jazzybarrel83: Porsche Cayenne to get a larger diesel "In the Near Future" US customers can forget about it

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Porsche Cayenne to get a larger diesel "In the Near Future" US customers can forget about it

Just a few weeks ago, we teased you about Porsche bringing its popular-in-Europe clean diesel engine to the U.S., and installing it in the Cayenne. Not only is this engine powerful, boasting 240 horsepower, 406 pound-feet of torque, and towing 7,716 pounds, but it is also economical, getting 28 mpg.

According to our colleagues over at Car and Driver, we are essentially just getting Europe?s hand-me-downs. Much like a big brother does with clothes that are too small for him, European Porsche drivers have grown out of the 3.0-liter V-6 diesel that we are just now getting and are moving into a larger engine, a full two cylinders larger that is.

Yup, Porsche will be adding in a V-8 diesel option to the Cayenne lineup in the ?very near future,? according to Car and Driver?s report. It looks like the most likely and cost-effective diesel engine to offer is the Audi 4.2-liter V-8 that cranks out 346 horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque, given Porsche and Audi are in bed under the VW umbrella. Given how well the smaller 3.0-liter diesel performs now, this engine would make the Cayenne diesel a screamer ? as much as a diesel can be a screamer. It would also thrust its towing rating toward a truck-like 10,000-pound mark.

With that said, there are also rumors afloat that another VW affiliate, Bentley, may be working directly with Porsche to develop this new diesel engine.

Now, before you start getting all excited for this large diesel engine, you can forget about it. Porsche does not appear to have any plans on bringing this larger diesel engine to the U.S. This is no surprise, as the European market is easier for Porsche to distribute to, as well as the fact that Euro drivers are accustomed to buying these clean diesels than U.S. buyers are. Maybe one day the European market will outgrow this engine and we will finally get it here, but the chances are slim.