Quote:
[ Are the off-road Cayennes still air-suspension S's or has that mix changed as well?
techm8n: I think the steel suspension has slightly less roll but it's hard to say definitively. I have had my air-suspension Cayenne S to a two day PCA track event, logging about 150 miles of track time, and the main thing that is impressive is that something this large and heavy can handle this well at all. Like sigs says, it's astounding. Either steel or air, the Cayenne is completely competent on the track and you find yourself very quickly focused on the track and your technique and forgetting that you're in an SUV.
As always, GM has hit the nail on the head. I was holding off answering Techm8n's body roll question, because I honestly couldn't remember, having had the exact same experience as GM, quickly being absorbed in the track (which is one of the most beautiful you'll ever see) and forgetting I was in an SUV at all.
GM, congrats on the new Boxster. I hadn't driven one hard in years until the autocross part of the PDE and wheeeee!!!, it grooves like a marble in a rainpipe. I'd love to go do the High Performance PDE course. We got to spend a little time on the tracks in the Carreras, but just enough to whet your appetite. Do you know anyone who's attended the High Performance course? As you know, the Cayenne course is pretty basic, relative to other 2-3 day performance driving courses at other schools, but I'm guessing the HP course is likely a different story, given the quality of the PDE instructors.
As far as the off-road part of the PDE, I must confess that I didn't notice the suspensions. This was last fall before I ordered mine, and I went as basically an extensive (and expensive) test-drive. I was the only one in the class without a CS or CT, and most also had some version of a 911, Boxster, or both. The truck I was in for the off-road part was a CS with air. There was a mixture of CSs and V-6s (no CTs), and a mixture of with/without the off-road package (holy moly, that unlocked independent wheel travel is something to behold). Interestingly, aside from the little "extreme demo" course, when we were out on the trail, the biggest difference I noticed in the difficulty of ascents was between tire types, and I didn't even think to notice the suspensions, as a near-total Cayenne newbie.