On the dynamic front, this Porsche’s behaviour belies its near two-tonne kerb weight. You can chuck it into corners with the same ease as when you chucked pebbles into a pond in a bid to make them skim the water’s surface. Sweeping bends at crazy speeds too are crossed without drama. The taut chassis, the high levels of grip and precise feedback from a quick and accurate steering combine with the willing powertrain to make this a potent package. And to stop this rather potent pack there are a pair of 350-mm ventilated discs with six-piston aluminium monobloc callipers up front and a similar but smaller pair of 330 mm ventilated discs with floating callipers at the rear. Working in collaboration with a vacuum brake booster, brake assistant and Porsche Stability Management (PSM), the Macan brings me to a stop without any fuss at all on the wet river of asphalt that would have passed for a national highway on a dry day.
On the whole then, it’s quite clear that Porsche have an outstanding product with the new Macan, which has the potential to take the compact SUV segment in India (or anywhere for that matter) by storm. Unfortunately, Porsche have launched this rather nice product in India at a price point that extends even beyond the much larger Cayenne. In a country where often it is size that defines social standing (yes, even among the rich and famous who will be Porsche’s clientele) that inexplicable strategy is probably the only thing that I found negative in the new Porsche Macan.
