Compare the2024 Land Rover DefenderVS 2024 Porsche Cayenne

Both the Defender 110/130 and Cayenne have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Defender has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Cayenne’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The Defender’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Cayenne doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Defender and the Cayenne have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras and rear cross-path warning.

On the EPA test cycle the Defender 110/130 gets better mileage than the Cayenne running its gasoline engine:

The Defender 90’s standard fuel tank has 4.9 gallons more fuel capacity than the Cayenne S E-Hybrid/Turbo E-Hybrid’s standard fuel tank (23.4 vs. 18.5 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

In an emergency stopping situation, many drivers don’t press the brakes with enough force to stop the vehicle in the shortest distance. The Defender has a standard Emergency Brake Assist to detect emergency braking situations (by how hard and how quickly the brake pedal is pressed) and then automatically apply maximum braking immediately in order to help prevent a collision. The Cayenne doesn’t offer a brake assist feature.

The Defender has a standard full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the Cayenne; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which has mileage and speed limitations, or roadside assistance and a tow-truck.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Defender 110’s wheelbase is 5 inches longer than on the Cayenne (119 inches vs. 114 inches).

For better maneuverability, the Defender 90’s turning circle is 1.7 feet tighter than the Cayenne Turbo E-Hybrid’s (38 feet vs. 39.7 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Defender 90 has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Cayenne E-Hybrid (8.9 vs. 8.1 inches), allowing the Defender to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Defender 110 Air Suspension’s minimum ground clearance is 2 inches higher than on the Cayenne Turbo E-Hybrid (11.5 vs. 9.5 inches).

The Defender 130 has standard seating for 8 passengers; the Cayenne can only carry 5. The Defender 90 offers optional seating for 6.

The Defender 110 has a larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Cayenne with its rear seat folded (78.8 vs. 60.3 cubic feet).

The Defender 110’s cargo area provides more volume than the Cayenne.

The Defender 130’s cargo area provides more volume than the Cayenne.

The Defender’s cargo area is larger than the Cayenne’s in almost every dimension:

Maximum trailer towing in the Porsche Cayenne is limited to 7700 pounds. The Defender offers up to a 8201 lbs. towing capacity.

While the Cayenne Turbo E-Hybrid can only tow 6613, any Defender can tow a minimum of 7716 pounds.

The Defender has a much higher standard payload capacity than the Cayenne (1760 vs. 1424 lbs.).

The Defender has a much higher maximum payload capacity than the Cayenne (1870 vs. 1601 lbs.).

The Defender has a standard remote vehicle starting system, so the vehicle can be started from inside the driver's house. This allows the driver to comfortably warm up the engine before going out to the vehicle. The climate system will also automatically heat or cool the interior. The Cayenne doesn’t offer a remote starting system.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Defender has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the Cayenne only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

The Defender has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the vehicle heater warms up. A heated steering wheel costs extra on the Cayenne.

The Defender offers an optional 115-volt a/c outlet in the cargo area, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Cayenne doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

Insurance will cost less for the Defender owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Defender will cost $1430 less than the Cayenne over a five-year period.

The Defender will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Defender will retain 57.89% to 67.64% of its original price after five years, while the Cayenne only retains 51.28% to 57.99%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Land Rover Defender will be $14456 to $46231 less than for the Porsche Cayenne.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Defender second among large premium suvs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Cayenne isn’t in the top three in its category.

Motor Trend selected the Defender as their 2021 Sport Utility of the Year. The Cayenne has never been chosen.

The Land Rover Defender outsold the Porsche Cayenne by 733 units during 2023.