Wendelin Wiedeking is the very German name of one of the most important CEO’s in Porsche’s history. Wiedeking took over the helm in 1993 when Porsche was teetering on the brink of bankruptcy with a stock market value of only EUR 300m, and had a decisive role in turning things around and increasing that to EUR 27bn 15 years later when he left his post. Interestingly he also did so being paid a (relatively) modest base salary with a significant bonus component, directly tied to Porsche’s profitability. Needless to say, this made Wiedeking both a respected and a rich man, and one of the main drivers behind his and Porsche’s success was no doubt reading the market correctly and launching the Cayenne in 2002, as Porsche’s first SUV.

Until then Porsche had only built sports cars, but Wiedeking and his colleagues had noticed that next to their 911/Boxster, most people also had a family car, which increasingly tended to be an SUV. Wiedeking failed to see why that second car shouldn’t be a Porsche as well and from its launch, the Cayenne quickly became crucial in Porsche’s recovery. Without it, Porsche may have gone the same way as Bentley would have without the Continental GT that we looked at a few weeks ago. And to get to this week’s topic, without the Cayenne there would not have been its smaller brother, the Macan, that I had the opportunity to try out last week, and that today is Porsche’s best selling model!

The Macan was launched in 2014 as part of the trend towards smaller SUV’s, and shares its platform with the Audi Q5. A major facelift first took place in 2018 and then again in 2021 and engines will vary with the series and production years. Essentially though, good first series cars with all engine types are now to be had around EUR 50.000 in most markets, while later series are still more expensive. Even for the first series however, this means that a Macan has held its value better than many other cars in its segment, including the Cayenne. The most visible difference between the first two series is the light bar between the rear lights and the updated infotainment screen, but it’s only the still produced third series that saw a more complete overhaul of both exterior and interior.

I had the opportunity to test drive a Macan Turbo from 2015, i.e. the first series, and a GTS from 2020, i.e. the second series. The two engines are a good combination and the two different cars also illustrate the evolution of the Macan quite nicely. The Turbo in the first series produced 400 hp and the GTS in the second 380 hp, however with only slightly less torque (520 Nm vs 550 for the Turbo). Both are also six-cylinders since I personally still struggle at the idea of a Macan, or any Porsche for that matter, with only four cylinders – not to talk about a diesel… In the current series, the GTS is the top-of-the-range engine with 434 hp, as the Turbo has been discontinued.

The cars have far more in common than setting them apart, starting with the excellent driving position. You sit low and tucked in in an excellent seat, in a position which doesn’t resemble that of any other SUV, not even the Cayenne. Those who like the sports car feel and don’t have too many kilos around the waist will like both the position and the seat, and everyone will love how the Macan drives. This is by far the most car-like SUV I have ever driven, with a precise steering with lots of feel, and very little and well controlled body roll. We’re not in 911 territory, but for the type of car, it’s really good.

What’s also very good are the engines. Both are supercharged with one turbo for the Turbo and two for the GTS, and you can’t fault either of them. The GTS develops power almost like a naturally aspirated engine would, but the Turbo is also very well behaved with a barely perceptible turbo lag and the sense that it’s more powerful. The PDK box does an excellent and imperceptible job with both engines, being very quick on kick-downs and otherwise mostly unnoticeable.

Looking round the interior and especially the center console, you notice a very large number of buttons for different functions. The way they’re organized means there will be blank buttons in almost all cars for options that haven’t been selected, which looks a bit cheap. It’s only the current series that changed this into screen-based system, which still isn’t the clearest however. Be careful though, as of all the German automakers, Porsche is the one offering the least as standard equipment, so if you pick up a pre-owned car, make sure the first owner ticked the right boxes!

Interior build quality is otherwise good in both cars, however with lots of relatively cheap looking plastic in the rear, especially in the first series, the second being a bit better. Rear seats are also quite cramped, especially in terms of head room, and behind them, luggage space is on the smaller side, especially in height. This makes the car a non-starter for us given we need to fit a dog cage which there wouldn’t be a chance of doing here. The other argument I have against the car comes back to that excellent resale value, as for a prospective buyer, that means there are quite a few alternatives at the respective price points, depending on your needs and preferences.

In summary, a Macan with the right engine is not only the sportiest, but to my mind probably the best small SUV in the market – and of course it carries the Porsche badge! Even the by now almost 10-year old Macan Turbo I drove felt very solid, and the fact that the difference in looks to later series is small means it’s also aged quite well. It’s a neat car that, if it covers your needs for space, will serve you well, and obviously fit very well alongside the 911 or Boxster you may already have in the garage. If not, perhaps it’s time to get one of those too, to make up the Wiedeking duo?