Your thoughts on Ceyenne S please..........

thinking of picking up a 2004ish Ceyenne S as a daily driver. neighbor has one and loves it except for the gas mileage. other cars i'm considering are 2004 s430 mercedes and 2004 745i bmw.
tia,
ed

 

I had an 04 S for 4 years and it was an overall great car. My reason I traded it for an
08 GTS was that I did not want to own it out of warranty. My A/C system
had to be fixed 3 times and had it been out of warranty, it would have caused
thousands to fix. No other real notable problems to mention.

My suggestion would be to get the newest possible w/warranty.
And yes the gas mileage does suck!

 

I bought one of the first ones and it has been fun and trouble free since 2003. Great car especially if you need the room. I put all terrain tires on in the winter(and take off the P Zeros) and it will climb the side of a building

 

I have an 06. Has 51K miles on it. I'm very very happy with it. No trouble other than replacing the coil pack. What sold me on the truck was how it behaved with a blowout. I was going 70 in pouring rain whan I had a cmplete tire failure on the L rear tire. The sidewall sepparated from the tread, basically had two doughnuts on the wheel. The truck remained completely stable didn't even trigger the traction control light. Will get another one when the time comes.

 

They are a great truck. When driven hard they eat brake pads, rotors and tires though.

Make sure the coolant tubes that run under the intake manifold have been replaced, and that the ignition coil packs have also been replaced. These are two expensive fixes that should have been done under warranty by now. If not, bargain the price down accordingly by about $2K per item.

 

Are these generally not covered by the after market warranties?

 

What is a "Ceyenne S" ?

 

I like the S430. I have that for a daily (chose it over a Cayenne) and can eek out 23 MPG on my 14 mile route towards my biz (at about 70 MPH average).

I have driven lots of Cayenne's and they are okay too, but I agree with "get the newest one you can afford." The S-class is hard to beat. It does it all right (mine has for 50k miles+ for me with about only $1000 worth of maintenance), but it can only haul 3 tires in the trunk.

 

You'd have to read the fine print Dave...........some will, some won't.

 

how would an 04 cayenne "s" compare to a 06 mercedes ml500(v8)? they are priced similarly.

 

Having sold both in my career I would not look twice at an ML if a Cayenne was available at a similar price and in similar condition.

 

kds,
why would you choose the porsche over the mercedes? specifics?


what does "certified preowned" mean to me as a buyer, what are the benefits?

ed

 

Fewer of them around, drives waaaay better, looks better (subjective), fewer mechanical/electrical problems, better QC when built, better resale..........

A CPO warranty is no big deal IMHO........I'd rather have a $2000 discount and have them toss the CPO, but's that my tolerance level and YMMV.

 

I've leased an ML500 and then purchased a 2006 Cayenne S, there is no comparision re handling between the two - the Cayenne is THE Sport UV. We have 36K miles on it I've tracked it once and still not replaced brakes / pads - although I'm expecting to do that reasonably soon. My better 'alf is now the proud driver of it and absolutley loves its....

The bleeding brakes on the ML were a joke, and never ever stopped squealing - and I replaced disc & pad twice in 4 years !

 

What about the Cayenne S versus the X5 V8. In my experience, Cayenne is a more basic sporty truck (probably better sport driver than the X5 with spirited driving and has more prestige than the X5) while the X5 is almost as sporty, almost as prestigous, but is miles ahead in terms of modern technological gizmos and creature comforts. What do you guys think?

 

Love it! I have a "S" and its a great daily driver.
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is it recommended to do a ppi at the dealership if buying thru private party?
thanks,
ed

 

If driving is what you plan on doing then the answer is quite simple - Cayenne S every time.

My track experience is with both S and GTS - my god the GTS is just an incredible piece of kit - it was an absolute blast at NJMP Thunderbolt circuit but it was a loaner and they always go a little better than you own car !! But even the S blew away people that did not believe Porsche could build a SUV with bloodlines befitting the badge on the front / hood / bonnet ......

 

I think you are spot on and it's why I picked my 09 x-5 4.8 over the Cayenne Turbo. We love the x-5, it is a great vehicle.

 

My friends with X5s drool when we travel in my cayenne... on the track the ML63 and Cayenne S are actually fun to drive IMO

 

love the cayenne. I've had them all and the S is the best overall

 

How about with the turbos? Anything else that "Must" be inquired about?

 

If getting an S, try to get the Turbo air suspension set up (PASM? I can't remember). I have this on my 04 S daily driver. It makes a difference in my opinion. My S has been the best combination of luxury comfort, sportiness, practicality and towing capability. If you can accept 16 mpg as your average fuel economy, then this is the vehicle for you. Otherwise, wait for the hybrid (or hopefully, diesel) version.

 

Dave.....

Not really..........just look out for the consumables (pads/rotors/tires/etc)........I burned thru $5K worth of that exact same stuff (dealer prices) in 12 months driving a Cayenne Turbo aggressively.

 

great driving truck but interior quality is below Kia IMO.