known this guy Billy Edwards for years, and I’ve always marveled at the tumbleweed quality of his escapades. He’s constantly long-legging it behind the wheel of some vehicle. Once it was the Borrow, Alaska-to-Key West, Florida, run in the newly debuted Ford Explorer back in the early ’90s. For many years it was the One Lap of America race in various Porsches. He’s a motorsports radio talk-show host, a performance driving instructor, a raconteur, a schemer in the most entertaining sense of the word. This year, he was also my host, of a sort. “How’d you like to test-drive the new Porsche Cayenne Turbo?” he asked over the phone. He’d called to recruit me for the third running of Porsche’s Drive for Hope, a cross-country automotive trek to benefit the Hope Foundation’s cancer research efforts. “You bet,” I answered instantly, winking with delight. “I’ll slot you in for the Shenandoah leg. The off-road leg. You game for that?" There was a hint of dare in his voice. “Heck yeah, I’m game,” I puffed back. “I’m up for that.” Or I would be. I had three months to think about it — about diving into the gorges of the George Washington National Forest behind the wheel of a coveted, nearly $90,000 hot-rod SUV — and to wonder why in the world anybody would do such a thing. What the heck? Of course, everyone throughout the automotive firmament is wondering precisely the same thing about Porsche’s own decision to build the Cayenne in the first place. Available with a choice of twin-turbo or non-turbo V-8s, the Cayenne is either a 450-hp SUV or a 340-hp one, an $89,000 SUV or a $56,000 one, respectively. The twin-turbo I drove for 14 hours and 400 miles on and off rural Virginia blacktop was bristling with technology: There’s dual-range four-wheel-drive; computerized descent control; 100-percent locking center differential; active suspension; ride-height control; adjustable suspension damping, tunable on-the-fly; six-speed Tiptronic gear shifting; electronic stability control; side-curtain airbags. GET CURRENT PRICING GET AN INSURANCE QUOTE I’ve known this guy Billy Edwards for years, and I’ve always marveled at the tumbleweed quality of his escapades. He’s ...