Macan remains Porsche’s best-selling car and top of the small SUV/crossover class. The new Macan is such a pleasure to drive – think ‘Sports Coupé’ before ‘crossover’ or ‘SUV’, and, if you take the ‘S’ model there’s 100 hp more, more than 100 Nm in extra torque, which cuts the time to 100 kph from over 6 seconds to a fraction over 5 seconds. This is incredible for cars that can equally well serve as a family runabout, school bus, shopping wagon and even rough cross-country traveller.
The new Macan just loves to engage you with the thrill of driving. The vehicle dynamics – its brilliant performance and unshakeable poise – remain its principle feature and attraction.
Porsche doesn’t follow trends – it makes them. This one is about making a compact SUV that effortlessly combines sports performance, design, and everyday practicality.
As is typical for a sports car, it comes with different-size tyres front and rear, enabling the driver to take full advantage of the intelligent all-wheel drive Porsche Traction Management (PTM) system and adopt a dynamic driving style. It helps that the Macan seven-speed double-clutch gearbox is the best out there with the added option of the paddle shifters which sweetly engage exactly when you want.
The new Macan looks even sportier than before. If you’d really like to pilot the first compact SUV that drives like a sports car, you will like the optional Sports Chrono package, with its mode switch – including sport response button – integrated into the original GT Spyder hypercar steering wheel which echoes the style of the Porsche 911. Underneath its shell, the interior is pure Porsche. It’s beautiful, of the highest quality and finished to Porsche’s immaculate standards. The new screen is almost a game-changer: ease of use of the comprehensive PCM communications system, including voice control, is just perfect.
Sure, some competitors may be more affordable and may carry more cargo, but they don’t cast a spell on their drivers in the same way that the Porsche does. It’s the fastest driving, the sharpest steering but the gentlest to handle. It truly sets the bar for what crossovers can be.
ENGINES New 2.0 litre four-cylinder turbocharged (3-0 litre V6 in Macan S)
MAX POWER 252 hp (188 kW) from 5,000 rpm
MAX TORQUE 370 Nm (273 lb-ft) from 1,600 rpm
MAX SPEED 225 kph (139 mph)
ACCELERATION 0 – 100 kph in 6.7 seconds
TRANSMISSION New seven-gear PDK dual-clutch intelligent auto/tiptronic plus steering wheel paddle shifters distribute power to all four wheels.
EXTERIOR Gorgeous new colours; front-end updates include LED headlights and distinctive front air intakes; the rear gets a dramatic LED taillight strip that stretches across the entire width of the vehicle, thus enhancing the family resemblance with the 911 and latest Cayenne and Panamera models.
INTERIOR The super-quality craftsmanship and luxury have been radically transformed by the beautiful new 11-inch infotainment touchscreen with the air vents moving below the screen to make room. The increased feeling of space and up-to-the-minute ease of operation make a huge difference, and it now resembles the Cayenne and Panamera in design and function.
SAFETY/SECURITY Every Porsche car system – suspension, chassis, cabin and power delivery – has been engineered to enhance performance and driver satisfaction, plus passenger comfort, and at the same time to strengthen the active and passive safety capabilities of an awesome driving machine: a crossover SUV and sportscar all in one!
The Porsche Centre Doha (Al Boraq Auto) on The Pearl-Qatar will be pleased to arrange a test drive of the latest Macan or any of its sports cars and sporty SUVs for Marhaba readers. Call 4459 9666 or visit their website.
Author: Terry Sutcliffe
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