Porsche raises the stakes with 324kW Macan

PORSCHE Cars Australia (PCA) is set to top and tail its Macan SUV range in 2017 by adding a new blistering twin-turbo 324kW V6 flagship and a fresh entry level four-cylinder base model that is destined to become the German company’s most affordable car in Australia.

So far, PCA has only confirmed the high-end version, called Macan Turbo Special Performance, saying it will arrive in March.

But GoAuto understands the Audi-engined four-cylinder petrol Macan that has long been available in some other markets will finally be ready for Australian launch at a date to be confirmed in 2017.

To date, all Macans sold in Australia have been powered by six cylinder petrol or diesel engines, with prices starting from $91,900 for the S Diesel.

We are guessing the new variant, called simply Macan, will undercut that by some thousands of dollars and thus open the Porsche range to a whole new influx of buyers.

To date, the Macan has been a sell-out success in Australia, with long queues of buyers waiting months for deliveries.

But with capacity finally freeing up at the Liepzig factory in Germany, PCA feels the time is right to get on the front foot with attractive new variants.

While the four-cylinder Macan will be powered by a 185kW/370Nm 2.0-litre turbo petrol engine, the new Macan Turbo Special Performance with its bi-turbo 3.6-litre V6 will hammer out 324kW of power and 600Nm of torque - 30kW more power and 50Nm more torque than the current Macan Turbo range topper.

It can scurry from standstill to 100km/h in 4.4 seconds – 0.4 seconds quicker than the “standard” Macan Turbo and a neat 0.5s faster than the upcoming Mercedes-AMG GLC43 Coupe that makes do with 270kW and 520Nm from its 3.0-litre V6.

Of course, Mercedes is expected to up the ante next year with a bi-turbo 4.0-litre V8 AMG version of its GLC Coupe that will be faster again.

Priced at $143,500 plus on-road costs for deliveries starting in March 2017, the Macan Turbo Special Performance carries a $13,200 premium over the $130,300 Macan Turbo that currently serves as the flagship of the range.

Apart from extra go, the Special Performance delivers new six-pot front brake callipers gripping 390mm grooved discs – 30mm larger than those on the Turbo – along with a lowered sports chassis, Sport Chrono package and sports exhaust as standard equipment.

Sports Chrono offers hard-edged motoring via sports driving modes that beef up engine, transmission and chassis performance.

Active air suspension is also standard, but this time riding 10mm lower than the Turbo and 25mm lower than the Macan cooking variants.

Porsche says the seven-speed dual-clutch PDK transmission is ramped up to deliver shorter response times, optimum switching points and increased torque during gear changes for maximum acceleration.

As always, the Macan comes with a range of option packages to enhance the vehicle and blow the budget.

If waiting lists for current Macan variants is any guide, buyers will need to get in quickly to take delivery of a Macan Turbo Performance Package close to March.

Porsche Cars Australia public relations director Paul Ellis said that because the Macan Turbo Performance Package had come out of the blue, the initial buyer queue would be short.

So far this year, PCA has sold a record 1442 Macans, up 27.2 per cent on the same period of last year.