The hunt begins

I'm starting to do research on a replacement for our 11 year old Honda Pilot that has 110K miles on it. The comments by MarcW on his Cayenne diesel loaner, and my own experience with a Cayenne diesel loaner have started me thinking that I should not rule out a Porsche. The initial cost can be substantially higher than a Honda and still be reasonable if one keeps the vehicle for a long time. When we bought the Honda we were making frequent trips all over the state of Minnesota for my wife's work and the fact that every small town had a Honda dealer was a consideration. Now we rarely need to travel great distances. I have taken a quick look at cayenneforums.com and haven't seen much to cause me concern.

Got to tell you I am impressed with the Cayenne. My sister road in it a couple of times and she liked it. She bought an Infiniti FX35 which is a nice vehicle -- I drove it 2 weeks back in July 2012 -- because the Cayenne was a bit too rich for her budget. If I was in need of an SUV I'd certainly consider one. I think I would prefer the gasoline powered model but the diesel model could make sense if one drove a lot of miles.

I have no complaints with the vehicle other than I have to give it back Friday AM and swap it for my Boxster. (Well, I could keep it but I'd have to fork over some money...)

A bit of Boxster content: My Boxster is once again water tight!

I think the Cayenne is a great SUV. After our FX35 had over 115k miles, we started looking for a replacement. We test drove the Cayenne and also had it as a loaner when I had my Boxster in service. We also looked at the BMW X5, Benz ML 350, Audi Q5 and Range Rover Evoque. The only ones that drove like a car were the FX (we wanted a change), Evoque, and the Cayenne. The Cayenne felt the most sporty. We ended up with the ML350 because it suited my wife the most, but it drives like a marshmallow. If it was my choice, it would've been the Pepper. I don't see why it wouldn't serve you well in long term ownership. Go for it.

It's nice to be in no hurry whatsoever. My wife loves to drive the Boxster, so there is an advantage there. If I could find a low mileage single owner Cayenne for the same price as a new Honda Pilot or maybe a bit more, it might work.

Have fun with the search! I'm sure you can find a base version off lease in the $35k to $40k range in decent shape.

I found a good candidate locally, and my wife wouldn't even go look at it. Having another Porsche was not acceptable. House improvements come first. The Boxster we own evidently falls into a special category by itself.