Where exactly does Santa Claus live? A question that many Christmas experts – both young and old – have attempted to answer. The exact place is not known, but one trail leads to Lapland. His home is rumoured to be there, around 200 kilometres north of the Arctic circle.

A vast area with only sporadic settlements and nature, snow and ice as far as the eye can see and temperatures well below freezing – conditions that do at least seem ideal for Santa’s reindeer. In contrast, such conditions often prove problematic for sportscars. Here, in the Lapland region of Finland, journalists tested SUVs from Porsche to see how well equipped they are to rise to the challenge.

Journalist, Macan Turbo, Performance Package, winter driving event, Finland, 2016, Porsche AG
Zaid Hamid, GTSpirit, and the film crew

The Macan Turbo with Performance Package was the prime attraction. Porsche had only recently unveiled the especially sporty variant of the compact SUV. A selection of Cayenne derivatives completed the fleet. 

From the starting point in Levi, the group made its way south toward Rovaniemi. On ice roads, the guests could test the SUV’s suitability for day-to-day use. In Rovaniemi, they left the public roads behind and switched to the track at the Arctic Driving Center located there. With plenty of space to play with and with guidance from professional instructors, the journalists had the opportunity to let the vehicles drift and take them to their limits.

The final stage continued south until they reached Kemi. And Santa? The journalists did not find him. With Christmas fast approaching, he was probably too busy to welcome them.

Porsche Macan Turbo Performance Package: Press Commentaries

"A £5500 premium for the power and equipment upgrades doesn’t sound unreasonable, and the fact that you can carve amazing shapes in such slippery conditions without coming a cropper bodes well for this car's on-road balance. At this early stage, it looks like those chaps at Porsche have done a top job."
autocar

"Jab the throttle on the entry to a corner and you’ll feel the rear end gracefully swing round. Slides can be held with huge confidence – such is the crispness of the steering and sharpness of the throttle response. Admittedly, in terms of real world driving, this is largely irrelevant, but it strengthens the Macan’s credentials as being the best handling SUV currently on sale."
autoexpress

Consumption data

Macan Turbo with Performance Package: combined fuel consumption 9.7–9.4 l/100 km; CO2 emissions 224–217 g/km

Cayenne S Diesel: Combined fuel consumption*: 8,2-8,0 l/100 km; Combined CO2-Emission*: 215-209 g/km

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Consumption data

Taycan 4S (2023)

WLTP*
  • 24.1 – 19.8 kWh/100 km
  • 0 g/km
  • A Class

Taycan 4S (2023)

Fuel consumption* / Emissions*
Electric power consumption* combined (WLTP) 24.1 – 19.8 kWh/100 km
CO₂ emissions* combined (WLTP) 0 g/km
CO₂ class A