Ride And Handling
What elevates the driving experience even
more is the manner in which the Macan allows you to simply assault corners.
This car has a big heavy diesel in the nose, but it just doesn’t feel
nose-heavy. The huge six-piston callipers on the front brakes shed speed in
total confidence, the Macan turns in with incredible agility and what goads you
into going even quicker is the fact that everything is calm, composed and taut.
The Macan, in fact, has reserves of grip that initially get you scratching your
head.
What makes it even nicer is that the direct
steering is simply brimming over with feedback and feel. In fact, so good is
the Macan when you let rip on a road full of nice undulating corners, it feels
absolutely nothing like an SUV. Yes, there is some amount of understeer as
tyres start to lose traction, but this can often be cured by waiting and
getting on the power when the corner opens up.
The
front seats are just the right size, very supportive and a bit firm
Porsche has tapped into every single
technological trick in the book to elevate the Macan to this level. The air
springs allow it to really hunker down when you are pressing on, the massive
265- and 295-section tyres give the car huge amounts of grip and Porsche has
used the performance-based four-wheel-drive system from the 911 Carrera 4 to
actively transfer power between the wheels. You even get torque vectoring on
the rear axle that helps turn the car into a corner by braking the inside rear
wheel.
What’s even more baffling is that the car
rides really well too. Of course, the suspension needs to be in its most
comfortable setting, but the manner in which the Macan tackles our
monsoon-ravaged roads is literally worthy of applause. Medium- and even
large-sized bumps are absorbed quickly and quietly, with only a hint of a bob,
and the suspension is so well set up, all you really need to do to ride over a
rough patch is get off the brakes and throttle and allow the Macan to sail
over. Really large craters do reveal stiffer underlying layers of the air
springs, but that’s only to be expected, especially with the 20-inch wheels and
the low 40- and 45-profile tyres our test car came with. It goes without saying
– we’d choose saner, more appropriate wheels.
Diesel
V6 is incredibly refined and feels like a petrol on the move
After all this, you’d expect the Porsche
Macan to be pretty useless off road, but with 230mm of ground clearance in
off-road mode and a fast-acting four-wheel-drive system, it manages pretty well
here too. It won’t stay with a regular 4X4 on a challenging track, but dirt
roads and off-track excursions are handled pretty easily. Only the slightly
grabby brakes spoil this otherwise perfect all-round package.
Verdict
Sports cars and developing markets don’t
always go hand in hand. Yes, low-slung looks and massive performance have huge
appeal, but the fear of poor roads often prevents would be owners from taking
the plunge.
Plenty
of space for luggage in this 500-litre boot, but you only get a space saver
To exploit these cars to the fullest, you
need to seek out the right conditions. The Porsche Macan, on the other hand, is
a sports car (no mistake here) you can drive really hard over almost every road
you come across. Its combination of outright athleticism, good ground clearance
and fantastic body control make it unique. Very fast, luxuriously appointed on
the inside and a thrill a minute from behind the wheel, it is the perfect
antidote to our poor roads. It may not have the most spacious rear seats, it
may be eye-wateringly expensive and it may not have the low-slung profile of a
sports car, but the Macan delivers what no other car on planet earth can – the
best bits of a sports car and a compact SUV, in one single package. If you’re
in the market for either, make sure you drive this one first.
