The 2019 Porsche Cayenne, By the Numbers

Base Price (as Tested): $65,700 ($82,780)

$65,700 ($82,780) Powertrain: 3.0-liter turbo V6, 335 horsepower, 332 pound-feet of torque; eight-speed automatic transmission; all-wheel-drive

3.0-liter turbo V6, 335 horsepower, 332 pound-feet of torque; eight-speed automatic transmission; all-wheel-drive EPA Fuel Economy: 19 mpg city, 23 mpg highway

19 mpg city, 23 mpg highway 0-60 MPH : 5.9 seconds (5.6 seconds with Sport Chrono package)

: 5.9 seconds (5.6 seconds with Sport Chrono package) Top Speed: 152 mph

152 mph Cargo Space: 27.1 cubic feet, 60.3 cubes with the rear seats folded

27.1 cubic feet, 60.3 cubes with the rear seats folded Towing Capacity: 7,700 pounds

7,700 pounds Quick Take: The Porsche Cayenne is finally living up to the badge on its nose.

A Porsche is a Porsche, of course of course, unless the Porsche is an SUV. So goes the lament of the unappeasable purist, who sees every stilted hotcake built by an exotic automaker as an affront to history. Time for a reality check: Today's performance car market mostly rides on the subsidies provided by booming SUV sales. If you're a 911 fan, that means you, by definition, also better be a fan of the company's crossovers if you know what's best for the fabled sports car; you better hope that the all-new 2019 Porsche Cayenne has advanced enough to fend off the new crop of zippy cargo-carriers that's emerged since its second generation landed in 2012.

Thankfully, the third iteration of Stuttgart's spiciest SUV is a proper Porsche through and through. Like the 911, the Porsche Cayenne seems to be settling into an established design profile; most of the visual changes are minimal enough to go unnoticed at first glance. But the company's trademark reserved style masks a complete departure for the model. A new chassis, a new 335-horsepower V6 engine, and some key 911-derived tech undergird the third-gen Cayenne, making it the most complete vision yet of a factory-fresh soft-road Porsche.