Cheap Pepperwagons

[Rick Lee]

Originally Posted by s_wilwerding

For all of you folks who hate them but haven't driven them, go drive one - especially a 2011+ - they are, hands down, THE BEST handling SUVs on the road.

I don't think anyone is complaining about the driving experience, just the ownership experience.

[nostatic]

I thought briefly about it, but the cost of admission was too high for me for a new one - about $20K more than the X1 I ordered. Used cars make me nervous. I'm a sucker for a warranty...

[Rick Lee]

Mrs. Lee was dying for X1, but the version she got to play with in Germany, not what we get here.

[Zeke]

If I had 15K for a vehicle with a 100K on the clock, I wonder if that's such a good deal.
Oh wait, I just did spend nearly that for nearly that amount of mileage on a vehicle.
Now, if you were talking Boxsters or Jags....

...you could get one of each.

[nostatic]

I didn't have many complaints with the one I drove. The turbo 4 with the 8sp automatic is pretty lively, and the awd version has the old style hydraulic steering rack rather than the electric. Kind of an odd little car but some reviewers really like it. That said, I would dig a diesel version.

[Scott R]

Plenty of nice CPO Peppers out there too for great prices.

[DanielDudley]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

Sad, isn't it.

How sad was it ?


I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: "Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown
And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear:
`My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings:
Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!'
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away".

[LeeH]

What kind of real world gas mileage numbers can one expect with a 6 cylinder Cayenne?

[89911]

The way I see it, you get the car fulfills your needs. Most are willing to buy a late model sports car like a 911 because what you get back is world beating handling at a discount. Most want a suv for different reasons, inexpensive, reliable, looks, and maybe handling. I've had a handful of suv's including a hopped up X5 and although it looked and ran great, it just seemed silly with its 20 inch wheels. I've bough a used MDX and have ran if for close to 5 years now. No, it doesn't have a Porsche crest on it, but it has not had one major expense the entire time of ownership and my second child will be driving it this year.

[Chocaholic]

That's the crux of it. There are lots of inexpensive reliable SUV's available that fully meet the needs of an SUV buyer.

I contend that the handling and performance aspects are excuses by the customer to legitimize spending extra for a decidedly unattractive truck with a Porsche badge on the hood and resultant snob appeal. Disclaimer: there are exceptions to this, I'm sure.

Porsche knew exactly what they were doing...and they read the US market perfectly. Lots of exec wives picking up kids in their "Porsh". The Caymen or 911 couldn't address that huge demographic.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Important to note that this is not a purchase that I'm considering, it just surprised me how many cheap Cayennes that I was seeing. My S8 does nearly everything as good or better than the Pepperwagon, I can't justify replacing it with one.

[s_wilwerding]

Originally Posted by LeeH

What kind of real world gas mileage numbers can one expect with a 6 cylinder Cayenne?

Highway, about 21 mpg, I get around 15-16 mpg around town, which really isn't much worse than the CRV I had before it. You do have to buy premium gas, though.

[fintstone]

I have had my turbo for a few years as a daily driver and drive the heck out of it including towing cars and trailers from coast to coast. I drive a lot of back roads in the early morning and late at night. The headlights are amazing and have helped me miss many deer and downed power lines a couple of times that I would have hit in my other cars. It accellerates like a sports car (faster than most 911s) and will quickly pass almost anything on the road (very short legal passing areas here and if you fail to pass, you can follow a slow car for many miles), even if the idiot speeds up... and the big Brembos will stop it on a dime. It performs incredibly well and is the most comfortable car I have ever driven. I have put about 100k on it and see no reason that I will not continue to drive it for a very long time. I would definitely buy another, but like the styling of the earlier ones better...so I probably will not upgrade for better stereo or GPS and will keep it for another 10 years or so like my other Porsches. I bought it when my F-150 died at around 100K miles (just like every other American car I have owned since the 70s) and it does everything much, much better (except, like most SUVs...for hauling manure...but I have a small trailer for things that will not fit inside). It is especially good in poor weather...rain or snow..and the AC will freeze you.

I have fixed a couple of things myself and had an independent do other work. If I had to guess, I would say $2K average per year is a reasonable guesstimate of repairs if you include replacing the coolant pipes/coolant and all factory req maintenance (if you do not count tires). Wide, 20-inch all-terrian tires are pricey.

[JavaBrewer]

The sweet spot, IMO, is a 20-30K mile car that has taken the 40%+ depreciation. I will never, ever, buy/lease a new car again.

Never liked the Pepper wagon and now that we are out of the SUV mode I like them even less. IMO they are the answer to a question few are asking. I would take a LR/RR all day over one of those.

[porsche4life]

Fugly wheels... But thats easily remedied....

2004 Porsche Cayenne S

[tevake]

Their looks have grown on me. There are lots of them on the roads here in the Alps, Jeeps too. Guess if you need that sort of vehicle, the do the job pretty well!

Cheers from Switzerland,
Richard

[BeyGon]

I have been looking at the 06 to 08 V8 non turbos and if I get rid of my Z3 coup I will be looking closer at them. I like them.

[dyusem]

I was within an inch of purchasing a 2010 Cayenne GTS last September but in the end I couldn't stomach what I analyzed as a continuing steep depreciation. Sure enough, the same ride is now $10K less.

That said, it was a fantastic Porsche to drive...it even squatted down upon takeoff...I have no idea how they engineered that feature but if you haven't driven one, best to hold your opinion about the driving experience until you do: I suspect that you will be surprised.

[911SauCy]

I just bought an '06 6cyl with 81k on the clock. It got a full brake job and a new set of tires a month ago...for a song and a dance. $7100!

I'm blowing up my own spot as I was going to post some before/after pics later on today as I spent 14hrs detailing it since getting it this past Saturday.

Some folks would think its awesome as is...for the price it is. However, I am very particular as it has a nasty scratch (which will be addressed) on passenger side and a couple other small imperfections but I think I'm going to leave those for "character". It's clean underneath and was always garaged so cancer is almost non-existent considering the CT climate/salt conditions.

I'll post pics and story later but I couldn't be more excited to have this beast. Wife is happy, drives well, it's "safe", MPG is as stated earlier which is just marginally worse than what the wife was getting with her 6-spd 2.0T VW Eos.

[911SauCy]

Originally Posted by s_wilwerding

For all of you folks who hate them but haven't driven them, go drive one - especially a 2011+ - they are, hands down, THE BEST handling SUVs on the road.

I love mine - I've had a lot of AWD cars, and the Cayenne is easily the best. Nice comfort features as well, and, if you get a 2008+, fairly reliable - the first gens had a lot of issues that were fixed in later years.

I've had folks from the local PCA go to the PDE and drive the off-road course in Cayennes, and they said you cannot believe what they are capable of - driving through 20" of water, ascending/descending VERY steep hills, etc.

I (as a now biased source) could not agree more with this.

My FiL has an '11 and the thing is simply awesome, for an SUV. He test drove that and an X5M side by side and hated the X5 in comparison, does that really hold any weight. No, he knows very little about cars and drives back and forth to the office/country club/helipad...

BUT! As his wife really controls everything, she recently demanded they get an X5 for her because they're "soo pretty" in some red color. Well, now they have one, I was able to drive it 2 weekends ago with 240miles on it. What a disappointment. Handling felt like my '89 Chevy 2500, trans downshifts felt like it was accelerating the car while you're trying to stop, at 240mi the wheels were black from brake dust, it has a 3/4 hatch and tailgate (wtf), the back area is tiny (3sets of clubs barely fit) rear seat room is even worse, the dashboard looks exactly like a 5 Series.

That being said, it's still a nice vehicle and I'm sure an upgrade for many bit definitely a downgrade from a Cayenne.