Porsche Macan – the real sports utility vehicle

The Porsche Macan, (pronounced ma-kan) is now officially available in Malaysia, brought in by Sime Darby Auto Performance (SDAP), the local official importers of Porsche vehicles.

Four variants are available, with prices ranging from a very “affordable” RM420k Macan to RM560k for the Macan S, RM545k for the Macan S Diesel, and all the way to RM785k for the top-of-the-line Macan Turbo.

Each of the models can be “personalised” according to your personal taste, which of course adds more ringgit to the price. The Macan looks very much like the Cayenne, but in terms of dimensions, it is more compact, and according to a little bird, it shares the Audi Q5 platform, just as the Cayenne shares the Audi Q7 and the VW Touareg platform.

As a reflection of the times, Porsche is following the global trend of “downsizing,” that is, going for smaller capacity engines, with turbo-charging or supercharging to bring up the power to be on par with or more powerful than a larger capacity predecessor engine.

The Porsche Macan range starts with a base model that has a 2.0 litre engine, and the largest capacity in the range has a 3.6 litre turbo-charged engine. In between, there is a 3.0 litre diesel and a gasoline turbo.

For Malaysians, this bodes well, considering that our road tax structure seems to favour smaller capacity engines. Whilst most European manufacturers are going in this direction, there are still some makers who are adopting a “wait and see” attitude, not quite convinced that forced induction is the way to go — my personal experience with smaller capacity engines has me convinced that the answer is both a yes and a no.

Here is my explanation — with forced induction, (i.e. turbo-charging or supercharging), a smaller capacity engine can develop as much outright power, and more torque than a naturally aspirated engine with up to 30 per cent more capacity.

Based on the current fuel consumption test parameters, the smaller engine with forced induction would perform better in the consumption tests, and if the driver drives the vehicle with enough care to keep it within certain engine revolutions, the vehicle is likely to be slightly more fuel efficient.

However, if one decides to put pedal to the metal (drive hard), then the fuel consumption can go drastically up. The good thing is, you have a choice — to drive “normally” and enjoy the fuel economy, or drive hard, and pay more.

Personally, I have grown to love the huge, push-me-back-against-the-seat torque that a forced induction engine gives me, and I have the choice to enjoy my drive or save fuel. With a larger capacity engine, I may or may not get the same, but fuel consumption will be consistently higher.

Be that as it may, the downsizing exercise is expected to continue, and perhaps we may yet see a 2.0 litre Cayman or Boxster in time to come. I remember the Porsche 924 of yesteryear with fondness.

Our Malaysian media went on a day trip to check out the Macan. Three variants were available, the 4-cylinder Macan 2.0 litre turbo, the 3.0 litre V6 Macan S, and the 3.0 litre Macan Diesel S. The 3.6 litre Macan Turbo was in the showroom, but there wasn’t a test car.

Starting out with the base model Macan which coincidentally carries the only 4-cylinder engine in the range, I felt that it was not so “Porsche” as Porsches should be: It is probably the most powerful SUV in its category, but the 237 PS had to pull a 1,845 kg body, and it just fell a little short despite 350Nm of torque.

Perhaps we were driving together with the Macan’s 3.0 litre brothers, and when the others gunned the throttle, naturally ours seemed a little inadequate. For people who already own something else from the Porsche stable, the Macan 2.0 turbo probably won’t make the cut, but for a first time owner, it would be fine.

Next we moved to another model; it felt more powerful, but my drive partner who was driving it couldn’t make out which model it was. The acceleration was better, and overall delivery of power was good — it was only at the next driver change point that we discovered that it was the 3.0 Diesel — I must say that the sound-proofing is really very good — we couldn’t tell the difference.

The diesel Macan, with 258 PS and 580Nm of torque that allows it to pull very strongly, especially from low to mid range, is really very nice to drive, and as mentioned above, it is as quiet as the gasoline-powered Macans.

The third model we drove was the 3.0 Twin Turbo gasoline Macan, and of course this one felt very much like a Porsche. With 340PS and 460Nm of torque that stretches all the way from 1,350 RPM to 4,500 rpm and beyond, it pulls more freely than the diesel, and of course it wins the day form the other two.

I am sure, even without driving the Macan Turbo (3.6 litre twin turbo with 400PS and 550 Nm of torque), that it will be even better.

The overall shape of the Macan is best described as a “mini” Cayenne. Looking at it in isolation, one may be forgiven for thinking that it is a Cayenne, and only when you put it beside one can you tell that it is smaller, and looks slightly different. From the front it is unmistakably a Porsche, although from the back, it is not so apparent. There is a “PORSCHE” lettering on the rear tailgate, but it needs to be of a contrasting colour from the body panel.

Chrome lettering on a silver body does not stand out.

Inside, there are various levels of trim, but the step up from each model is very minor, and personal customisation allows for many options — it is just a question of how much extra you want to pay. I find even the basic level good enough.

The same goes for the wheels — you can opt from the base of 18-inch on the 2.0 to anything up to 21 inches — the bigger capacity models come with 19-inch or 20-inch wheels as standard. All the models come with the Porsche 7-speed PDK transmission with paddle shifters, and all-wheel drive as standard.

In the safety department, all the bells and whistles are available.

“Porsche Macan is the first sports car in the compact SUV segment and it is the fifth model line-up for the Porsche brand. It combines all the typical Porsche driving characteristics with all the benefits of what a compact SUV can offer in the everyday life. I am certain that with the new Macan, we will be able to reach out to new owners who are looking into joining the Porsche family for the first time as well as to excite our long-term customers,” said Arnt Bayer, Chief Executive Officer of SDAP.

-themalaymail