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And now, 21 years later, the Cayenne is now in its third generation. Hard to imagine now, but when the car was introduced to the world back in 2002, it went down like a cup of cold sick. No one had anticipated such a big and lumbering performance vehicle to appear in the Porsche range, which was always well-known for its light and agile sports cars. But, since then the world has caught the SUV bug, and this viral disease has more or less swept through every automaker there is. Everyone is doing SUVs these days, and the Cayenne took the hits so that everyone else could cash in later. This is the model that pays all the bills, and if it means we get to keep fun performance models like the 911 away from the butcher’s knife for a little bit longer, then pragmatically speaking I’m all for it. Does it drive like a Porsche though?
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Porsche Cayenne - High-Riding Performance

IN Porsche, Cayenne, High-Riding, Performance, SUV, Crossover, German, Singapore, Burnpavement

The Porsche Cayenne needs no introduction, being the first to rock up to the performance SUV scene 20 years ago.


The SUV in question is the Škoda Kodiaq vRS. The latter suffix is the Czech carmaker’s performance sub-brand, not unlike BMW’s M division or Mercedes-AMG. Perhaps, Škoda parent company Volkswagen’s GTI range might be closer to the concept of vRS. Speaking of which, vRS apparently stands for “victory Rally Sport” and the other fun fact is that the vee in vRS is actually supposed to be silent! So it’s simply referred to as, ‘RS’. In fact, in Škoda’s official communications, the the v is omitted altogether. It seems that not only is the ‘v’ silent, it’s invisible, too.
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Bear market: Skoda Kodiaq vRS review

IN Skoda, Kodiaq, RS, VRS, SUV, Performance SUV

Skoda’s renown vRS performance line expands to its flagship SUV


The 3 will be the biggest hitter in the Polestar food chain for the foreseeable future. Where the 2 is a performance executive sedan aimed at the Tesla Model 3 and indirectly, the Audi A4/BMW 3 Series/Mercedes-Benz C-class segment, the 3 will be a large SUV about the size of a Porsche Cayenne or Volvo XC90. In terms of direct all-electric competitors, it goes up against the BMW iX, as well as the forthcoming EV version of the Range Rover Sport. No details yet on its figures, but it’ll have a dual motor drivetrain (one on each axle), and a battery pack good enough for 600km of range. In due time, it’ll be able to drive itself, introducing “autonomous highway piloting powered by the best-in-class LiDAR sensor from Luminar and centralized NVIDIA computing power”. Fancy.
Happenings

Polestar's third act is a luxury electric performance SUV.

IN Polestar, EV, SUV, Electric vehicle

Polestar unveils their new luxury electric performance SUV, due to go on sale in October 2022. We take a closer look at the Polestar 3 here.


It started with the Cupra Leon, then now the Cupra Ateca SUV we see here and soon, the Cupra Formentor Coupe SUV - which will only (likely) be sold as a Cupra.
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Spanish Fly | Cupra Ateca 2.0 TSI

It might not be a common choice, but ignore this performance SUV at your own risk!


But to me, this ‘middle-class’ fast SUV is already hot enough. For starters, it features a tuned B58 unit, a turbocharged 3.0 liter inline-six engine already found in the M240i. It’s an open rumour that the eventual king-of-the-hill X3 M (if it does go into production) will have an enhanced version of this power-plant.
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BMW X3 M40i | Middle-weight champ

The new performance SUV from Munich is a winner, and the past few days with the BMW X3 M40i were simply not enough


I'm certain I'm not alone in finding the new Cayenne much easier on the eye. The softer, more svelte form helps cut the tall and imposing stature. The 19
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Fuel Speed Ahead | Porsche Cayenne Diesel 3.0 V6 TDI

IN Porsche, Cayenne, Stuttgart Auto, Diesel

'Economy' and 'performance SUV' are not words you would usually use in the same sentence. But this turbocharged 3.0 V6 diesel will serve 100km/h in 7.6 seconds and a 7.4l/100km range.


Now let's begin with the exterior. Shy, retiring types who like to keep their feet firmly on the ground should look elsewhere, for what we have here is a soft-roader that is very big, very bold and very, very in your face. The X6M is deeply aggressive from the front, with its big air intakes and angry-looking headlamps. With those bumps on the bonnet, subtlety does not figure greatly in the overall design philosophy of this SUV. From the side, it looks rough and tumble and you can know that BMW's designers subdued themselves to not go overboard with the bodywork. Details are definitely well planned, with each and every crease functional in reducing drag at high speeds. You then get a set of 20-inch M alloys, wrapped in grippy-but-stiff Bridgestone Dueler HP Sport rubbers (275/40 R-20 front, 313/35 R-20 rear) to complete the package.
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To Infinity And Beyond...

IN BMW, X6, M

Who would be odd enough to come up with a performance SUV? Surprisingly, BMW - and here's their staggeringly out-of-this-world X6M.



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