Macan Turbo
 

I had customers in for a review yesterday and one of them has a Macan Turbo. He volunteered to drive between buildings so I got to ride in it.

Interesting car/truck. It felt pretty quick off the line, but didn't seem to have much top end. He gave it a quick blast up an entrance ramp to the highway and it leapt off the line but then got pretty wheezy. It makes farting noises on every shift. This seems to be a new thing that carmakers are interested in, and I simply don't understand it. I guess this thing has a V6, which doesn't sound great by itself, but the farting noises just ruin the experience. The BMW M2 does this as well. Who honestly likes the sound of that?

It rides really well. Easily as comfy as our CX-5 but clearly the Macan has higher cornering limits. I don't really understand the desire to have high cornering limits in an SUV, but as far as SUVs go the Macan is pretty low and relatively lithe, and without the typical bad ride associated with sporty BMW SUVs, it makes sense.

The interior quality seemed to be really nice. Typical Porsche-quality leather, suede/alcantara headliner and accents, nicely screwed together.

He offered to let me drive but I passed. Didn't seem like any upside could come from that :lol:

Did you offer to let him drive the RX-8 when it's back together?

Yes, the farting thing is weird. The Stelvio QV that I drove did the same thing, and it really was kind of embarrassing.

I hate that about the M3. Sadly, I don't think there is a way to get rid of them except to put it in eco/comfort/whatever mode and that numbs the throttle/drivetrain responsiveness and cuts power too much.

Is it part of some sort of anti-lag strategy? I'll give the Macan this... it didn't have any perceptible turbo lag. The powerband was impressive, but not particularly thrilling.

We talked a little bit about the RX-8. He's a smart guy, and he's a car guy, but he's not super knowledgeable about cars per se. He asked how much power it made but in the context of modern cars that figure is just not that impressive.

Interestingly he's an O-4, the Macan is not a cheap vehicle so I was kind of surprised he had one.

No, I am pretty sure it is just to make noise.

I wouldn't mind it as a option on my turbo since it is so quiet.:eeps:

Disagree on the top end. Not sure what you had it loaded with but if you give the beans and stick to it; triple digits are easily within reach. There is a lot of torque though, so it's easy to short shift.

The Macan has very well-weighted and perhaps even communicative steering; it has a good amount of weight up front (56-57% ?) but has plenty of power on the rear and as such drives quite well in everyday situations. It's not large enough to provide much utility. Almost all of its utility can be captured by a 3-series wagon. Happens to be high and heavy, which means it eats more expensive tires, more brakes and more fuel. The weight & height are well-hidden in most reasonable driving, even somewhat spirited.

I miss the JGC diesel, utilitarian and economic in comparison, more. Too bad, idiot 20-year old crashed into it so hard. And that sloppy handling. I never lined up the right spec, color, condition Cayenne diesel in my area as I was originally shopping for to replace the JGC with. It was going to be a midwest purchase that was made difficult by the JGC accident. That and the macan turbo test drive made me pull an easier trigger. I don't regret my flight of fancy, but I don't miss the Macan either. I do think I'd have a higher chance of keeping a Cayenne diesel had I stuck to plan.

Interesting. That must be part of the "Competition" package tuning. My car is loud AF (so much so that my son asked me the other day "dad, does this car have a muffler?"), but it doesn't fart between shifts, thank god.

@FC I bet you could code it out pretty easily. Might want to check out mycarly/bmwhat app and or bimmergeek to see what coding options are available.

Yes, I need to look into that.

JST, I think I've mentioned it before, but the ZCP is a bit louder, and universally people claim it sounds better. I've actually been complimented on the exhaust. I don't think it's particularly awesome, but it is nice enough and an improvement over the non-ZCP. I do think the stiffness of the suspension (and I'm always in comfort mode) coupled with the exhaust makes the car a bit too sporty for some/most passengers, but oh well. We have a nice, comfortable SUV if we want to transport guests in comfort or go on vacations.

The farting, OTOH, I hate all the time. I've always said I prefer smooth, high-revving sounds. To this day I miss the exhaust of the 987S when revving up to and shifting at redline.

I'm surprised you have any interest whatsoever in this vehicle.

Did I lead you to believe that I did?

My car totally does those farting noises. Very silly. Sport + is the worst. They can be coded out, from what I understand.

Agree that the farting/popping noises that carmakers feel obligated to add to any sporty car these days are annoying. I assume it's an attempt to make up for the muffling effect of turbos to give the cars more "character". I've noticed that automotive journalists seem to universally praise these types of exhausts, though. Probably the type of thing thats' fun when you only have the car for a short time but gets annoying in every day use.

As for the Macan, I want to like it more than I actually do. I've driven the 4 cyl version as well as a turbo in the past. It handles well, has great seats and build quality but just seems too cramped for what it is. Plus the premium over, say, an Audi SQ5 or BMW X3 40i is just too much to stomach. Not a huge fan of the looks either-- it's too egg-like. There are few options these days for a quick 6 cylinder wagon/hatch/SUV. I liked that BMW atleast used to offer the X3 with the 6 but without all the "sporty" elements--but no longer.

I agree on the farting/popping. Unfortunately, the 981S has them in Sport, fortunately it doesn't do them (much) in either Normal or Sport+. It's one reason I rarely have the PSE (sport exhaust) on.

My 340i's m-perf exhaust is very, very mild. It has the mildest popping; none of the annoying staccato machine gunfire.

I find all this extra annoying because it's fake. Faking old carburetors. My w650 did it a bit, just a bit, but that was appropriate because it was a bike with ancient design (and i still had full stock mufflers on).

Good to know on the 981S. I'd have to have that coded out somehow if I bought one of those.

Totally disagree with all of you .. I like the quick ‘extra noise’ during each Auto upshift and think it sounds cool.

I don’t have this on my cars but for the few I have had as loaners I think it’s cool.


Equ ... the pops and gurgles in sport mode is different then they are referring to and I know you don’t like them on your Porsche, I really think they are are cool as can be.

Not sure if they sound different on my car then yours .. maybe not but I love the sport exhaust and would not want a Porsche without it.

I find that not remotely surprising

The specific noise that bothers me is less in shifts and more in throttle lifts. Midrange rpm, healthy but not full throttle. You lift... and pop..pop..pop.

I'm in if anyone can code them out for a reasonable fee. For now I haven't heard of such a solution. Maybe if I get a tune one day, I'll ask the tuner.

https://www.planet-9.com/981-chat/23...st2088673.html

https://rennlist.com/forums/987-981-...ronounced.html

Probably the same people that want their car's horn to honk every time they lock the doors.

So true

Is there any discernible difference between a Macan Turbo and the Audi SQ5?

Just curious about the differentiation since they’re basically Oldsmobile/Buick to each other.

I've driven both (owned one). I thought there was a LOT of difference in power delivery and even more in steering/handling feel. The SQ5 felt pretty much like any other SUV, like an X5 e.g. The Macan turbo (i had PASM but not air) suspension is fantastic. Great ride and very decent on turns. Also it seems to power about 75-80% to the rear most of the time and on turns; I'm not sure if the SQ5 does that... Having owned both the s4 and the macan turbo, I'd say the Macan turbo has better steering feel and has more balanced, "natural", rear-ish handling. Of course, the s4 is a lighter, lower smaller car and it might run away; I'm not sure if it's more fun to drive. I think the Cayennes I've driven feel better than the sq5. That car did nothing for me. But if you're spreadsheet shopping; it does check all the boxes on paper.

The macan magic does largely negate the height and weight; it just doesn't provide any more space than an s4 or a 340i.

I’m learning a lot through your experiences. When I’m compelled to try for one of those crossovers —I pause because you backed out of them. And back into cars.

So thanks.