“An SUV this large couldn’t possibly be that fast.” At least that’s the story I was prepared to tell the California Highway Patrolman chirping his siren and bearing down on my bumper.

But more on that later.

Unless you’re fortunate enough to get your mail at The Thermal Club, chances are you don’t live on a racetrack. So I decided my time with Stuttgart’s box-checking beast would be best spent in real-world situations (well, Southern California situations) in an attempt to discover if the Porsche Cayenne Turbo S E-Hybrid could indeed be all the things—posh for a daily commute, practical on a long road trip, and positively sensational on one of the most legendary roads in the country. In short, this is a car you buy when you want all the things but need to bring all your gear along for the ride. What follows is a story in three drive modes.

Act One: E-Power

We have (almost) made it out of a global pandemic, and our reward? The daily commute has returned like a new season of Ted Lasso, only far less enjoyable. If like me, your commute is less going high-speeds at Sebring and more school drop-off, E-Power is a dream. The onboard electric motor provides twenty or so miles of fossil-free driving.

My range was a bit lower, but truth be told, I was liberal with my left foot and wanted to see just how quickly the 17.9-kWh, 134-hp electric motor could propel 5,675 pounds of Cayenne through lane changes and needle-threading gaps in traffic. It turns out it does just fine. There is an impressive amount of torque (295 lb-ft), and while it doesn’t launch like the 2021 Porsche Taycan Turbo we reviewed, a Taycan doesn’t have a dormant twin-turbo V8 in the frunk.

Related: Here's Why The Porsche Cayman Is A Better Deal Than The 911

Stomp on the pedal, and the gasoline engine will wake up like a newborn at 3 a.m.—alert, wide-eyed, and ready for action. My only minor criticism was that I could feel the brakes transition from regeneration mode at very low speeds, making it challenging to execute the perfect, lock-up-free limousine stop at a red light (a challenge the kids enjoy throwing down most mornings).

Sitting in gridlock provides the ideal opportunity to appreciate the attention to detail and top-quality materials covering every inch of this SUV. Nothing in the interior feels like a compromise, from the Race-Tex headliner down to the flocked storage bins in the door panels. The finishes are consistent, and the seams are precise. The switches are knurled and weighted, and the aluminum trim is, well, actually aluminum.

The 12.3-inch touchscreen looks like it was designed as part of the dashboard rather than a stuck-on afterthought, and the gauge cluster, in Porsche’s beloved five-dial configuration, is customizable, so you can display whatever info you like on either side of the prominent, analog tachometer. As you’d expect, the seats and steering wheel are heated, although it took me forever to find the button. Pro tip: It’s hidden inside the middle spoke of the steering wheel. All that being said, we all know no one will buy a Porsche in Turbo S-spec solely to enjoy stop-and-go traffic.

Related: Here's How the 2022 Porsche Cayenne Compares With Its Rivals

Act Two: Sport+

As the rear doors shut silently and the kids darted off into school, I aimed the Cayenne toward the Angeles Crest Highway. The “influencer” of roads—dramatic, over-photographed, and, at times, nausea-inducing. Pulling into the first turnout and rotating the steering wheel-mounted drive select dial to Sport+, the tachometer jumps to life. The sport exhaust (a $3,220 option) emits a muted growl, the suspension adjusts to its stiffest setting, and the chassis lowers. Put the pedal down, and one thing is abundantly clear—this SUV is serious. It accelerates with what feels like bottomless reserves of grunt—revving smoothly and effortlessly until the next corner when you get to delight in doing it all over again.

The Cayenne does not feel like a sports car; it is an entirely different animal. You feel its size, you feel its weight, but make no mistake, you also feel its power. It instills a sense of confidence and control. As you might expect, it’s not a Miata (a sports car every gearhead should consider buying); it doesn’t dance around corners. Instead, it points confidently into turns and muscles around them with an assertiveness and composure that is astonishing for a car that holds five passengers and a couple weeks worth of luggage comfortably.

At speed, the Ceramic Composite Brakes (PCCB) bite nicely without any inconsistency brought on by the regen capability. Rear Axle Steering (a $1,620 option) should be considered a necessity and gives the car Avengers-class superpowers on a road like this. The steering is communicative and responsive while never feeling stiff. The lowered suspension in Sport+ mode, combined with Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control, counters much of the body roll, and I heard no noise from the 21-inch Pirellis. The cabin remains exceptionally stable and quiet but never feels detached; It’s almost eerie to be that comfortable on the Crest.

The cabin is so tranquil that glancing down at the speedometer was a bit of a surprise. But not as much of a surprise as glancing up in the rearview mirror only to find a California Highway Patrol officer glued to my bumper. As my heart raced, I flicked on the turn signal, activated the ventilated seats, and searched for the nearest turnout, hastily crafting an enthusiastic, yet respectful story about how the Turbo S E-Hybrid is deceptively smooth and how I must have inadvertently buried my speed display somewhere in a sub-sub-menu (which you cannot do, by the way).

Alas, I didn’t need my story. As I searched for a turnout, his commanding voice came over the loudspeaker, “Move over.” I pulled into the nearest turnout, and he darted past to assist a driver further up the crest who I’d later discover had smashed up his Boxster something fierce. All for the best; I probably wasn’t speeding anyway.

Related: Ten Reasons Why the Porsche Cayenne is Awesome

Act Three: Hybrid Mode

While some may think that the most astonishing number ascribed to the Cayenne Turbo S E-Hybrid is its 670-horsepower rating, or its 663 lb-ft of torque, or even its $163,200 base price ($177,530 as tested), the equally jaw-dropping number is its fuel economy rating of 42 MPGe combined. This became apparent on a weekend road trip to a choir competition in Orange County, where the tachometer spent quite a bit of time resting at zero.

The electric motor has a top speed of 83 mph and integrates beautifully with the twin-turbo V8 engine, so beautifully that if it weren’t for the tachometer and the faint exhaust note, it would be hard to tell which power source was active. Cruising comfortably on the highway, the Cayenne gives you what you need in the most economical way. And if what you need is storage space, the Cayenne delivers on that with 22.7 cubic feet of room. If, like me, you don’t measure anything in cubic feet, that’s big enough to easily fit luggage for a family of four or both my daughters, who decided to climb in the storage area for a first-hand evaluation in the driveway. As an added bonus, the rear seats fold down in the far more usable 40-20-40 configuration.

As you’d expect from a car with this price tag, all the driving assistants are on the payroll, and parking is made far easier with cameras and sensors that offer an adequate view of your surroundings. However, I do like the system aboard the Jaguar Land Rover vehicles a little better.

As I like to say to anyone who will listen, “Just because you have a family doesn’t mean you have to drive a boring car.” and the Cayenne Turbo S E-Hybrid is rolling proof. It’s an SUV that you will want to drive recreationally every chance you get. Yes, this car is serious. It’s seriously powerful, seriously practical, and seriously expensive, but make no mistake, it is seriously fun.