PORSCHE CAYENNE TURBO E-HYBRID

Emissions mean we can't have the new V8 Turbo GT, but Porsche has a solution

- GREG KABLE

TESTED 19.7.23, FRANKFURT, GERMANY ON SALE LATE 2023

The Porsche Cayenne line-up is now headed by an even more potent (650bhp) Turbo GT, but tough emissions standards have prevented UK sales. Porsche isn't just saying 'tough luck' to its British customers, though: rather, it has also developed a successor to the old Turbo S E-Hybrid, to be sold in both SUV and Coupé bodystyles, the latter available with a GT package that elevates it to Turbo GT level.

The second of three plug-in hybrid versions of the facelifted Cayenne is powered by a reworked drivetrain using the same electric bits as the usual E-Hybrid, including a 174bhp motor and a 25.9kWh battery, combining with the latest version of Porsche's 4.0-litre petrol V8, with changes such as a better new twin-turbocharging system.

Porsche is coy about numbers but says this yet-to-be-named Cayenne will have more than 700bhp and 664lb ft of torque, pitching it against BMW's new XM Label Red, a V8 PHEV with 738bhp and 738lb ft.