Porsche Cayenne S Transsyberia

I really do like the Porsche Cayenne. I know, it’s not reckoned to be the best looking SUV on the planet, and the Green Enviro-Mentalists think it should be driven off the roads (something it’s very capable of!), but in my opinion it is quite simply the most able all-rounder on the market.

In an ideal world, we’d all have a garage full of cars. We’d have the king of the SUVs, the full-size Range Rover with the Supercharged engine, something for the days when we feel like a bit of madness (perhaps a Zonda or a Koenigsegg would fit that bill) and maybe a Phantom or even a Flying Spur for the days when we want to appear at an event and alight in style. But not many of us are in such a fortunate position, so one car has to do.

In the Cayenne you have a hugely versatile car. It’s enormous fun to drive hard (which it has no right to do so well) and feels like an M5 or an RS6 – just higher up. It will cope with the dogs and luggage for a tramp across the country, or even a continent. Despite the antipathy many feel towards it, it is still perceived, rightly, as a ‘classy’ car. And it doesn’t matter whether you are going to the local Farmers Market or turning up to a society wedding, it never looks out of place.

And one thing everyone seems to forget about the Cayenne – it is incredibly good off-road. For a car that is better to drive than an X5 or X6, which are really poor off-road, the Cayenne gives the RR a real run for its money. To prove the point, a Cayenne S, with few modifications, has won the Transsyberia Rally, a 4,400 mile trek across Arctic wasteland in Russia, Siberia and Mongolia three years in a row. In fact, it took the top 6 places in this years Rally. Try doing that in your X5 or ML. Not a chance.

To celebrate its success, Porsche has announced a limited edition of the Cayenne, the Transsyberia, which will be available for sale at the end of 2009 throughout Europe. Based on the Cayenne S, but with special paint finishes and a bit of extra oomph, Porsche has every right to shout to the world about the Cayenne. Not only has it made Porsche the most profitable car company in the world, but it is the finest all-round car made today (just don’t have the V6!).