PORSCHE on Dec. 11 unveiled in Stuttgart, Germany, the new, sportier version of its Macan S. The Macan S is based on the heavily revised Macan which the car maker introduced in Shanghai, China in July.
The Macan S is the high-performance variant of the Macan.
Benefitting from the upgrades received by the Macan, the Macan S gets a new turbocharged V6 engine equipped with a gasoline particulate filter, better brakes that can still be upgraded to a ceramic composite set, and a steering wheel lifted from the Porsche 911.
The Macan S’s 3.0-liter V6 (the Macan has a four-cylinder engine) has its turbocharger located in between the two banks of cylinders. This means the charge expelled by the engine — which is what’s used to spin the turbo — has less to travel from the cylinders to the turbocharger. The turbo can then spool up more quickly, improving response.
Helping out further is the turbocharger’s twin-scroll setup, in which the engine’s exhaust is continuously fed to the turbine wheel in separate streams, ensuring more grunt in low revs. The revised layout in the combustion chamber — fuel is injected from the center — ignites the charge better. Also new to this V6 is its gasoline particulate filter.
What these revisions do is increase the power output per liter from 111hp to 116hp while at the same time cutting emissions. The new V6 now makes 349hp, up 14hp from the previous engine, and 480Nm, or 20Nm more. If the Sport Chrono Package is optioned in the Macan S, the car can sprint from a standstill to 100kph in 5.1 seconds, 0.1 seconds quicker than before, and on to a top speed of 254kph. Its fuel consumption is reckoned to hover around 8.9 liters per 100 kilometers.
The Macan S rolls on staggered-size tires governed by the latest evolution of the Porsche Traction Management four-wheel drive train. According to Porsche, some steel components in the front suspension have been replaced with aluminum, making steering more precise and the ride more comfortable. Sway bars have also been retuned to keep the car’s handling neutral.
Porsche said it upgraded the Macan’s brakes, with larger, thicker brake discs in front to boost stopping power. A Porsche Ceramic Composite Brake is available as an option.
The Macan S has been fitted with a full LED kit, which counts in the three-dimensional rear LED light bar. In the cabin, the Macan S also sees the new Porsche Communication Management that has a 10.9-inch, high-defintion touch screen panel, with which an array of connectivity functions can be controlled and accessed. The centerpiece is the optional GT sports steering wheel taken from the 911. This thing integrates the Sport Response button that comes with the Sport Chrono Package.
