| First Drive | Goodwood, England | Porsche Cayenne Diesel |

If it weren't for the Cayenne, Porsche fans might not have the choice they have today. The Cayenne is the German firm's biggest selling model worldwide so it helps pay for the development of the sports cars. That's a good enough reason for us to like it. That it's at the top of its game as well is another.

In the Metal

The first-generation Cayenne never won many fans for its looks, but this all-new car manages to mix Porsche styling cues with SUV proportions very effectively indeed. It's a good looker, inside and out, the exterior far sharper and more sporting than before and the inside benefitting from massively improved materials and the cockpit feel of the Panamera.

What's most impressive though is that, despite larger exterior dimensions (to the benefit of passenger space inside), the Cayenne looks smaller on the road. That's a clever trick, and makes the Cayenne a far better rival for its German premium SUV competition.

What you get for your Money

This Cayenne Diesel starts at around £44,000, which gets you a 240bhp 3.0-litre V6 turbodiesel mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission driving all four wheels. The drivetrain includes auto start-stop to help reduce fuel consumption.

Inside there's two-zone climate control, leather, cruise control, power seats, front and rear parking sensors, 18-inch alloy wheels and an audio system with a seven-inch touch-screen. Naturally, you can add a lot to that, the Cayenne needing Bluetooth telephony, an iPod interface and Porsche Communication Management (including satnav) as a minimum to be properly specified. For that lot you'll need another £3,000-£4,000.

Driving it

The new Cayenne builds on the solid basis demonstrated by its predecessor, which means it drives with agility and precision that no two-tonne, tall SUV has any right to. The turbodiesel feels brisker than its 7.8-second 0-62mph time suggests, it even sounding pleasingly rorty when you're driving it without any thought to economy. The steering is nicely weighted too and delivers a level of detail that's unusual for any car, let alone a big SUV, giving you the confidence to place it exactly where you want it.

That, along with the smooth eight-speed automatic transmission, makes the Cayenne Diesel one of the most enjoyable to drive SUVs on the market. That's with the proviso that you've splashed out on the Sport steering wheel, which bins the utterly hopeless push-me-pull-me automatic shift buttons and replaces them with a proper paddle set up.

Fitted with the optional PASM (Porsche Active Suspension Management) and larger 19-inch wheels, the Cayenne Diesel rides decently enough. Cornering is largely roll-free when in Sport mode, though you pay for that with a sometimes busy ride on rougher surfaces. Usefully, the road-smoothing Comfort mode is only a button push away.

Worth Noting

The Cayenne Hybrid may better the Diesel's 195g/km CO₂ emissions by 2g/km, but it's the oil-burner that's the more economical. The turbodiesel Cayenne has a combined economy figure of 38.2mpg, bettering the Hybrid S's 34.4mpg result. Add a £14,000 premium for the Hybrid S and it seems to make little sense for British buyers.

Summary

Bigger - yet looking smaller and smarter - and better than ever to drive, the new Porsche Cayenne Diesel is a quite brilliant all-rounder. It's quick enough to discount the madder petrol versions for all but the wealthy few who can afford the fuel bills they attract.