Cons: Not as incisive as previous Cayennes, expensive
This is the quickest, in the real-world sense, SUV you can get. Thanks to its excellent visibility and a supremely effective chassis, a Cayenne Turbo can cover ground, from point to point and in any weather, faster than most cars.
However, in third-generation guise, the Cayenne has lost a degree of the incisiveness and rear-driven poise that made its predecessors such impressive performance SUVs.
Make no mistake: the energy with which this 2.3-tonne SUV changes direction is still pretty phenomenal, but the Cayenne Turbo’s previously fervid temperament feels as though it has been dialled back a notch to make it a more liveable, broadly appealing fast SUV than it was before.
Save money with new Cayenne deals from What Car?
Pros: Phenomenal pace, refined and immensely comfortable
Cons: Can’t match rivals for dynamics, V8 is as characterful as old diesel
The SQ7 initially rose to prominence because it went about the business of being a fast, effective and impressively usable SUV in a slightly different fashion from the majority of its rivals.
Central to this was its 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged diesel V8, a powerplant that lent the SQ7 not only fairly phenomenal pace but also reasonable fuel efficiency – at least in the context of the other cars on this list.
In 2020, however, Audi ditched that oil-burner and replaced it with the 4.0-litre twin-turbo petrol V8 that appears in everything from Audi’s own RS models to Bentleys and Porsches. Here, it develops 500bhp and 568lb ft – all of which is deployed to stunning effect.
It’s an impressive car, this – fast, refined and immensely comfortable with enough cabin space for seven people.
Given its size, it handles well, too – although it can’t quite match the likes of Porsche, Alfa Romeo or Jaguar for outright driver engagement. And while that new petrol V8 might be a phenomenal engine in its own right, it’s not quite as characterful as the old diesel.
