The Original Porsche Cayenne Is Almost A Mercedes ML Derivative

Now in its third generation, the Porsche Cayenne is without a doubt one of the most important models of the brand in its modern history. Originally launched 20 years ago, the luxury SUV has a mission to save the Stuttgart-based company from bankruptcy – and luckily, it accomplished its goal – after a difficult first half of the 1990s. But before the Cayenne hit the market, the automaker had five different vehicle concepts on the table for what is now known as the “third Porsche.” In the end, only luxury minivans and premium SUVs are seriously considered.

The second idea had more supporters and Porsche decided to launch a fast and performance-oriented SUV. Marque was looking for partners to develop this new model and initially, they contacted Mercedes-Benz, which would launch the first ML in 1997. “At that stage, we envisioned the Porsche SUV as a high-performance offshoot of Mercedes,” Klaus-Gerhard Wolpert, VP of Cayenne from 1998 to 2010, explains “with its own exterior design, a lot of M-Class technology, but our engine and chassis components.”

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Cooperation between the two companies progressed well in 1996 but finally reached the end of the road before the end of the year. Mercedes and Porsche had “different ideas about the economic relationship of the two companies” and a new partner was needed to help Porsche complete the project. The partner was based in Wolfsburg, and while Porsche and Volkswagen were not yet members of the same automotive group, executives from VW saw great potential in the project and decided “they could use a car like this.”

A few months later, in June 1997, Porsche and Volkswagen joined forces to design what became known internally as the Colorado project – two massive luxury SUVs based on the Porsche platform. Engineers from Stuttgart were in charge of development and Volkswagen had to cover the production of both models. The two large SUVs share body components, but never share a powertrain – neither Porsche engine has ever been used in the Touareg and vice versa. The first five-seater Porsche was unveiled at the 2002 Paris Motor Show, some four years after the initial decision was taken. The rest, as they say, is history.