Its coming and its here to stay. Porsche is going diesel. Now this is a big change considering the fact that Porsche is one of the few European automakers to have never offered a diesel option. The news is generating varied reactions. Well some people are definately happy and some are not but many are still undecided. But anyways Porsche has confirmed that it will offer a diesel powered version of Cayenne SUV by March 2009. Many reasons have been put forward that could have compelled Porsche to say yes for the inclusion of diesel powertrains. First explanation is the stricter emissions laws coming in to Europe, which mandates carmakers reduce their fleet average carbon emissions. Second reason could be the rising fuel prices and also we can't ignore Porsche’s close relationship with Volkswagen, which put a number of diesel powerplants at its disposal.
Now you should not be expecting some of the larger diesel engines like the V12, V10 or V8. The reports suggest that the upcoming turbo diesel Cayenne will employ Audi's high performance 3.0-liter V-6 TDI. It's the same unit that features in Audi's Q7 and produces 240 horsepower and 400 lb-ft of torque. Now if Q7 can sprint to 60mph in 8.5 sec, it won't be completely wrong to look for a similar performance from Cayenne's diesel version.
We expect 2009 Geneva auto show to be the debut venue for new Porsche Cayenne.
Source: AutoCar
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