If you want to make a practical, sensible purchase, you’re usually going Japanese or Korean. Brands like Toyota, Honda, Hyundai – these are the gold standard in dependable, safe, and affordable vehicles in just about every segment. If you want something fun and overengineered, you go German, but you never go to Germany for a sensible daily-driver, right?
Well, as a general rule of thumb, yeah. But when you look at the prices you can get on a used car, you might be surprised to find none other than the 2020 Porsche Macan Turbo on the list of practical purchases.
The 2020 Macan Turbo Is A Rare Thing: A Pragmatic Porsche
2020 Porsche Macan Turbo Side ViewPorsche
More often than not, we’re recommending a Porsche to someone who just landed that promotion or sold a property they’ve been trying to get rid of, or they cashed in some stocks, and they want to reward themselves. A Porsche typically isn’t a car for the bargain-shopper, and it doesn’t make a lot of sense as a weekday vehicle. But, there are some exceptions, and a used Macan Turbo is one of them.
The Macan Turbo is a five-seat SUV, producing 434 horsepower and 406 lb-ft of torque from a 2.9-liter twin-turbo V6, paired to a 7-speed automatic transmission in all-wheel drive. It drives like a Porsche, and we’ll get into that, but first, we want to talk about how it stacks up as a family car.
It holds a 78/100 Quality & Reliability rating with JD Power, which puts it on the higher end of average dependability. It’s not the most fuel-efficient car on the road, but 22 miles to the gallon, on the highway, isn’t bad for a performance SUV.
Ownership Costs Are Higher Than Average, But Not Astronomical
Ownership costs come out to more than you might spend on, say, a Honda CR-V, but less than you’d guess for a Porsche. FuelEconomy.gov estimates $4,000 a year in fuel costs, assuming 15,000 miles driven a year, split 45/55 between highway and city driving, and The Zebra estimates a Porsche Macan costing around $2,600 a year for full coverage (and who gets full coverage on a five-year-old SUV?).
RepairPal will have you paying $1,265 a year on maintenance, with the following accounting for the most expensive common fixes:
- Air pump replacement $1,867–$1,929
- Valve cover gasket replacement $1,566–$1,973
- VVT control solenoid replacement $927–$1,203
- Liftgate pulldown motor replacement $645–$668
- Door lock actuator replacement $641–$741
All together, Macans average an annual ownership of around $7,865, across all models. A bit high for a family SUV, admittedly, but a bit low for a Porsche.
Obviously, This Is A Driver’s Car
2020 Porsche Macan Turbo Interior View DashboardPorsche
Full disclosure: we’re using the word “practical” with a fair bit of flexibility here. There are more practical SUVs out there. But the Porsche Macan is surprisingly practical for what is, ultimately, a driver’s car.
When we reviewed the Macan Turbo for the 2020 model year, we noted the perfectly balanced adaptive suspension, with Comfort mode lending the car a “light, pillowy ride” for everyday use. Sport mode will stiffen the supension up for a more responsive feel, but the car doesn’t really have a track-only mode. Even Sport+ feels nice on all but the most broken roads.
The car packs Porsche’s Surface Coated Brake system, with a layer of tungsten carbide on the brake discs, resulting in excellent braking response and limited wear. Porsche even claims 90% less brake dust, so you’ve got that going for you, too.
It Looks Great, It Drives Great, And It Sounds Great
2020 Porsche Macan Turbo Front 3/4 ViewPorsche
The Macan Turbo hits 60 mph in as little as 3.9 seconds, and it does the quarter mile in just over 12 seconds. The car’s top speed is 167 mph, and it sounds absolutely gorgeous. If you grew up daydreaming about 911 Turbos and Porsche 928s, but life took you in a different direction, the Macan Turbo doesn’t feel like that bad a compromise.
There are roomier SUVs out there. There are cheaper SUVs to maintain, and there are SUVs with more gadgets and features in the cabin to keep the kids entertained (but if you ask us, that’s what tablets are for). Where a five-year-old Macan Turbo excels is in its ability to deliver big fun while still being a functional daily driver that you can buy for less than you might spend on a mid-size Toyota.
The Price Is What Makes This Deal So Attractive
2020 Porsche Macan Turbo Rear 3/4 ViewPorsche
At the end of the day, we’re making this recommendation because of the price. The Macan Turbo launched at a base MSRP of $84,600 for the 2020 model year. After taxes and financing, that can easily come out to a total cost in the low six-figure range, which will have most drivers paying this thing off for a decade after the warranty has expired, and resale values have fallen through the floor.
Fair market prices on a 2020 Macan Turbo currently sit at around $41,900, which is less than half what you would have spent on the car brand-new. Fair market pricing for the 2021 model starts at $47,620, meaning you’d be spending an extra $5,720 to shave just one year off the car.
Browsing the used market, we were able to turn up the following listings:
- An 89,802-mile 2020 Macan Turbo is selling for $36,888 in California.
- A 102,172-mile 2021 Macan Turbo is selling for $38,680 in Washington.
- A 69,592-mile 2020 Macan Turbo is selling for $39,850 in Indiana.
- An 88,909-mile 2021 Macan Turbo is selling for $41,650 in Connecticut.
- An 82,808-mile 2021 Macan Turbo is selling for $39,174 in Tennessee.
- A 41,020-mile 2020 Macan Turbo is selling for $45,998 in Nevada.
- A 38,556-mile 2020 Macan Turbo is selling for $49,076 in California.
These listings are only provided to give you an idea of what’s available. There’s no telling what will be up for sale in your area, and in your price range, when you’re ready to buy.
That said, these numbers show a decent range of low-ish mile models selling within the fair market range, or lower. You could spend $45,000 to $50,000 on a Turbo with fewer than 50,000 miles on the odometer, but there are enough models selling in the 75,000-mile range for under $40,000 that we think that’s a deal worth holding your breath for. You might not be able to find a cherry deal like that at the drop of a hat, but wait it out and something good will likely come along.
The 2020 Macan Turbo Is The Perfect Balance Of Fun, Affordability, And Practicality
2020 Porsche Macan cabinPorsche
We could just as easily recommend an entry-level Porsche Macan as its twin-turbo twin, but you’re ultimately saving more money on the Turbo. According to our own price-tracking tool, a 248-hp 2020 Macan is currently trending at $30,555 from an MSRP of $50,900. That’s an attractive deal, but for just another $9,000 or so, you could upgrade the 2.0-liter four-pot to a V6 and add a second turbocharger. If we’re looking at the value proposition, bigger is better in this instance.
We like the Turbo not just because it’s more powerful (although, we can confess that that’s a big part of it), but because of what you’re getting for the price. A 2020 Macan is more than enough car for most drivers, but a 2020 Macan Turbo is more car than you ever expected to get your hands on for $40,000.
There are cheaper cars, and there are more powerful cars out there, but getting behind the wheel of a twin-turbo Porsche at this price feels like you punched a cheat code into your controller before walking into the dealership.
Sources: Porsche, The Zebra, RepairPal, JD Power, FuelEconomy.gov.
