Porsche Cayenne, the SUV that made the brand's fundamentalists cry 20 years ago and that they see today as a blessing

At the dawn of the new century, car enthusiasts experienced a truly confusing time when  Porsche  announced that it was going to produce its first SUV. What was Porsche thinking? Has it ceased to be a sports brand? But behind this madness, there was a logic.

Most 911 owners already had some type of  premium  family SUV  in the garage. And why did this luxury SUV have to come from another brand and not from a Porsche? Also, Porsche could very well sell more cars, it was a matter of survival.

 

In 2021, Porsche sold 301,915 cars. But in the 1990s, before the arrival of the  Cayenne  , the situation was quite different. In 1990, Porsche sold 15,023 cars worldwide. In 1992, things improved a little with just over 23,000 units, but these are figures light years away from current sales.

In fact, the brand was on the verge of extinction in the late 90s. Until, under the tutelage of its new CEO,  Wendelin Wiedeking  , the brand rose from its ashes and was catapulted to the top of the market, with the Porsche Cayenne leads the way

Besides the untouchable 911, the 1990s lineup consisted of the umpteenth evolution of the Porsche 928, launched in 1974, and the  Porsche 968 , an elaborate and successful evolution of the Porsche 924. They weren't bad cars, quite the opposite, but the clientele wanted something new.

Little by little to the top

The start of the Porsche takeover began with the  Boxster . We tend to think that the Porsche Cayenne saved the brand. In fact, it was  the Boxster , although you could say it was a team effort between the two models. Boxster sales generated the funds and investor confidence to invest in the Cayenne and the brand to take off.

In 1993, Porsche unveiled a  surprise concept car, the Boxster, at  the Detroit Auto Show. It was a small roadster, therefore two-seater, and with a mid-engine. Designed by Grant Larson, who would also later design the first Panamera, the car was reminiscent of the 550 Spyder and reflected the evolutionary nature of Porsche design.

Mixing the words "boxer" (due to the engine configuration) and "roadster", the Boxster immediately fired the imagination of enthusiasts. To fan the fire, Porsche representatives promised they would bring it to market with the concept intact. So that was it. To a large extent, the production Boxster was in line with the concept car.

The nimble mid-engined roadster not only opened up a new market segment for Porsche, but also appealed to a significantly younger group of customers, thanks to its lower price positioning than the already established 911.

The genius of the Boxster, besides its design, its concept and its dynamic behavior, was its price. Significantly lower than the Porsche 911. And this was possible because it used more the principle of common parts, or deferred parts (COP).

Thus, the first generation of the 986 Boxster shared the front end, doors and many other components with the 996 generation of the 911, launched in 1997, a year after the introduction of the Boxster. The result has been a significant reduction in production costs and inventory for both product lines and rigorous cost management.

With the success of the Boxster and the new Porsche 911, Porsche management turned to expanding the range. It was a necessity, they couldn't risk it with only two models, even if one of them was the 911. You don't build a solid table with just two legs. The brand needed more security.

Excellence as a goal

The folks at  Porsche of North America insisted  that this  new model be an SUV and not a minivan  , a body that was being considered at the time. The North American subsidiary of Porsche wanted what it called SUVs. It was a particularly fashionable type of car in North America, and it was then its biggest market. And if the top seller asks you for an SUV, you give them an SUV.

Wendelin Wiedeking had also set his sights on the emerging Asian market, where SUVs were selling very well. The ambitions were high from the start: Porsche would not only build a sporty SUV consistent with the brand, but would also be an excellent off-roader.

Thus, the new model had the daunting task of fulfilling three promises. The first was to be an SUV. A  sport utility vehicle  is an evocative car that promises adventures, getaways, and outdoor sports. It's a car that promises adventures, but in the end, it offers the same thing as an MPV (space on board and comfort).

That's why SUVs never needed to be sporty (sport refers to sports and hobbies in nature, not their chassis) or truly off-road. As long as they have more clearance, that's more than enough to get the family on the dirt roads to the lake where they'll be camping. Yes, it's a cliché, but that's what brands were selling us in the early days of SUVs.

The second promise he had to keep was to move like a Porsche. Being able to take the family everywhere is good, but if, in addition, the car moves well by linking the turns, it's even better. Obviously, it could not follow the 911 or the Boxster, but behind the wheel, the traditional Porsche customer must have noticed certain similarities, such as the presence or a certain precision of guidance.

And finally, the Cayenne had to live up to luxury SUVs and not-so-luxury SUVs. It should be on par with a  Nissan Patrol  and a Range Rover. Were customers going to race their Cayenne through trialeras or jump over dunes? Unlikely.

The goal was  to establish the Cayenne as the best product on the market  . It's a Porsche and therefore it must be the best in everything, excellence has always been sought. "Porsche: Excellence Was Expected"  , as Karl Ludvigsen would say in his magnum opus on the history of the brand.

Porsche and Volkswagen united by SUVs

By opting for an SUV, Porsche was not venturing into totally uncharted territory. The idea of ​​a luxury SUV didn't seem so far-fetched, as the  Mercedes-Benz ML  (now Mercedes-Benz GLE) in 1997 and the  BMW X5  in 1999 showed that there was a market for a luxury SUV. luxury. The Mercedes-Benz ML would, incidentally, serve as a camouflage for the prototypes of the first Cayenne .

Still, financially, Porsche could not afford to develop a new platform for a car that would share nothing with the Boxster and 911.  Volkswagen  , also wanting to enter the prestige SUV segment, partnered with Porsche to develop the  project in series. “Colorado”  . In June 1998 it was official, the Porsche Cayenne and the Volkswagen Touareg would share the same platform.

Despite the identical architecture, each manufacturer initially used its own engines and developed its own chassis configurations and settings. Porsche was commissioned to develop the common platform at its initially secret factory in  Hemmingen  , while Volkswagen contributed its expertise in high-volume series production.

Porsche, unlike BMW and Mercedes-Benz who built their X5 and ML in the United States, chose to assemble the Cayenne on German soil. And for this he built a new production plant in  Leipzig  , which was officially opened in August 2002.

As for the Volkswagen Touareg, it was produced at the Volkswagen plant in Bratislava (Slovakia). The Cayenne's already painted body left the same factory as the Touareg and was sent to Leipzig. The first and second generation Cayennes (known internally as the E1 and E2) rolled off the production line in Leipzig and later also in Osnabrück.

With the launch of the third generation (E3) in 2017, Porsche moved all Cayenne production to Bratislava, creating additional capacity in Leipzig for Panamera and Macan production.

Finally, at the 2002 Paris Motor Show, the Porsche Cayenne  was unveiled to the world. Porsche planned to sell 20,000 units a year of the Cayenne, but after four years on the market, it had already sold over 150,000 units in total. Currently, since its launch,  more than one million units  have already been sold.

Over time, special versions of the Cayenne multiplied (Turbo S, GTS,  Transsyberia  and  Turbo GT , for example), as well as a new fastback body called  Cayenne Coupé . The importance of the Cayenne for Porsche is similar to that of the 911. It is an emblematic model of the brand and at the same time one of the most profitable.

Not only did the Cayenne enter Porsche history through the front door, but it also made the brand  the most profitable company in the industry  and generated revenue to develop all kinds of projects.

It is currently  the second best-selling Porsche  , behind the marque's other SUV, the  Macan . In 2021, Porsche sold 83,071 Cayenne units and 88,362 Macan units.