Porsche Macan

The compact Macan crossover joins the Porsche lineup for 2015. It looks like a shrink-wrapped version of the larger Cayenne, but has certain unique styling elements including a clamshell hood; active grille shutters; a contrasting side blade on the lower doors; linear, three-dimensional taillamps; and staggered-width 18-inch wheels.

The interior feels expensive, if a bit overloaded with the buttons. It boasts very comfortable sport seats along with surprisingly spacious rear-seat and cargo areas. As with all other Porsches, the Macan is highly customizable, although many add-ons come at a steep price.

The Macan S is the "base" version of the Macan and is powered by a direct-injected, twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter V-6 producing 340 hp and 339 lb-ft of torque, which is 40 hp more than the base Cayenne's naturally aspirated 3.6-liter V-6. A 400-hp Macan Turbo model is also offered (covered separately), and a Macan S diesel model with 258 hp and 428 lb-ft of torque is scheduled for the 2016 model year. With Porsche's excellent, paddle-shifted seven-speed dual-clutch transmission and an active all-wheel-drive system with optional torque-vectoring, the Macan S is about as sporty as a crossover can get.