Porsche has released a new video highlighting its work endurance-testing a new generation of plug-in hybridCayennecrossovers that it says is due on the market soon. While details about the new PHEV are scarce, Porsche says the Cayenne E-Hybrid will have higher range than the preceding model and be comparable to the Panamera, its other line of plug-in hybrids.
Porsche’s U.S. retail plans for the vehicle weren’t immediately clear, and its representative in Atlanta did not respond to an inquiry from Autoblog. Porsche already sells the Cayenne S E-Hybrid and S E-Hybrid Platinum Edition in the U.S., plus the Panamera 4 E-Hybrid in six trim levels. The base-level Panamera 4 E-Hybrid offers 462 hp and 516 lb-ft of torque from a 2.9-liter twin-turn V6 and an electric motor, with a maximum all-electric range of 31 miles, courtesy of its 14 kWh lithium-ion battery.
The video show Porsche engineers testing the forthcoming plug-in in South Africa on rough asphalt roads and in cities, plus winter tests in Canada in -40 degree Farenheit temps and summer tests at high altitude and the sand dunes of Dubai at nearly 106 degrees F.
“The Cayenne has actually also been our door opener to hybridization. We’ve basically learned over time we need to upgrade the vehicle again in terms of emotional appeal and sport handling,” says Oliver Laqua, Porsche’s director of complete vehicle product line SUV. “Our new strategy, as predicated by the 918 Spyder and implemented with the Panamera, actually means that we offer the most emotional and powerful vehicle by far among all plug-ins in the Cayenne’s derivative class.”
The existing Cayenne S E-Hybrid combines a supercharged 333-horsepower 3.0-liter V6 with a 95-hp electric motor and a 10.8 kWh lithium-ion battery that make a combined 416 horsepower and 435 pound-feet of torque. Reports say Porsche is also planning a Cayenne Turbo S E-Hybrid making 680 hp and 626 lb-ft from the same 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 found in the Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid.
Related Video:
