Driving the Cayenne in a Torrential Downpour

The other day, I had the chance to drive the Cayenne on the Chugoku Expressway during a heavy downpour. I’ve driven the Cayenne in the rain many times before, but this rain was truly intense—like being inside an automatic car wash.

Even in those conditions, the Cayenne felt incredibly stable and smooth, as if the rain wasn’t even there.

Of course, I drove more cautiously than usual—slowing down and watching out for puddles—but the high-speed stability didn’t change at all. In fact, I felt a reassuring confidence that you only get from a Cayenne that can handle off-road conditions, making it excel in situations like this.

It was so grippy that I even tried sliding into a lane change on an uphill curve, and still, there was no sense of insecurity. The steering response was just as precise, and I smoothly changed lanes with ease.

Amazing…

My husband, who was riding shotgun, said,

The Cayenne is really incredible. All-wheel drive is just amazing. It’s unbelievably stable. Well, the tires still have plenty of tread left, so that helps, but it’s truly impressive how stable it is.

The Cayenne’s Headlights

On the Chugoku Expressway, there are stretches without road lighting at night, where you have to rely solely on your headlights. On top of that, the heavy rain made visibility even worse than usual.

Our Cayenne is equipped with PDLS LED headlights, but during that drive, they felt a bit dim and somewhat insufficient. According to my husband, the headlights on the 992 are brighter and easier to see with.

So, in conditions like that, I think the optional Matrix LED headlights—which cast a wider and farther beam—would be brighter and more effective.

We had Matrix LED headlights on our previous Panamera, and

“They’re definitely great for driving on dark highways, but I didn’t really need them for everyday use. Plus, they cost around 300,000 to 400,000 yen as an option, so they’re expensive,”

he said. But if you often drive on dark rural highways, I imagine they’d be very useful.

That said, once you reach the urban areas of the Chugoku Expressway with plenty of street lighting, the Cayenne’s standard headlights are perfectly adequate.

As we neared the nearest interchange, the rain gradually eased to a light drizzle, and I found myself thinking, “Ah, it’s almost over. I wish I could keep driving a little longer.” It was such a comfortable drive as always.

In October, I plan to drive the Cayenne from home all the way to Chiba to visit the Porsche Experience Center Tokyo. It’s over 500 km, and this will be my first time driving such a long distance, so I’m really looking forward to it. Hopefully, it won’t rain (laughs).