Porsche Cayenne S Diesel (2012) first pictures

Porsche has equipped its Cayenne SUV with a twin-turbo diesel engine, creating (no surprises here) the Cayenne S diesel. The 4.2-litre bi-turbo oil-burner puts out 376bhp and a rather wholesome 626lb ft of torque.

That latter figures bests even the flagship petrol Cayenne Turbo: that car's twin-blown petrol V8 produces 'only' 516lb ft - and costs around £28k more than the Cayenne S Diesel.

The V8 diesel Cayenne will hit 62mph in 5.7secs, and 157mph flat out. That compares with 4.7secs for the Cayenne Turbo, which does a maximum of 173mph.

However, the diesel car's trump card is of course efficiency. Porsche claims the S Diesel will return up to 34mpg (versus an unlikely 24.6mpg in the Turbo) and 218g/km of CO2 (53g/km less than the Turbo). The Diesel S will hold 100 litres of fuel, giving a potential range of up to 745 miles.

In terms of economy, the S Diesel is inferior to the V6 diesel Cayenne though, which Porsche reckons will do 39.2mpg and 189g/km. It's also £46,338 - the V8 S retails for £58,243.

By Ollie Kew