Macan test drives

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Col Lamb
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Post by Col Lamb »

The post on cr4p Macans got me thinking.

There are good Macans, great Macans and even Macans that should be better.

The post got me thinking about the different Macans I have driven, so here goes:-

1 Macan SD, Bolton OPC.
Wow, what a ride, great comfort via the 18 ways but for me bolsters were a little on the large side. Handling way better than the Q3 I arrived at the OPC in. Very good performance but let down by the gearbox and throttle map in comfort mode. Put it in Sport mode and it was far more enjoyable to drive. Ride quality was OK on 21” rims, a little road noise from the tyres but nothing intrusive, very little wind noise from doors and Pano.

2 Macan 2.0 Bolton.
This was one of the first 2.0 litre 230 bhp versions, fitted with 14 way seats, PS+ and Air Suspension on standard 18” rims. Comfort superb, ride quality absolutely sublime, handling very good but marginally more roll than with the SD. Engine was a gutless waste of time in this format, at a traffic lights GP start it struggled to keep up with a Beamer 118D, on the M60 motorway at the end of a 50mph roadworks section the Passat Bluemotion in front of me floored it and I floored it in the Macan and I struggled to keep up with the VW. I had the car for a day and thoroughly enjoyed the loan, the car had ACC and the motorway drives gave me chance to check out the system, it worked great and much superior to standard, it would become one of my must haves.

3 Macan SD, Chester.
1/2 day loan again 18 way seats, PS+, and 21” rims, also fitted with PSE. Just as good as the Bolton SD, same Comfort mode issue of slow to change gear and unresponsive throttle. PSE, well it sounded good but not what I was expecting, could take it or leave it but glad it was switchable. When asked about an S they said they dis not have a demo available and added that wait periods were well over 12m for a petrol S.

4 Macan SD, Kendal.
There is a trend of OPCs specifying 18 way seats, PS+, 21” rims, PASM, Pano, RevCam as these seem to be pretty inclusive extras in both the demo and showroom cars in all OPCs that I have visited. Same thoughts as prior on road test. There is one major problem they have an SD in the showroom that has most of what I want but it is Black and an SD, we fall for it and place a deposit as buying the showroom model will cut down the wait from 10 months to 4.

5 Macan S, Wilmslow.
I really wanted to test out a petrol S before I stuck with the SD buy and Wilmslow had one. Totally basic with 8 way seats, no PASM, no PS+, minimal upgrades other than enough to keep the car under £50k. They had fitted a set of 21” wheels but these were for show only and when the demo car was sold on it would have stock rims. Firstly after a short while we found that the seats were very uncomfortable with no lumber support, and a short squab. Worst still was the ride quality, there was not any, it was hard and uncomfortable, especially on the uneven country roads in this part of Cheshire. When pushed the handling thumped and bumped and it skittled over the road surface. Parking with 21” rims and no PS+ required quite a heave of the steering wheel, but once above 20mph steering was light and acceptable. Engine performance was very good, it just kept going, on the move pick up was very good from speed. Not as responsive initially as the SD at low revs in Sport mode but considerably better in Comfort mode. Only trouble was that at this OPC at that time an S was a very long 15 months wait for a build slot plus delivery so became a non starter.

6 Macan SD at PEC.
Hooligan time in the SD with 18 way seats, PASM, PS+, and 21” rims. A great session more than confirmed that the Macan was the best choice. An SD would fit the bill for my intended short term ownership of one year.

7 SD, my own
14 way seats, PASM, PS+, 20” wheels. Loved the ride, handling and engine in Sport performance mode up to Mway speeds. Downsides, engine and gearbox performance in Comfort setting and the way the engine delivery plateaus. In Sport mode the engine was very responsive and accelerated strongly from low speeds, in fact it was very easy to get to speeds one should not be doing in posted limit areas. At speed on the open road the pick up was initially just OK but it run into the downward slope of the delivery curve all to easily for my own tastes. Sold earlier than expected as the wait for a Turbo was far shorter than expected. The SD was not configured as I wanted and due to the power delivery of the engine not suiting how I wanted it, having wanted the same performance as a BMW 35D or SQ5 the SD fails to match these engines, I toyed with chipping it but some DPF issues had started to appear on other Macans and the VW dieselgate was spreading to Porsche despite their early denial of any cheat software in their cars, so I was pleased to cut and run away from the diesel.

8 Macan Turbo, Leeds.
18 way, PASM, 21” rims, PS+, PSE. This was for sale as a second owner Macan. Ride and handling as per all other Macans so no issues at all. Engine, wow, stomp the gas and it takes off, PSE sounds great and a joy whilst accelerating, drones at cruising speeds. Very responsive at any speed, great sound even with PSE off. This is the engine I want, its power makes an effortless drive.

9 Macan Turbo, at PEC.
18 way, Air, 21” wheels, PS+, Sports Chrono. A one hour drive around country roads, all suspension and Sports settings tested. On PEC circuits all settings tested again at maxed out handling limits. Definitive must have inclusions for my own Turbo sorted after the session in this Turbo.

10 Macan Turbo, at PEC.
18 way seats, PASM, 21” rims, PS+, no SC. Back to back tests to confirmed that I wanted Air and SC in my own Turbo configuration and that the Turbo was the Macan I wanted.

11 Macan Turbo, my own.
14 way, Air, Sports Chrono. Love it, it has all the performance I want, it is comfortable, rides more than well enough for me, a years ownership has confirmed that for me ultimate handling is not a priority it is straight line acceleration that matters most. Despite not having PSE I love the engine growl that I get when starting up the car and the growl I get when accelerating fairly hard. On the road it is effortless to drive at all speeds, at low speeds in town the torque of the Turbo does not match an SD in Sport mode for driving in traffic. I pondered long about including PSE but decided against simply because I wanted to keep below the OTR cash limit and the requirement for an operational tracker.

12 Macan Turbo PP, at PEC.
18 way, Air, 21” wheels, PS+. OMG what an engine, handling fantastic for two tonnes of SUV, and the ride quality was more firm than my own Turbo. Engine very, very responsive in all modes, the on the move pick up was excellent and far better than the 40 bhp increase over the standard Turbo would suggest. For me whilst the Turbo PP is a great car there is not enough of a performance increase to tempt me away from my standard Turbo.

The GTS was not available in my early Macan days and when after configuring one to find that a Turbo was not much more cash the Turbo won simply on straight line engine performance and that handling at the limit was not high on my requirements.

Conclusions, all Macans handle well with the inclusion of PASM, they then ride and corner well and they can perform on the move how a buyer wants them to perform simply by their choice of engine. The key with any Macan is to configure one to suit ones own requirements. Test drive, test drive and test drive as many variants as you can.
Col
Macan Turbo
Air, 20” wheels, ACC, Pano, SurCam, 14w, LEDs, PS+, Int Light Pack, Heated seats and Steering, spare wheel, SC, Privacy glass, PDK gear, SD mirrors, Met Black, rear airbags

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ScotMac
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Location: Scotland

Post by ScotMac »

You have certainly done well with the test drives. I struggled to get "a quick shot" but have only one local OPC.
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goron59
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Post by goron59 »

I've driven all models except the PP now.

The memorable ones (in a bad way) are the ones without adaptive cruise control - it's alarming to have the car merrily drive in to the car in front when you're not used to it :) Just one of those things that I'd struggle to live without :oops:

The best ones are my current car, obviously, and my previous one, but only because it had Burmester sound and the one single thing I miss.
Used to have 2016 Macan Turbo PHCKCL70
Previously a 2014 Macan Turbo.
Now a 2021 Tesla Model 3 LR
Bigboyrolo
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Post by Bigboyrolo »

[quote="Col Lamb" post_id=137373 time=1507122807 user_id=873

There are good Macans, great Macans and even Macans that should be better.
[/quote]
Colin I like your comments on various test drives, agree with almost everything, esp 21's. I am certain 20's and Air is the sweet spot of ride comfort and that a GTS over an S does not offer enough extra 'oomph'. Now I know how my S performs and have re-trained myself to use the gears, I realise want more performance. As you say, not handling, but acceleration and power. I am reminded of moving from a 250 Honda to a 900 one, at first the 900 seemed like more than I could handle, but after a few weeks I was thinking 'is this all its got', so it made way for a Kwacker GPZ.
I'll be looking for a Turbo next year.
"Every year is getting shorter, never seem to find the time" Pink Floyd.
BMW 2019 440i Convertible
2016 Panny S e-Hybrid Black/Cream sold Apr 19
Macan S VG/Luxor, sold @ 9700 miles March 18
Macan SD Dark Blue/ Pebble, sold @ 16k miles Dec 16
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Wing Commander
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Post by Wing Commander »

BBR, given your comparison of upgrading from a 250cc bike to a 900cc one, would a Turbo PP not be in order for your next Macan...? :) Or a Turbo S if they ever release one?
Simon

Sold: 2016 Rhodium Silver Macan 2.0
Sold: 2013 Platinum Silver 911 (991.1) C2
Sold: 2017 Carmine Red Panamera 4
Mine: 991.2 Carrera T Racing Yellow 06/04/2018
Bigboyrolo
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Post by Bigboyrolo »

Wing Commander wrote: Wed Oct 04, 2017 7:42 pm BBR, given your comparison of upgrading from a 250cc bike to a 900cc one, would a Turbo PP not be in order for your next Macan...? :) Or a Turbo S if they ever release one?
Aspirations perhaps, all will depend on the weight of the piggy bank.
"Every year is getting shorter, never seem to find the time" Pink Floyd.
BMW 2019 440i Convertible
2016 Panny S e-Hybrid Black/Cream sold Apr 19
Macan S VG/Luxor, sold @ 9700 miles March 18
Macan SD Dark Blue/ Pebble, sold @ 16k miles Dec 16
Col Lamb
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Post by Col Lamb »

Bigboyrolo wrote: Wed Oct 04, 2017 7:28 pm [quote="Col Lamb" post_id=137373 time=1507122807 user_id=873

There are good Macans, great Macans and even Macans that should be better.
Colin I like your comments on various test drives, agree with almost everything, esp 21's. I am certain 20's and Air is the sweet spot of ride comfort and that a GTS over an S does not offer enough extra 'oomph'. Now I know how my S performs and have re-trained myself to use the gears, I realise want more performance. As you say, not handling, but acceleration and power. I am reminded of moving from a 250 Honda to a 900 one, at first the 900 seemed like more than I could handle, but after a few weeks I was thinking 'is this all its got', so it made way for a Kwacker GPZ.
I'll be looking for a Turbo next year.
[/quote]
We are on the same page Frank.

I swapped over from a Suzuki 650SV to a Triumph Sprint ST after a test ride of one at the Bike show at the NEC, loved the Triumph, the amazingly flat torque curve made it so responsive and it just kept going, even then I still wanted more but the thought of a cramped Sports bike like a Fireblade or R1 was too much for me.

After driving quite a few Macans for me they should be tuned:-
Base 300 bhp
S 360 bhp
SD 320 bhp
GTS 400 bhp
Turbo 450 bhp
Turbo PP 500 bhp
Col
Macan Turbo
Air, 20” wheels, ACC, Pano, SurCam, 14w, LEDs, PS+, Int Light Pack, Heated seats and Steering, spare wheel, SC, Privacy glass, PDK gear, SD mirrors, Met Black, rear airbags
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goron59
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Post by goron59 »

I think the power is ok in the Macans - they just need to be made of lighter materials, instead of pig iron and concrete.

Basically, just improve the power/weight ratio. 250ps/tonne or it's too slow, as far as I'm concerned.
Used to have 2016 Macan Turbo PHCKCL70
Previously a 2014 Macan Turbo.
Now a 2021 Tesla Model 3 LR
Kasfranks99
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Joined: Thu Jul 28, 2016 8:38 pm

Post by Kasfranks99 »

goron59 wrote: Thu Oct 05, 2017 4:25 pm I think the power is ok in the Macans - they just need to be made of lighter materials, instead of pig iron and concrete.

Basically, just improve the power/weight ratio. 250ps/tonne or it's too slow, as far as I'm concerned.
Agree. As much as I don't like the FPace this is what they have done. It's a fair bit lighter than the Macan and also bigger so i see no reason for it not coming down to under 1700kg.
GTS 😀
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Wing Commander
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Post by Wing Commander »

+1. And the way things are going, it seems much more socially acceptable for advances in technology to be focussed on reducing weight (thereby increasing power to weight ratio) rather than simply endlessly upping the power output.

Although I have noticed a distinct trend with Porsche to increase horsepower with each new version/mid-life refresh. Often they seem to increase power by about 20 horsepower or so over the previous vesion (e.g. 911, Cayman/Boxster) so I predict similar power uplifts with the new Macan. :geek:
Simon

Sold: 2016 Rhodium Silver Macan 2.0
Sold: 2013 Platinum Silver 911 (991.1) C2
Sold: 2017 Carmine Red Panamera 4
Mine: 991.2 Carrera T Racing Yellow 06/04/2018
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