 2009 Porsche Cayenne GTS. Click image to enlarge |
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2009 Porsche Cayenne GTS
Ottawa, Ontario – The Porsche Cayenne isn’t exactly uncommon these days; Porsche introduced it in 2003 to a chorus of cheers and mostly jeers as brand purists pooh-poohed what it saw as the ultimate watering-down of the brand. But that didn’t stop scads of untraditional Porsche enthusiasts from buying it, and even today this P-truck still attracts a lot of attention.
I took my GTS tester to Toronto for a weekend, and was quite surprised by how many heads this rig turned as I travelled down Ontario’s Highway 401. Certainly, the Cayenne casts a substantial shadow, thanks to its sculpted flanks, big 21-inch wheels and 195/35 series tires, and the gaping air intakes up front.
 2009 Porsche Cayenne GTS. Click image to enlarge |
The GTS model was a new addition to the Cayenne lineup when it was treated to a redesign in 2008; it occupies the third rung up in Cayenne hierarchy as an upgrade over the S model, which is the least-expensive to share the GTS’ 4.8-litre V8.
A V6 engine making 290 horsepower is the starting point power-wise but wretched excess or not, the Cayenne is a vehicle that needs the V8 in order to shine. In the GTS, the eight-cylinder makes 405 horsepower (20 more than in the S), which Porsche says is enough to propel a Tiptronic (six-speed automatic) model like my tester from zero to 100 km/h in 6.1 seconds (with the standard six-speed manual, that time drops to 5.7 seconds).
