2011 Porsche Cayenne S Hybrid Long-term Verdict

Whether you're attacking the perfect canyon road, climbing a rutted trail or driving to the mall, the Cayenne did it all. On road, it offered top-notch ride quality, handling that would embarrass more than a few sedans, impressive power and plenty of comfort, convenience and hauling capability. Off-road, its height-adjustable air suspension and sophisticated all-wheel drive equipment made it just as capable, if not more so, than all but the toughest truck-based SUVs currently on the market.

I started with efficiency. At the time, there was no Cayenne Diesel offered in the U.S., so our S Hybrid was the last word in Cayenne efficiency. It's an impressive piece of hardware, offering 380 horsepower and 427 pound-feet of torque combined, good for a 5.6-second zero-to-60 mph time and a 14.3-second quarter-mile, making it the third-fastest hybrid we've ever tested. More impressive is its ability to "sail," coasting at any speed with the engine off. In my daily commute, I found I averaged 15.4 mpg with the engine off 46-percent of the time according to the onboard telemetry. Out on the highway, I averaged just under 22 mpg and saw a best of 23.2 mpg, with the massive 26-gallon tank taking me as far as 552 miles between fill-ups. Not bad for a vehicle weighing 5200 pounds that does a sub-six-second zero-to-60 mph time, and certainly better than any other Cayenne available at the time.

Done in the mud, I dropped the suspension back into its low setting, put the chassis and drivetrain in Sport, and tore up the canyon road leading down out of the mountains. Not only was the Cayenne S Hybrid confident and fun to drive in polar opposite situations, but despite the workout and the 4000 feet in elevation change, it returned the second-longest range on that tank of fuel.

Having proven its mettle in likely the toughest stuff a Cayenne S Hybrid will ever see, I switched to the more mundane. After realizing it had no roof racks, I put an eight-foot Christmas tree I'd just cut in the back and drove it 350 miles home to Los Angeles. The tree unloaded, I filled it up with five people, three snowboards, two pairs of skis and bags of cold weather gear and headed back up into the mountains for some night skiing. A few weeks later, I'd drop the seats and fill it to the brim with moving boxes and haul my brother's stuff 150 miles to his new place. The only capability I wasn't able to test was its towing capacity, though we've towed with other Cayennes in the past, so we know it's got the goods.

In 12 months, the Cayenne never failed us. It asked for two oil changes and basic services, it wore out one set of tires and we had a software update performed on the drivetrain computers, but it otherwise demanded no repairs. If we were to complain, it would be about the high price of servicing, but that comes with the luxury performance vehicle territory. From its reliability to its cargo hauling, canyon carving, off-roading and road-tripping expertise, the Porsche Cayenne was every bit the Sport/Utility of the Year we thought it would be. MacKenzie once remarked to me that the Land Rover Range Rover Sport was the best single vehicle on the market because you could drive it across Africa and still get front-row valet parking at the club. I'd argue that the Porsche Cayenne fits that definition just about as well.