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Porsche Cayenne GTS, base models revealed ahead of LA

Porsche unveiled a slew of refreshed Cayennes just a few months ago, but the base model (right) and high-performance GTS trim (above) were conspicuously absent from that list. There's no more reason to wonder about them, though, because the German brand plans to unveil both at the upcoming Los Angeles Auto Show on November 19.
Sitting below the Turbo in the lineup, the latest GTS still offers plenty of performance. It drops the previous version's naturally aspirated V8 in favor of a tuned version of the twin-turbo 3.6-liter V6 from the Cayenne S for some added oomph. The tweaks bring power up to 440 horsepower and 445 pound-feet of torque, which is enough to rocket the model to 62 miles per hour in an estimated 5.2 seconds. The bump also equates to 20 hp and 39 lb-ft more than the current S and more importantly 20 hp and 62 lb-ft more than the previous GTS, according to Porsche.
In addition to the extra muscle, Porsche also decks the GTS out with some added features. It comes with a standard sport exhaust and Porsche Active Suspension Management system with an air suspension lets the chassis sit about three-quarters of an inch lower (20 millimeters). To bring things to a halt, the high-performance models also takes its brakes from the Turbo model.

2015 Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid

Think of the electric motor in the facelifted 2015 Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid as the cream filling in an Oreo cookie. Under the hood of this plug-in hybrid crossover is a 333-horsepower, supercharged 3.0-liter V6 with a 95-hp synchronous electric motor sandwiched between it and an eight-speed Tiptronic automatic transmission. The clutched powertrain allows pure combustion, pure electric or a combination of both to drive all four wheels through Porsche's permanent all-wheel-drive system.
Differentiating itself from the Panamera S E-Hybrid sedan, which shares the same basic powertrain and stores energy in a 9.4-kWh battery, the Cayenne crossover is fit with a more robust 10.8-kWh lithium-ion battery that delivers an estimated pure-electric driving range of up to 22 miles at speeds of up to 78 miles per hour.
To be one of the very first US media members to sample Porsche's latest fuel-efficient crossover, the automaker flew us to Frankfurt, Germany, to test the five-passenger Cayenne S E-Hybrid on its home turf.

Automakers want to stop the EPA's fuel economy rules change, and why that's a shortsighted move

With a Trump Administration looming, the EPA moved quickly after the election to propose finalizing future fuel economy rules last week. The auto industry doesn't like that (surprise), and has started making moves to stop the EPA. Ford CEO Mark Fields said he wanted to lobby Trump to lower the standards, and now the Auto Alliance, a manufacturer group, is saying it will join the fight against cleaner cars. The Alliance represents 12 automakers: BMW, Fiat Chrysler, Ford, GM, Jaguar Land Rover, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi, Porsche, Toyota, VW, and Volvo. Gloria Bergquist, a spokesperson for the Alliance, told Automotive News that the "EPA's sudden and controversial move to propose auto regulations eight months early - even after Congress warned agencies about taking such steps while political appointees were packing their bags - calls out for congressional action to pause this rulemaking until a thoughtful policy review can occur." The EPA was going to consider public comments through April 2017, but then said it would move the deadline to the end of December. That means that it can finalize the rules before President Obama leaves office. The director of public affairs for the Consumer Federation of America, Jack Gillis, said on a conference call with reporters last week when the EPA originally announced its decision that it is unlikely that President Trump will be able to roll back these changes. Gillis also said on the same call that any attempt by the automakers to prevent these changes would be history repeating itself. "These are the same companies that fought airbags, and now promoting the fact that every car has multiple airbags," he said. "These are the same companies that fought the crash-test program, and now are promoting the crash-test ratings published by the government. So, it's clear that they're misperceiving the needs of the American consumer." There are more reasons the Allliance's pushback is flawed. Carol Lee Rawn, the transportation program director for Ceres, said on that call that the automotive industry is a global one, and many automakers are moving to global platforms to help them meet strict fuel economy rules around the world.