Stock Porsche takes on famous Hell's Gate

We put this stock 2008 Porsche Cayenne S to the test on Hell's Revenge trail, and through Hell's Gate in Moab Utah. Watch as it finishes strong with all stock components and some General Tire All-Terrain's.
Actual Hell's gate footage starts at 10:45.

[@jamsbong]

This guy clearly has a lot of experience and skills. He is able to climb the trail with minimal guidance from the outside. Picking the correct lines, tire pressure and the tire choice seriously helped the Cayenne punch well above its usual status.

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Thank you so much for the compliments!

[@hectic6981]

Right? I am sure a large portion of folks who drive those could get em stuck on wet grass lol, driver mod indeed.

[@theprodistini2590]

Porsche always makes great cars. Their suv's are alot more capable than people think. Lots of people buy range rovers and land rovers having no idea how capable they are off the road.

[@chir0pter]

@@theprodistini2590 yeah as far as luxury off roaders of this era it goes g wagon, then Land Rover LR3/LR4, then Gen 1 Cayenne/Touareg in terms of stock capability

[@chir0pter]

@D R haha good point probably should include the 100/200 series of that era in there. I'd slot it in next to Gelandewagen as far as US-spec versions

[@BuckMcAntlerson]

Dude I'm gonna take my 911 up there! Had no idea Porsches could do this! Thanks!

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Hahaha please do! I’ll guide!

[@ianmoone6562]

If you do the square treatment to a 911 safari you can prob beat the record

[@lesgrossman9492]

Just put a 12” lift on my 911. Ready to go

[@codyking4848]

They can't, it's a carefully edited video

[@Iambestforreal]

@@codyking4848 explain how

[@pablolobo6560]

Was really surprised by its capabilities. And the 4wd traction control seems brilliant in distributing torque where needed! Great driver too.

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Thank you so much!

[@austang8556]

That was the smoothest Hell's Gate climb in the world!!!

[@robertlee7332]

As someone who had been through Hell's Gate and Hot Tub, I salute you. You are a brave man with mad skills!!! Respect!!!

[@greelish4life]

Love the stock cayenne series. Gives a good idea of what other softroaders can be capable of with a few battle scars and light modifications.

[@vipe650r]

And some classic German over-engineering doesn’t hurt.

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Thank you! Glad you’re here!

[@islerenner]

Something tells me this guy could probably drive a Zamboni up Hells gate. Always fun to watch a super skilled and humble professional. Thanks to your team for the great content.

[@HarrisonSchoen]

I can’t thank you enough for the kind words.

[@islerenner]

@@HarrisonSchoen It's my pleasure my friend. Keep having fun and stay healthy!

[@roman9762]

Surprised that MDX didn't blow it's tranny into a million pieces. But that Touareg with a Porsche badge was legit.

[@Skeppyberry]

Touareg doesn't have ptm and wouldn't do that

[@kimjazoku]

toureg is based on the cayenne

[@brianmoore4778]

My 2006 Touareg is running 275 65 18 Goodyear dura Trac 2 in lift . Bilstein struts. Magna flow exhaust . 4.2 V8 k&n filtration. It's called the cayenne crusher.

[@kingraptor4310]

That was impressive . The Porsche did way better than I expected. Awesome !!

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Thank you so much! I appreciate you.

[@lukeoxner]

This is so awesome. I haven’t taken my Cayenne on anything this gnarly, but every time I do take it off road I’m always blown away with how capable it is

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Love to hear that!

[@getoffamycloud9844]

Wow. Hats off to the German. I've done that trail in a properly moified Jeep. It's way more difficult than these guys make it look. Well done, gents.

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Thank you so much! I appreciate you!

[@brianmoore4778]

I drive v8 touareg with 2 in lift and 275 65 18 tires take it most places my lr3 will go.

[@DopravniPoradce]

I'm not surprised. I drove the early version and I was very suprised what it can do. It's got the technology and it works.

[@Michael_Michaels]

Very impressive that Cayenne! Not only is a great road cruiser but also has excellent off-road performance!

[@HarmonyStudioNg]

Thats some driving skills and i think one of the most underated 4wd cars of its time

[@TheMadSqu]

This is the definition of "doing it in style"!

[@effortlessproductions]

I am genuinely impressed that a stock Cayenne could do this so well! Fantastic skills

[@gravityimage5]

Its sooo bizarre seeing an Acura MDX, YET alone, a street Porche doing a rock crawl in Moab! Thanks for thinking outside the box. Anything is possible! ; / Gen 2 Montero guy here.

[@cherylschoen4626]

Omg! Your gonna give me a heart attack one of these days! Love the shirt😁. Great video

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Hahaha, thank you! Love you mom!

[@dapporsche]

THUMBS UP ,🥰 NOW I KNOW I NEVER GET STUCK AT THE MALL IN OUR STOCK 2006 CAYENNE S .

[@Databyter]

Impressive. I had no idea those were so capable. Also, all things being equal, 9 out of 10 people could not do that, even in the same car. At least not as gracefully and safely with minimal car scrape. Excellent skills. BTW both of you are certifiable. Well done. Databyter

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Thank you so much. I’m very appreciative of your compliments.

[@carsmedic]

Really impressive offroad capabilities and driving skills! I had the same generation in 2009 (it had the 3.0 V6 Audi diesel engine) RED GTS color paint with light tan (sand beige) leather interior, it was unique in my country :) as the dealer told me. I've driven over 250 000 miles in 10 years then sold it. TANK! :)

[@azmi0000]

How reliable that audi 3.0 v6 diesel engine? I'm quite interested with q7.

[@coldfire4369]

@@azmi0000 It's bulletproof if you service it as planned. Had one in an audi allroad and sold it with 275K km no problem whatsoever

[@LoveIsExtinct]

This is insane! I have an 09' Cayenne GTS with about 60K miles on the clock. I baby it, so I'll stick to West Texas sand dunes and desert trails at most... but this is extremely reassuring knowing my GTS is an off-roading beast! Also, I'm not nearly as experienced as these guys! Lol 🤷🏻‍♂️ Hats off to y'all! 🤘🏼

[@ricciodrake]

You sir deserve a sponsorship from porsche. I honestly would never had considered buying a porsche suv because I just thought they were kind of a gimmick. When they first came out, i thought they were just trying to cash in on the suv craze. But after seeing this video I would actually consider buying one, knowing now that they are actually a capable suv. BTW nice driving 👌

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Thank you so so much Rico! I appreciate you.

[@chrismcgraw2112]

Love it dude. I have an identical Cayenne S, same year/color. Really awesome to see what it is capable of.

[@nicholaspapoulias9280]

Love it, it goes to show you the G wagon is not the only game in town

[@SAVING_ICONIC_MACHINES]

Well done bro 😎 you definitely nailed it, great driving skills ❤

[@ElyciusM]

as someone that just bought a 2017 cayenne gts, this is impressiveeeee. cayennes are animals. almost 8000 pound towing capacity as well!

[@chir0pter]

sadly you have a 958.2 which is not nearly as good off road as the 955/957, it is also a VW Group platform whereas the original Cayenne and Touareg were designed and the Cayenne developed independently by Porsche. Still a very nice car I'm sure

[@jasonwright131]

Matt’s off road recovery neeeeeds to see this! Amazing job!

[@cheknocksya]

Maybe he should get a Porsche Cayenne for his fleet. Imagine him rescuing people in a 957?!! Gold!

[@sarahjanelara8046]

WTH!!!! little Porsche is a BEAST! you made it look easy!

[@britishsecretagent0078]

Nothing more satisfying than seeing a brand new 90k+ Porsche getting banged up, thrashed, dinged and dented. Well done!

[@AcXr50]

That is probably a 16 year old cayenne . They still look good in age.

[@racekar80]

First generation cayenne was a fantastic off reader, especially if you got the off road package which included lockers, air suspension. They really built a capable vehicle but since no one ever used it off road the second gen is no where near as good.

[@abstractnymujic2783]

Nice, thanks for not overspinning the tyres and letting us the traction control in work! Just needs a lift and most of the trails are yours in a super comfy salon

[@C_R_O_M________]

His traction control was most likely off. The fact that the non-traction wheel stopped spinning is a feature of its very advanced 4WD system not its traction control.

[@shermangriffin2722]

Well done. aced that with no spotter damn, im impressed. quality offroad content

[@NoNameVaccum]

You can really see the Porsche electronic all wheel drive system work, how it would shift the power from side to side/front to back, almost as if the car would feel itself up the obstacle, very interesting

[@michaelalexandrou8083]

the traction control this porsche has is amazing almost like having diff locks

[@pjrebordao]

Both the 955 and 957 Cayennes were built from the beginning to run these kinds of trails. I have a book that depicts the development of the 1st gen Cayenne and Porsche did do a lot of testing on Moab (and elsewhere). So they did it before... No surprise. Now, for the current generation... they probably dropped the ball. In due time, they realized most of them are used as mall crawlers only.

[@07wrxtr1]

I live in Moab and would love to see a bunch of these on Hells revenge instead of the YAWNfest conformist unoriginal unimaginative typical dime a dozen vehicles…

[@dkdanis1340]

New ones great for this trail

[@jorgeluiscapiello414]

I'm genuinely impressed.

[@ozzypawsborneprinceofbarkness]

Makes me want to try this in my XC90……when I buy a truck. The XC90 is surprisingly capable and has a decent amount of ground clearance

[@C_R_O_M________]

It doesn't have the 4WD system that the Caynnnes and Touaregs have. Did you notice how the non-traction wheel of the Porsche stop turning when, for example, was in the air? Did you notice how the other SUV was spinning the wheel when it was in the air? That's how the Cayenne made it to the top so easily. The Touaregs and Cayennes, especially the first 2 Gens, ghad the most advanced 4WD on the planet aolong with the top of the line Grand Cherokee's Qudratrac (if I'm not mistaken) system. Basically identical systems. Your Volvo won't be behaving the same. Touaregs and Cayennes only have problems in terms of ground clearance and tire choices.

[@cuzthatshoweyroll]

Its almost like this bad boy was MADE to do this. Sweet!

[@KettlesVids]

So sick! Well done! I took my ‘03 Sequoia on Finns & Things earlier this year, so fun! I think Ryan lives by me. I’ve been wondering who owns that sweet MDX. Hope to meet you all someday!

[@HarrisonSchoen]

He lives in Pleasant grove area!

[@Motardebase.]

Je regarde ta vidéo depuis la france, et je suis impressionné! le systeme du cayenne est incroyable

[@C_R_O_M________]

Touareg s also. Same cars essentially.

[@trevorpatten7670]

Good work! Making it look easy!

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Thanks Trev! Love you buddy.

[@davidrambarranable]

Cayenne is a beast

[@TheTrothKeeper]

Nice work! "You're on your rocker, but oh well" LOL

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Nothing we could do about it 😂

[@JChurchua]

This is really cool, Harry! Well done!!

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Thank you!!

[@JChurchua]

@@HarrisonSchoen Youre welcome! By the way, Are those headlights a special aftermarket or dealer part? It looks like the paint color matches as a border around the lense of the headlight. I've seen several Porsche's around town but I dont recall recognizing that headlight styling. Have you noticed that, or am I just over analyzing it?!

[@DarkWarjo]

Not gonna lie, i'm pretty impressed on the Acura/Honda as well :)

[@2-old-Forthischet]

Very impressive! Time for a VW Toureag.

[@eriknash8783]

Hell of a driver, there!

[@Silver_o]

With a Lift kit and a skid plate, this would perform wonders.

[@rexrcs]

Watching the incapable mdx was just as much fun

[@jeffp.8718]

Driver experience is half of the equasion in all scenarios concerning capability. Before purchasing an FJ i used to drive a stock 2000 Toyota Echo 2d Coupe in manual transmission to any destination i could make it to. That cars above average ground clearance, light weight, low COG, and short wheelbase made it possible to get some places most wouldnt believe in dry conditions outside of sand. The fact i only paid a thousand dollars for it certainly helped in terms of risk taking. For comparison recently while out exploring in the stock FJ i ran into a peculiar situation with 28° off camber tilt and 15° uphill climb near a cliff with no room for error. Felt like it was on the verge of rolling and i opted to back out. Based on what i paid for it i wasnt willing to risk it but i know from experience the Echo would have made it with no risk of rollover due to low COG!

[@TerrenceThomas]

Dude! I just found this video and I actually have both the Cayenne and MDX. I was looking for someone who lifted an MDX. 👏🏾👏🏾 edit: After watching the video, That MDX looks like the 2WD model and it looked like it did well so a AWD would do it. 👏🏾👏🏾.

[@chasegregory7214]

Very nice! I've been checking out your other vids and mods. I'm looking at adding a Cayenne S to the stable and head back out to Moab. I ran that in my FJ60 back in 1998 at the first TLCA Moab run...drove all the way there from Georgia. I have FJ40 and FJ73 Cruisers but don't wanna drive that far again... Cayenne will be much nicer trip!

[@HarrisonSchoen]

You'll most definitely enjoy it!

[@dstavs]

Fantastic stuff! That was a pleasure to watch. I know nothing about the Porsche off-road system, but based on the way it performs, it looks very similar to the Jeep Quadra-Drive 2 system. I’ve owned two Grand Cherokees with the Mercedes Benz OM642 3.0L V6 Diesel engines and MB 5-speeds. One had the Quadra-Trac 2 system and the other the QD2. The QT2 system looks very similar to how the MDX performed with wheel spin while it hunted for traction, while the QD2 performed similarly to the Cayenne with much less wheel spin and torque vectoring to the wheels with traction.

[@Einsteinsghost]

Porsche Cayenne shares underpinnings with Audi Q7. Its AWD system was Borg Warner Quattro (also used in VW Toureg at the time). The Acura (this one appears to be 2000-2002 model) at the time used VTM-4 AWD (later in the decade upgraded to SH-AWD which it continues to use now). VTM-4 did allow a 4WD lock, which I assume the driver would (or should) have used. In some cases, the Acura was hampered by the engine itself, which was a 240 HP/245 lb-ft 3.5/V6 for that generation, propelling the 4500 lb crossover.

[@C_R_O_M________]

You are absolutely right, it is the equivalent of the Quadra Drive 2 which in the Touareg is called 4XMotion as it also has low range. I bet you noticed the non-spinning of the wheel with no traction /in the air, to figure it out. Nice eye.

[@C_R_O_M________]

@@Einsteinsghost The Acura's 4WD system isn't as good. You could see it when the non-traction wheel was just spinning whereas the Porshe was trasfering power to the wheel(s) with traction.

[@dstavs]

@@C_R_O_M________ thank you! This is exactly how my QD2 Grand Cherokee functioned when off-roading - mostly mild to moderate stuff. My friend had the same Grand Cherokee with the OM642 diesel but with the QT2 system - the same one I had in my second GC. While off-roading, the wheels without traction would spin until the ABS system engaged and attempted to move the power to the wheels with contact. My QD2 would have minimal wheel spin and was able to generate better traction. He was using knobby off-roading tires while I had a simple set of winter tires yet my QD2 performed better.

[@Vic-dog]

It’s amazing how capable a vehicle is when you give zero Fs about carnage!

[@thegaragefiles22]

Great stuff Man! Makes me want to get my 15' Cayenne Diesel out there, I love mine!

[@OXFOOT]

Hell yeah, thats really dope!

[@dirtlegdirtleg]

Amazing what a set of good tires and traction control will do. I wouldn't really call it stock however with those tires.

[@ismewhat1234]

Crazy but super cool video. Nice driving 👍

[@guniseran]

Having the rights tires is the key

[@g_unit6773]

Here for the Cayenne off-road content.... subscribed 👍👍

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Thank you!!

[@djbis]

For the most part this just shows that a good driver that knows the trail very very well can work with just about any decently capable vehicle through Hell's Gate. These SUV's just don't impress me. And the cost of repair should something go wrong just make no sense. But this is a cool experiment. Great video.

[@JorgeGonzalez-fh1eq]

Se la banco la Cayenne!! No sabia que podia hacer eso, impresionante!!

[@manojsaxena9840]

I am a Jeep guy but I commend you on your skill and chutzpah…well done! Next: Rubicon?

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Yes, I will be doing the rubicon in the cayenne!

[@tyrereviews]

I only wish my Cayenne was as tough as that one. Great tires btw ;)

[@HarrisonSchoen]

It will be someday! 😉

[@RichardVac]

Easy for the Cayenne, great off roader, the only thing holding this vehicles is the ground clearance, amazing vehicle

[@jonesbbq307]

12:09 looks like they have rejected humanity. Good job brother.

[@LexusGX460-OFF-ROAD]

excellent 4x4 skills!!! 👏 😍

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Thank you!!

[@guidoscholz7111]

I am impressed, at least one US American who can pronounce "Porsche" correctly ;-)

[@ginobarbieri9816]

Amazing skills and amazing video!!

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Thank you!

[@jeffs4760]

Nice! We took our ZR2 through Hells Revenge but I'm not sure if I would take my 2010 Cayenne GTS through it. For some reason it doesnt look like your Cayenne is raised up all the way? Maybe it's the 20" rims? I cant believe you were at 50 psi till the end??! That's sweet to be the first Cayenne through Hells Gate

[@HarrisonSchoen]

The car is on stock spring suspension, and yours is on air! Yours would actually fare better because of that.

[@sarge27271]

INSANE!!! KUDOS! Beeindruckend Porsche!!!

[@coloradomallcrawlers]

Excellent wheeling! If you want, I’ll do Holy Cross with you… we struggled with a completely stock 2 door Rubicon and mostly stock Sasquatch bronco 4 door. We made some mistakes that we’ll rectify in 2023 and I would definitely add a winch for it. The bronco won’t redo it stock, but I will except I’ll have a winch that I may need.

[@HarrisonSchoen]

I’d absolutely like to do that with you guys! Let’s make it happen!

[@WoZIMoo]

17:15 the typical early 2000s Honda Odyssey when the transmission decides to become a 5-neutral automatic on a trip to Florida.

[@lesgrossman9492]

It’s not punching above its usual status. This is its usual status. It’s a bad ass power train.

[@DaneE66]

Awesome display of what you can do with a center locker, tires and a heap of skill. And the ponies certainly don't hurt 😂

[@Aldan001]

And electronic terrain control. Basically electronic locker, just what land rover has

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Thank you Dane! Appreciate you!

[@freshtowels3917]

I can't beleive a Cayenne did this. Who needs a wrangler that's crap on road when you can have a Cayenne that can do what it does off road and drive like a dream on road. I thought the Cayenne was just a mall crawler, but this changed my mind.

[@bobvedder2451]

In germany i saw a german ww2 command car (4wd) on the trails where i was wheeling my CJ7. It seemed to do well.

[@craiglizt8074]

This guy has skills, but man that Cayenne made it look like a relative breeze.

[@motorsportsperformancepart9684]

This is such a sick video! Love those Grabber A/Tx

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Thank you so much!

[@Paiadakine]

Very Impressive. Second only to a stock XJ going up hells gate with no tire slip.

[@bmwloco]

The Tourag, Q7 and Porsche Cayenne share the same basic bones. Engines and transmissions are maker specific. All can do a 45% angle; the V10 TDI could pull a 747 - and did.

[@808bigisland]

Used General three groove tires in Africa's Sahara on a PS10 because of their strong sidewalls. Narrow dirt tracks slices tirewalls of standard tires

[@jpk0612]

Awesome to watch. Every single BOH trail though. If you get it through Pritchett, Porsche needs to gift you a new 911 or something lol

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Hahahaha, I’ll get it through Pritchett even if I have to winch every obstacle 😂

[@TJackSurvival]

Ya man that's cool.

[@chinchillaintheheat2641]

Hell's gate is like surprisingly doable it seems. Almost easier for stock vehicles because of the lower center of gravity.

[@computerweenie]

"Hello, Jake at State Farm? You're not going to believe where I have my car right now".

[@RandomYogi007]

lol wouldn't be surprised if you got a thank you from @porsche for the advertisement

[@zoltanliszkai2162]

That MDX's trans is gonna melt, at least it's not a new car

[@moflyboyblanquito541]

Pretty good actually

[@mickaelwerry9211]

Very Nice driving

[@BoschPorsche]

I run 955 and man I'm happy! I hope I'll make It here one day! I'm all the way in Washington,! Like like and share for sure! 😂👍

[@handon11]

At what point did you lock the center diff? Was it always locked for the full video or just the hell’s gate ascent? Awesome video 🤙🏼

[@HarrisonSchoen]

Center diff only locked for hell’s gate, or on difficult climbs where I knew wheels would be in the air!

[@lisizecha9759]

15:25, the car had already given up and was like: Let's go home, this will never work...

[@woodennecktie]

you must be from new mexico , great demo !

[@carldesserich8509]

Porsche - There Is No Substitute! 😄

[@cbgti67]

Very impressive!

[@jordanbritnell9807]

Bone stock but with larger and more aggressive rubber.

[@keeganzondler5599]

Love the content, just picked up a 2009 Cayenne S because of your videos up in St George. Do you know of any tire fitment charts for the cayenne? I was looking at running 33" with the eurowise 2-1/2" lift. With their subframe spacer.

[@HarrisonSchoen]

There’s a tire fitment chart on the “eurowise community: products, guides/support” page on Facebook

[@rickypatel7412]

Hey Harrison love your channel! Just binged watched everything up to here from the start! I had a question if you don't mind? The 275/55/20 on stock 20inch wheels- did you have to modify the sills or arch liner? Did they rub at all? Thank you!