The Midlife crisis car and Talk me out of buying a Porsche 968 threads got me to thinking about how my 2007 TrailBlazer will need to be replaced before long and how I'd always kind of liked the Porsche Cayenne--ever since one drove by me while I was on an after-lunch walk and I heard the clear, sweet sound of a serious performance drive train burbling from its dual exhausts

It turns out a 2011 Cayenne or Cayenne S with ±85k miles is somewhat affordable for us, at under $30k. Did a bit of research on Cayennes. Very high marks in all categories, throughout their history.

Compared to my TrailBlazer the 2011 Cayenne has the same headroom (important, because I'm tall), about the same towing capacity, has slightly more ground clearance and gets slightly better mileage.

Apparently the German engineers really did their job with this vehicle. Pro reviewers claim it's quite capable both on-road and off. (Paraphrasing one review "They figured if it was going to be billed as an off-road vehicle it ought to be able to actually go off-road.") Reportedly above-average stability (turning, manoeuvring) on the road for its geometry.

In short: From what I've read, so far, I cannot find anything to dislike about this SUV, and a lot to love.

It's a bit early, yet. For tax reasons we wouldn't take the money out of our investments to buy the thing this year, but maybe next?

So what does the SF Hive Mind know about this SUV?

This message has been edited. Last edited by: ensigmatic,

Buying it is one thing, maintaining it is another. Neighbor had one. She loved it, right up until it went out of warranty. Everything for it from that point on was ridiculously expensive to repair/replace, so much so she ditched it for a new BMW SUV (can't remember which model).

It's german so...$$$

https://repairpal.com/porsche/cayenne

i drove one this summer for a buddy or my brothers to a car show. It was fun. I would never own one though. I really don't know much about them. Sports cars in general as they are not my thing.

I enjoyed the experience though. It was a good distance and back from the show so I did get some time behind the wheel. Kind of raced another car that was there at the show on the way home. It was a Porsche too and I had no idea who they were.

Wife has a 2016 Cayenne S. She loves it and so far 30000 trouble free miles. reliability and maintenance are way better than the BMW. And best of all, it is a Porsche. This thing flat out moves. Week after she got it, she texted a pic of her doing 140 in it.

This hits me in a similar situation...I keep seeing (noticing) new 4Runners and Land Cruisers and Lexus GX and LX's...all of them calling to me with their siren song of luxury SUV'ness

Great sounding suv, drove one as a loaner when my wifes Boxter S had to go in for a rear main seal leak under warranty, I don't even want to know what my bill would have been to pull that car apart for a seal.

Cayenne was fun, tight, sounded great...

You also have as an option a used Jeep SRT Cherokee, it will run with the Cayenne, probably out run it and you have less expensive FCA parts to buy and labor that isn't $300 an hour.

Skip any BMW without a warranty unless you have a special Trust fun for BMW repairs, you can't even find a third party that will write BMW extended warranties, and if you do, Bring More Wampum....

I like it, but I wouldn’t ever get real serious on it. To me it is neither fish nor fowl. It’s quick, but can’t provide the same handling as a real sports car. It tows good, but I don’t see it as being up to the brutal treament that a real working truck gets. It’s one thing to damage a Suburban and then repair it. It you discombobulate some thing on the Cyanne while pulling something beyond its ratings, you are looking at major $$ to bring everything back up to snuff, if it at all possible. I’ve seen many performance cars with sprung suspensions or fatigued structural member that never quite recovered. I see it as a posers’ vehicle. Hey,but that’s just me. If you need to run hard get a 911,or 500AMG, or a ‘Vette, or NSX. But a soccer mom car that says Porsche on it... naaahhh. Just my humble opinion. It’s your money.

quote:

Originally posted by bigdeal:
Buying it is one thing, maintaining it is another. Neighbor had one. She loved it, right up until it went out of warranty. Everything for it from that point on was ridiculously expensive to repair/replace, so much so she ditched it for a new BMW SUV (can't remember which model).

Ditto, I know someone who had the same experience

I took one for a test drive and loved everything about it, but I won't buy one until I find someone I'm confident in to work on it; certainly not the dealer shop.

See my username. I've had one for 10 years, bought it new, absolutely nothing, except the battery, has failed. Battery is under the drivers seat so you can imagine what that was like. Its my wife's car and has 50K miles. Great car, I get to drive it when the gas tank is empty. Insurance is less than my Venza.

This week I took delivery of it's baby sister, a 2018 Macan. Sweet also.

I Have the Cayenne and had a BMW X5 SUV, believe me when I say the BMW cost as much to maintain as the Porsche. Like someone stated stay away from the dealership, plenty of shops specializing is Porsche and BMW. They wanted $1,000 a wheel to change brakes at the dealership, my local guy charged $70 a wheel.

quote:

Originally posted by mrvmax:

quote:

Originally posted by bigdeal:
Buying it is one thing, maintaining it is another. Neighbor had one. She loved it, right up until it went out of warranty. Everything for it from that point on was ridiculously expensive to repair/replace, so much so she ditched it for a new BMW SUV (can't remember which model).

Ditto, I know someone who had the same experience

My buddy owns his repair shop that specializes in Porsche. He talked me out of buying one these b/c of the repair cost. He even owns one and wants to sell it b/c the part are still expensive even though he does the work himself.

I bought an 09 S about 6 years ago. After owning a Ford Explorer for 8 years before that, I can tell you, I won't go back. I own a Porsche only repair shop that specializes in early cars. I can get parts for the Cayenne at wholesale pricing, so that helps. I have had no major issues, but some have. Look at pricing for tires and brakes depending on the model you choose. The larger rim size tires are very expensive and don't last long especially if summer tires. I got 40K on my last set of Michelin 19" all season tires. Brake life, similar. I regularly put transmissions and engines in the back of the pig. I recently hauled two complete sets of suspension from early 911s along with a bunch of engine parts. I have 106K on the clock and counting. Eventually, it will be replaced with a newer, used model Cayenne S.

In my experience owning Mercedes Benz, Audi, VW and BMW - motorcycles.....bring your wallet and just throw it on the service writers desk. He'll take just what he needs for the repair.

If you're handy with a wrench and can find a mail order dealership offering steep discount, minor repairs and required service might not be too expensive.

And look for an independent shop that works on German motor vehicles.

A BMW motorcycle riding chum just had dealer replace the headlight LED on his R1200GS, to the tune of $1500. It was a sealed unit.

The VW Toureg is basically the same car and can be had in diesel for less

quote:

Originally posted by HRK:
Great sounding suv, drove one as a loaner when my wifes Boxter S had to go in for a rear main seal leak under warranty, I don't even want to know what my bill would have been to pull that car apart for a seal.

Cayenne was fun, tight, sounded great...

You also have as an option a used Jeep SRT Cherokee, it will run with the Cayenne, probably out run it and you have less expensive FCA parts to buy and labor that isn't $300 an hour.

Skip any BMW without a warranty unless you have a special Trust fun for BMW repairs, you can't even find a third party that will write BMW extended warranties, and if you do, Bring More Wampum....

Well that’s just false. I have had 2 BMW’s with aftermarket warranties. Carmax offers warranties for all their out of warranty Bimmers. Warrantech is another one so there are definite options out there.

If you're looking for solid Independent shops in SE Michigan, I'd suggest:

Munk's Motors

and

Auto Europe


I've dealt with both, referred co-workers to both, and have had nothing but positive feedback in terms of quality of work, professionalism, and fair prices on parts & labor

quote:

Originally posted by bigdeal:
Buying it is one thing, maintaining it is another. Neighbor had one. She loved it, right up until it went out of warranty. Everything for it from that point on was ridiculously expensive to repair/replace, so much so she ditched it for a new BMW SUV (can't remember which model).

This

quote:

Originally posted by jjkroll32:
If you're looking for solid Independent shops in SE Michigan, I'd suggest:

Munk's Motors
...

That would've been my next question.

Wow! Just around the corner (ok, a couple corners) from where I live. Just drove by it on the way back from dinner with friends this evening, in fact.

Thanks for the lead. Maybe I'll stop in there and ask them what they think of the vehicles.

quote:

Originally posted by greco:
I like it, but I wouldn’t ever get real serious on it. To me it is neither fish nor fowl.
...
But a soccer mom car that says Porsche on it... naaahhh. Just my humble opinion. It’s your money.

Thing is: I've become accustomed to the ergos of "soccer mom cars." Or "the modern station wagon," as some call them. I'm tall, and getting on in years. Sedans, much less true sporty cars, are becoming increasingly challenging to get into and out of. Never mind the headroom. I like that I can wear most of my hats in my TrailBlazer, for example.

My next vehicle will either be another SUV with headroom and ground clearance similar to my beloved TrailBlazer, or it will be a pickup truck.

So, yeah, it is neither fish nor fowl, but, to me: The Cayenne gives me everything I like about the TrailBlazer, and something of what I used to experience with the cars I used to street race.


Thanks, everybody, for the feedback. Good info.