The luxury SUV coupe market is yet another reason why luxury sedan sales continue to plummet, and it all started with the original BMW X6. You gotta hand it to BMW on that one. It created an entirely new segment with an existing platform (that of the X5), designed a new body and the rest was all parts bin. It became a smashing success and its Audi, Mercedes-Benz, and very soon, Porsche, competitors all followed suit.
While Porsche has had plenty of success of its own with the Macan and larger Cayenne, there’s always more money to be made, hence the decision to turn the current generation Cayenne into an SUV coupe. We’ve already spied an earlier prototype but today our spy photographers have sent us images of a test mule straight from the Nurburgring.
Now, you may be wondering how we can tell this is the upcoming Cayenne Coupe? After all, couldn’t this simply be an upcoming trim level of the regular Cayenne? It’s a reasonable question, but here’s why it’s not: look closely and you’ll notice Porsche engineers very cleverly installed fake C-pillars. They’re visible where the real window frame drops below the fake frame at the C-pillar area. It looks like everything from the B-pillars forward will be about the same as the standard Cayenne. The Coupe will also sport a slightly lower roofline.
Also take note of the retractable spoiler, as these photos show it both open and closed. What we’re not so sure of at the moment is whether the Cayenne Coupe will be offered as both a four- and five-seater.
Compared to the regular Cayenne, there will obviously be less cargo space, but that’s a price X6 and Mercedes GLE Coupe buyers are clearly willing to pay in order to have something they feel is more stylish. To each their own. Chances are the Cayenne Coupe will also sport the same engines as the Cayenne, such as the base 2.9-liter twin-turbo V6 with 440 hp. A plug-in hybrid version is also planned.
For now, Porsche is busy rolling out its refreshed Macan and, in the very near future, the next-generation 911, meaning the Cayenne Coupe’s debut is still several months away. Expect for it to debut sometime later this year and will go on sale around this time next year.
