Photo: Catalin Garmacea
When Bentley released the document in which they were proudly announcing the name of their upcoming SUV (Bentayga) they also started making claims that it will be the most powerful and fastest SUV ever made. A daring statement considering that the Volkswagen-owned brand never built such cars before.
However, even though they are owned by the same group, Porsche didn’t let such a statement fly and quickly came back with a reply that claims no such thing will happen. Of course, direct mentions were not made but the idea was pretty clear still.
Porsche’s Research and Development boss, Wolfgang Hatz, told journalists at the Detroit Auto Show that the next generation Cayenne will be considerably quicker than the facelifted Turbo S that was just introduced. That would make it an absolute land rocket, despite its size.
The thing is, the facelift is already just as fast as the 996-gen 911 GT3 around the Nurburgring, dropping under 8 minutes. That means the new one will be just unbelievably quick if we’re to believe Hatz.
“Our Cayenne is always very, very quick. It is doing 300 km/h [186 mph]. I think if [Dürheimer] is doing 2 to 3 km/h more, then why not? He’s doing that with a 12-cylinder. Our car will be much quicker on the road.”
That will need some ample restructuring of the chassis however, not that the group wouldn’t have access to the technology needed anyhow. The 2015 Audi Q7 is a perfect example in this regard.
The new model that was just unveiled shed up to 325 kg (716 lbs) off its waist which would translate into a similar loss for the Cayenne. That would make it weigh under 2 tons which would allow it to reach incredible speeds along with impressive acceleration times (under 4 seconds) couple with unbelievable agility on the track.
Coupled with a new twin-turbo V8 that is rumored to make even more power (nearly 600 HP) this is going to be a highly disputed title. The only problem is, Bentley also has access to the MLB platform...
Porsche’s Research and Development boss, Wolfgang Hatz, told journalists at the Detroit Auto Show that the next generation Cayenne will be considerably quicker than the facelifted Turbo S that was just introduced. That would make it an absolute land rocket, despite its size.
The thing is, the facelift is already just as fast as the 996-gen 911 GT3 around the Nurburgring, dropping under 8 minutes. That means the new one will be just unbelievably quick if we’re to believe Hatz.
In-house dispute
This might all be just a duel between two high-ranking officials within the Volkswagen Group. When Wolfgang Dürheimer came out stating that the Bentayga will be the fastest SUV in the world, coming with a 12-cylinder engine (Conti GT's W12, anybody?) and claiming a top speed of 200 mph (320 km/h), that didn’t sit well with Hatz and his Cayenne Turbo S that can go up to 186 mph (300 km/h). Therefore his statement makes sense in a way:“Our Cayenne is always very, very quick. It is doing 300 km/h [186 mph]. I think if [Dürheimer] is doing 2 to 3 km/h more, then why not? He’s doing that with a 12-cylinder. Our car will be much quicker on the road.”
That will need some ample restructuring of the chassis however, not that the group wouldn’t have access to the technology needed anyhow. The 2015 Audi Q7 is a perfect example in this regard.
The new model that was just unveiled shed up to 325 kg (716 lbs) off its waist which would translate into a similar loss for the Cayenne. That would make it weigh under 2 tons which would allow it to reach incredible speeds along with impressive acceleration times (under 4 seconds) couple with unbelievable agility on the track.
Coupled with a new twin-turbo V8 that is rumored to make even more power (nearly 600 HP) this is going to be a highly disputed title. The only problem is, Bentley also has access to the MLB platform...
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