I thought I had it all figured out, and was planning on purchasing a used 2008 Turbo in the $65K range. But now the more I look at the 2011 Cayenne S, I am starting to lean that way. The interior is gorgeous, and the 0-60 has been improved, not to mention a new body style. So I guess it comes down to power. . .will I be kicking myself for not going with the Turbo? The power difference does not seem to be that great between the 2008 Turbo and the 2011 S, or am I missing something? Any input would be greatly appreciated!

 

It's just my personal opinion & preference when it comes to cars in general, since I have never witnessed a single car company who can manufacture a car w/o problems on the 1st try.

2008 Turbo probably has already all well known bugs figured out, but get ready for 2011 especially the brand new model cars, it will be fun to leave your car at the dealer while enjoying the different types of loaners.

 

100hp is not much difference...... That's a massive difference. To get a S to 500hp it would take 15k+ and that still may not do it. 5k would get your turbo to 600hp. If you want a nicer interior go with the new S, if you want power go with the turbo. The only problem IMO with the 08 Turbo (i have one) is that the stereo is junk. My turbo is at the shop right now getting the new pioneer avic z120bt head unit, speakers, JL sub and Digital amp.... Thats a 4k upgrade.

 

I guess what I meant about power difference, has more to do with posted 0-60 times. The 2008 S vs Turbo times is 6.4s vs 4.9s. But going from the 2011 S to the Turbo you end up with 5.9s vs 4.9s. While it might not match the 2008 turbos horsepower, the 2011 S seems to be a big improvement. Add to that a world class interior, new outer shell, it seems to me that extra secondight not be missed as much. Especially coming from an Audi A6 4.2 rated at 6.6s.

 

Well, what you need to ask yourself is how often are you going to race it, as opposed to just enjoying driving it? Is it going to bother you that you're spending $65k on a truck that is going to be seen as the previous generation, and just doesn't have as nice of an interior no matter how you slice it? Is the reduced offroad capability of the new model a big drawback for you, or does the new interior and features make up for it?

It really comes down to how big of a deal it being very fast is. If you're not going to be racing it at stoplights, 6 seconds 0-60as opposed to 5 isn't huge in terms of actually driving it. Now if you're going to be racing it, it's a big difference in speed compared to other vehicles.

 

As much as i dislike the back, i say buy the new model. i had the first year rangerover sport, zero problem.
If you had to choose between the v6 and the turbo, I would say go for the turbo. But the cayenne s with a v8 and sub 6 sec acceleration is plenty fast already.

 

One way is to just go with the body style you prefer. I'm sure you can't go wrong with either.

 

Not sure how you would spec out a new S. When we order yesterday it was around 10 k extra for Turbo over S even though there is a 40 k more base on Turbo. That's main reason we went Turbo. Actually the wife liked the more aggressive front end on Turbo she thought I wa cooler. Wait till she floors it one day. Now that would be a nice video of her face when Turbo takes off.

 

Thanks, you guys gave me a lot to think about. The car will not be "raced", but I do drive somewhat aggressively, so the S will probably be enough power (for now). And I guess I will always have the chance to pick up a turbo a few years down the line if I am unsatisfied.

As someone mentioned, I thought to myself how happy I would be spending $65K on an older body style car with and older interior and a soon expiring warranty vs. a new body style, with (what I consider to be) one of the nicest interiors out there, and a full warranty. I guess the answer for me is the 2011 S.

As for the power. . .does anyone expect any mods to come down the pipeline for the S, not to get me to 500hp, but to add 10-25hp? I am sure people have done this to the current model S, but you can correct me if I am wrong.

 

I can give you my opinion since I have a 2004 Cayenne Turbo fully loaded. Stock except the Fabspeed bypass (which I don't know if that added any power or not but sure as hell sounds good).

If it tells you where my head is at I am seriously considering trading in my '04 Turbo on a '11 Cayenne S. The Turbo is a real beast when you get on it and the power available from as low as 3000 rpms is truly ridiculous. On ramps and off ramps feel like a jet taking off. I expect the S will need to be wound out to much higher RPMs for similar acceleration....but for me and sounds like for you as well...the new interior, lower vehicle weight, fully factory warranty, much improved gas mileage, new 8 speed transmission, engine start/stop function at standstill, and fixing all the 1st Gen problems hopefully in the 2nd Gen are what is driving me to my decision.

The transmission alone is probably worth the upgrade. My '04 has 80k miles so I'm sure its not as smooth as it was when new, but it is really a pretty clunky transmission. When you are driving at 8 or 9/10s it is fantastic - nails shifts and holds gears through corners. But when driving like a normal person not looking to lose his/her license its not a great transmission. Somewhat hard shifts and strange reactions on half throttle lifts sometimes. The new 8 speed in addition to delivering huge new gains in MPG should also be much much smoother and able to keep the somewhat lower torque motor of the 2011 S in the powerband much better than a apples to apples comparison of two 2008 Cayennes (S vs Turbo) with the old 6 speed tranny.

If you need a range toping model than you have no choice. But for me, the extra $20-30k if you load up the turbo is a big price to pay for that 5% of driving when you need an extra 100HP. And this is coming from a guy who has a 200HP motorcycle and almost never buys anything but the largest motor offered. Good luck with your decision.

 

I am obviously biased based on my screen name, but I would have never considered a Cayenne as a vehicle previous to the 2011 model. As a truck goes they are fine, but for the cost, many other SUV's are nicer and more luxurious and as good handling as the previous cayenne models. I would suggest drive both and decide for yourself. I am enamored with my new Cayenne S!

Good luck, probably cant go wrong as long as you buy 100% what you like.

 

Cayenne S interior is night and day better! Even if you lose the power of the turbo

 

WHen we sold our family hauler recently we wanted to get into a mildly used Cayenne and I started doing quite a bit of research ( I am very **** when it comes to this). I went with the 2011 CS for 5 reasons: 1) If I had ordered a the 2011 turbo the way I wanted, I would still be spending a good 20K above what I am now spending for the CS (Big ticket items for me being the PDCC, PTV, Burmester, full leather with two tone natural leather...none of these being standard on the CTT). 2) Resale is not a factor for me. 3) We (my wife and I) actually like the styling of the CS compared to the aggressive looks of the CTT. 4) The CS would be a step-up compared to my wife previous vehicle the Toyota Sienna so not sure that she would miss the boost of the extra 100 HP. 5) BURMESTER: Oh my GOD....

PDCC, PTV, DFI engines are all not new technology for Porsche for I would not be too worried about buying a first year model. Plus you have a warranty for 4 years atleast in case something should happen.

I too like you never looked at Cayennes in the past mostly due to the bland interior styling. Although the interior is all Panamera...it gels so much better on a SUV than on a sedan (again in my opinion). I however like the back of the first gen Cayennes compared to the 2011 which looks more stylish/sleek in the front. Having said that I say to each his own. People can look at the interior of my '86 coupe and say wow...how can you live with that. I know the history and iconic status that is tagged to each and every detail on that interior and chuckle when people criticize that interior.

 

I have an '09 Turbo S. Have driven '11 Turbo and S. The S is very different. I'm not saying good or bad but very different fron the new and the old Turbos.
What concerns me is this: what kind of new S are you going to get for $65 grand? A nicely equipped S is $85 grand or a lot more. A stripped down S will be a very different vehicle than a well equipped one.

 

As Far as mods go here is what I have found:

Fabspeed and SharkWerks both have 2ndary Cat Bypass pipes good for a little hp and great for sound.

Remus, Fabspeed, Borla are all working on exhaust for the vehicle.

I have not been able to verify from Softronic or SharkWerks on whether a ECU upgrade will be here any time soon, but I have to imagine it will. By big question is for IPD on whether a plenum for the S will be made or do much.