First Drive: Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid - Top Gear
Ooh, another Porsche hybrid. Porsche now has the largest range of plug-in hybrids of any car manufacturer. Imagine being told that at the turn of the century, when the only big decision in a Porsche showroom was whether your flat-six petrol engine sat in the middle or over the rear axle. The Cayenne S E-Hybrid joins the identically suffixed Panamera and the 918 Spyder in Porsche’s tax-free triumvirate of congestion charge-busters. In Porsche’s claimed figures, this is a car much greener than the one it supersedes. The old Cayenne Hybrid S gulped 34. 4mpg of petrol while emitting a hot hatch-like 193g/km of CO2. This new S E-Hybrid, which is introduced as the Cayenne range gets a nip’n’tuck, comparatively sips fuel at 83mpg while its 79g/km emissions match a... The E-Hybrid’s battery, additional cooling and voltage lines add 270kg to a comparative Cayenne, snaring it a 2425kg kerb weight. Its combination of supercharged V6 petrol engine (the same 328bhp unit as the Audi S4) and electric motor results in a combined 410bhp and 435lb ft. While the old Cayenne Hybrid S used a similar box of bits, this new car ups power by 30bhp and... It’s the same drivetrain as the hybrid Panamera, albeit driving all four wheels rather than just the rears, while the battery has been pumped up a little too, helping counteract the Cayenne’s bigger size and weight. Source: www.topgear.com
