The latest generation of Porsche Cayenne has only been around for a few years, but it proved so popular it recently passed 100,000 production number.

This record is also a major production milestone for Porsche’s state of the art Leipzig plant. This is also where Porsche produces the very successful Panamera luxury saloon, approximately 70,000 units of which have now rolled off the production line.

The 100,000th Cayenne, destined for Brazil, is a “pure white” with a V8 engine. The Cayenne is being sold in more than 124 markets in currently five model variants spanning a power range from 180 kW (245 hp) to 368 kW (500 hp) and an average fuel consumption ranging from 7.2 to 11.5 litres per 100 kilometres.

Production of this generation Cayenne began in 2009. The first-gen Cayenne, born in 2002, sold over 360,000 units in its lifespan.

“Because of the consistently high demand for the Cayenne and Panamera we will be introducing a third production shift in Leipzig at the end of January. With the new production sequence, 500 vehicles on average will be produced each day,” Leimgruber adds. The introduction of a three shift operation is only one of many challenges in the near future. Building work for a major expansion of the plant is currently underway. A paint shop and body assembly line for an entirely new model line that will start to come off the Leipzig production line from the end of 2013 onward are among the facilities being built on a 17 hectare site. Porsche is investing a total of 500 million euro in the production site in Saxony for assembly of the Cajun, creating more than 1,000 new jobs.