Porsche calls it a sports car in SUV clothing and, with 405kW and 750Nm on tap from its 4.8-litre V8, that's not an idle boast.
The Cayenne Turbo S has been tweaked to deliver 37kW and 50Nm more than the 'standard' Porsche Cayenne, which will take it from 0-100 on 4.5 seconds (0.2 seconds less) and on to 283km/h (5km/h more).
And yet Porsche claims it returns the same fuel-consumption figures as its less frenetic sibling - 11.5 litres per 100km.
Given the Turbo S's level of performance, the factory has wisely chosen to provide as standard every driver aid they could think of, including air suspension with active suspension modulation, dynamic chassis control, which reduces body roll in corners to practically zero, and torque vectoring plus, which operates with torque vectoring at the rear wheels together with an electronically-controlled rear differential lock to improve traction.
GLOSSY FINISH
The usually-optional Sport Chrono package is also standard.
External details such as air intake screens, headlight housings and mirror housings are finished in high-gloss black, as are the inside surfaces of the 21” 911 Turbo II rims with coloured Porsche badges specially designed for the Cayenne Turbo S.
The interior trim is also available in special colour combinations you won't get on other Cayennes, notably black and red with red stitching, and black and beige with beige stitching. Trim elements in carbon fibre complement the unusual colour combinations.
The Cayenne Turbo S will be released in South Africa in the first quarter of 2013; prices, as always, when they get here but, as a guide, it costs €151 702 (R1.7 million) in Germany.