Macan SD - hits and misses
Posted: Sat Jul 14, 2018 9:45 am
As some here may have registered, I'm planning to move on from my Macan SD in the next 3-9 months - no specific deadline but it will be happening before too long. Most likely option is an I-Pace for which I have a deposit down, but there are one or two outsiders like a Cupra Ateca or even, conceivably, a replacement petrol FL Macan (though that's probably 20-1 against on grounds of delivery timescale and seeing sufficient major changes in the FL spec).
So sometimes when I drive the Macan now I get to musing about things I will miss - great and small - about my SD (...and things I won't). Here's my list so far in no particular order:
Will miss
LED signature lights - simple, but elegant and distinctive;
Driving a less common car - I couldn't care less about Porsche badge snobbery, but I do enjoy driving something that's not always immediately recognisable;
Styling: SUVs don't seem to lend themselves to attractive/appealing styling. But Porsche IMO has done pretty well with the Macan;
Driving a car that feels generally solid and well-engineered with an engine that's clearly been designed to be used, reassuringly powerful brakes etc;
The PDK in Sport mode genuinely does work pretty well.
Being treated like an adult by the OPC. First time I arranged a test drive just to be given the keys to a Porsche and told to go off on my own for a couple of hours and enjoy myself. That in itself went a long way to clinching a deal.
The (often) 600 miles range between fill-ups.
Won't miss
The poor driving ergonomics: Where do I start? Bitty and dated dash layout; fragmented menu system; probably don't even need to mention the myriad of buttons;
The flakey electronics which eg once a week decide to ignore the fact that Connect Plus is fitted and so refuse to show any of the associated options until eg the next day. And all without leaving any trace in the error log, so despite repeat attempts by the OPC to investigate there's no real clues as to the cause. And I know I'm not the only one to suffer this sort of issue.
Auto headlights that insist on coming on at light levels well above those of almost any other car on the road and which appears to be impossible to override or reset either by me or the OPC.
Seats (14-way) that I just can't get properly comfortable in - there's just something wrong about the seating position - it may be right for a sports car but shouldn't have been carried over to an SUV. (And yes I know I'm in a minority here.)
Limited interior space for a tallish 4.7m long SUV and, on a similar theme, intrusion of the tunnel into the driver's leg space (at least on RHD models);
The bag hook in the boot seems designed to graze knuckles on a regular basis. Surely Porsche could have done much better with this detail.
The appalling rear wiper (yes, I know there's a fix, but it shouldn't need to be fixed). The rear wiper controls aren't too much better.
The lap timer for Sport Plus. Yes it needs something to break up the expanse of the upper dash, but surely Porsche could have come up with a better and more useful piece of design as a gauge or display than a lap timer that I'm never ever going to use. Even a nicely styled analogue clock would have been better.
Edit: And, in the won't miss category, I'd really like to have added the length and bulk of the Macan. I know this is totally personal preference but I do prefer the practicality and chuckability of driving somewhat smaller cars with a better turning circle. The ratio of interior space to external size on Macan just is not great and this is one reason for even considering the Cupra Ateca. But then the I-Pace is actually much the same size of the Macan, so I concede that I am prepared to have a larger vehicle provided it's got enough potential plusses.
So sometimes when I drive the Macan now I get to musing about things I will miss - great and small - about my SD (...and things I won't). Here's my list so far in no particular order:
Will miss
LED signature lights - simple, but elegant and distinctive;
Driving a less common car - I couldn't care less about Porsche badge snobbery, but I do enjoy driving something that's not always immediately recognisable;
Styling: SUVs don't seem to lend themselves to attractive/appealing styling. But Porsche IMO has done pretty well with the Macan;
Driving a car that feels generally solid and well-engineered with an engine that's clearly been designed to be used, reassuringly powerful brakes etc;
The PDK in Sport mode genuinely does work pretty well.
Being treated like an adult by the OPC. First time I arranged a test drive just to be given the keys to a Porsche and told to go off on my own for a couple of hours and enjoy myself. That in itself went a long way to clinching a deal.
The (often) 600 miles range between fill-ups.
Won't miss
The poor driving ergonomics: Where do I start? Bitty and dated dash layout; fragmented menu system; probably don't even need to mention the myriad of buttons;
The flakey electronics which eg once a week decide to ignore the fact that Connect Plus is fitted and so refuse to show any of the associated options until eg the next day. And all without leaving any trace in the error log, so despite repeat attempts by the OPC to investigate there's no real clues as to the cause. And I know I'm not the only one to suffer this sort of issue.
Auto headlights that insist on coming on at light levels well above those of almost any other car on the road and which appears to be impossible to override or reset either by me or the OPC.
Seats (14-way) that I just can't get properly comfortable in - there's just something wrong about the seating position - it may be right for a sports car but shouldn't have been carried over to an SUV. (And yes I know I'm in a minority here.)
Limited interior space for a tallish 4.7m long SUV and, on a similar theme, intrusion of the tunnel into the driver's leg space (at least on RHD models);
The bag hook in the boot seems designed to graze knuckles on a regular basis. Surely Porsche could have done much better with this detail.
The appalling rear wiper (yes, I know there's a fix, but it shouldn't need to be fixed). The rear wiper controls aren't too much better.
The lap timer for Sport Plus. Yes it needs something to break up the expanse of the upper dash, but surely Porsche could have come up with a better and more useful piece of design as a gauge or display than a lap timer that I'm never ever going to use. Even a nicely styled analogue clock would have been better.
Edit: And, in the won't miss category, I'd really like to have added the length and bulk of the Macan. I know this is totally personal preference but I do prefer the practicality and chuckability of driving somewhat smaller cars with a better turning circle. The ratio of interior space to external size on Macan just is not great and this is one reason for even considering the Cupra Ateca. But then the I-Pace is actually much the same size of the Macan, so I concede that I am prepared to have a larger vehicle provided it's got enough potential plusses.