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You can order a new Porsche Cayenne now, but deliveries begin at the start of the 2015 model year this coming October. Image Credit: Supplied picture

One of our favourite SUVs is even better, since Porsche has just given a facelift to the second-generation Cayenne that was first released more than three years ago.

Squint a little and you might be able to spot the design changes: the front body, wings, bonnet and something Porsche calls air blades have all been reshaped, and the latest Cayenne also gets bi-xenon headlights and four-point LED daytime running lights à la 918 Spyder.

Out back there are new taillights and redeveloped exhaust pipes, plus an automatically activating boot lid. And guess what? It’s standard kit!

Inside the updated Cayenne the steering wheel is of a new, multifunctional design, again, of 918 Spyder inspiration, and the rear seats can now be had with ventilation. At a cost. What, you didn’t think they’d throw everything in for free, did you? This is Porsche we’re talking about… 

All the models released at launch — Cayenne S, Turbo, Diesel, S Diesel, and S E-Hybrid — are claimed to be more efficient than before and the Cayenne S ditches its V8 for Porsche’s new 3.6-litre twin-turbo V6: don’t worry, there’s more power and more torque. Specifically, 420bhp, a gain of 20bhp, and 550Nm, a gain of 50Nm.