The 2006 Porsche Cayenne Turbo S

Porsche literally took a sheet off the Cayenne Turbo S, a 520-hp version of its Cayenne SUV that goes on sale today. Porsche calls it the ultimate SUV, a supercar that seats five.

Porsche doesn't just have a booth at the L.A. auto show, it takes over an entire hall. Every year Petree Hall at the Los Angeles Convention Center becomes Porsche heaven. Picture a ballroom filled with the German automaker's finest machines including a Carrera GT and a battle-scarred twin-cam Carrera GT of 1950s vintage. The cars sit among vintage photography of other great Porsche machines of years past, classic racing posters and footage of the cars in action played on flatscreens. The roar of a finely tuned flat-six is even piped in to complete the atmosphere.

Above it all, hanging from the rafters is a sign that simply reads, "There is no substitute."

Today, amongst all that history and self-worship, Porsche literally took a sheet off the Cayenne Turbo S, a 520-hp version of its Cayenne SUV that goes on sale today. Porsche calls it the ultimate SUV, a supercar that seats five. And the hyperbole is hard to argue with.

Just listen to these numbers: 520 hp at 5,500 rpm, 530 lb-ft of torque at 2,750 rpm and 0-60 mph in 4.8 seconds. Porsche also says the truck is capable of 167 mph. In the Porsche family, only the super-exotic Carrera GT has more power.

Under the hood is a modified version of the same twin-turbocharged 4.5-liter V8 that powers the 450-hp Cayenne Turbo. Porsche engineers revised the engine control system's throttle map, installed larger intercoolers and increased turbo boost pressure by 4.3 psi to a maximum of 27.5 psi.

The Cayenne Turbo's six-speed Tiptronic automatic and its all-wheel-drive system are used unchanged, but suspension components and the software that controls the Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) system has been revised.

So have the brakes, which are now large enough to stop time. Up front, six-piston calipers grab 14.96-inch diameter rotors. Out back there are four-piston calipers grabbing 14.09 inch discs. Bolted to them are 20-inch SportTechno wheels wrapped in 275/40R20 high-performance tires.

And it can all be yours at the low, low base price of just $111,600.

What's Edmunds' Take?
Just when you think the competition has caught Porsche's tailpipes, it pulls out something like this. For the last year everyone's been talking about the Range Rover Sport Supercharged and the coming-soon Mercedes Benz ML63. Well, they aren't anymore. The Porsche Cayenne Turbo S is the new king of hot-rod SUVs. — Scott Oldham

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