Porsche Macan R4, Track Test

Porsche has spent the past 70 years perfecting the art of the sports car. But, more recently, they also seem to have perfected the art of the urban SUV. The Cayenne and Macan are the most car-like and dynamically capable SUVs that you can buy today – the Macan especially! In fact, if you want a sports car for Indian roads, the Macan is exactly what you need. It drives and feels every bit like a Porsche sports car, while, at the same time, giving you enough ground clearance and comfort to ensure that you don’t cringe every time you come across a pothole – which, on our roads, is pretty much all the time! 

The trouble with the Macan, however, has always been its price tag. But, with the R4, Porsche has slotted in a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol motor producing just shy of 250 horsepower and dropped the price to a slightly more reasonable Rs. 77 lakhs (ex-showroom). Sure, the Macan R4 doesn’t quite give you the shove in the back that you expect from a car with the Stuttgart coat of arms on the bonnet, but it’s no slouch either. The drivetrain is extremely smooth, and it’s not really found wanting for power on the street. On the track, however, it does feel as though it could use a little more power. The steering, chassis response and suspension are all perfect, and would put most sports cars to shame – leave alone any and all SUVs. 

On top of that, the Macan is actually quite practical too. Plus, the dashboard feels like its milled from a single piece of billet aluminium – Porsche has really taken the quality of its machines to a different level. And, to our eyes, it looks pretty special too. The only trouble with the Macan is that its engine performance isn’t quite up to sports car standards while the cabin space it offers in the rear seat isn’t quite up to luxury SUV standards either, so it demands a very specific buyer – one who’s looking for an everyday usable Porsche driving experience. If that sounds like you, the Macan simply can’t be beat. 

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