Porsche Gets Green Light for Cayenne Diesel; Hybrid Still in the Works

20 November 2008

Porsche’s Executive Board has approved the production of a Cayenne SUV equipped with a diesel engine. The Board said the decision was in response to changed legal regulations, especially in European markets, resulting in tax incentives for vehicles with diesel engines. Furthermore, it said, Porsche’s stake in the Volkswagen Group, the world’s largest manufacturer of modern diesel engines for passenger cars, has opened up new opportunities to utilize diesel technology.

Porsche will equip the Cayenne with a 3.0-liter V6 turbo diesel engine with 240 hp (176 kW) of power and 550 Nm (406 lb-ft) of torque supplied by Audi AG, a subsidiary of the VW Group. The average consumption of the Cayenne Diesel is 9.3 liters per 100 kilometers (25 mpg US), with CO₂ at 244 grams per kilometer. The new Cayenne diesel will initially be offered in Europe. Preparations for market introduction in other countries are underway.

The sports car manufacturer is also working on another Cayenne variant with hybrid drive that will consume less than nine liters of fuel per 100 kilometers and will be launched onto the market at the end of the decade. (Earlier post.)

In the last financial year, Porsche sold 45,478 units of the Cayenne series (which currently incorporates five different models)—more than ever before in a financial year.

New boxer engines for mid-engined sports cars. At the Los Angeles Auto Show, Porsche presented the second generation of the mid-engined Boxster and Cayman sports cars, featuring new flat-six boxer engines and double clutch gearbox (Porsche-Doppelkupplungsgetriebe, PDK).

Both the Boxster and the Cayman for the first time break through the 9.0L/100km (26 mpg US) consumption mark. With the 2.9L engines, fuel consumption is 8.9 L/100 km (26.4 mpg US)—11% less than the former models with Tiptronic S. The 3.4L versions offer a 16% reduction compared to their predecessors, with fuel consumption of 9.2L/100km (25.5 mpg US).