Gemballa Introduces Tuning Package for New Porsche Cayenne

Gemballa is a tuning company located in Leonberg near Stuttgart, Germany. The company primarily specializes in tuning Porsches.

Gemballa was a in the news prominently this year when founder Uwe Gemballa went missing and was found dead in October in South Africa. It was reported that he was involved in a money laundering scheme that turned against him.

Now the company is introducing its first new product since the incident, based on the redesigned Porsche Cayenne.

Gemballa's modifications are pretty significant, far more than just some visual changes and an engine tweak like one from Superchips.

Performance SUVS and trucks are a segment that has been increasing strongly, with chips for trucks and SUVs more prevalent than ever. Gemballa is happy to oblige, although for a more well-heeled clientele.

There is a new front fascia with a redesigned grille, LED daytime running lights and air intakes designed to funnel air to the brakes. Width has been increased due to the aggressive wheel arches. The rear perhaps gets the biggest change in appearance, with different taillights entirely.

The Tornado differs significantly from its standard counterpart, and the look is functional too. Gemballa takes a different approach to carbon fiber than other tuners. Most bond carbon fiber body panels to their factory steel counterparts, and this doesn't save weight. Instead, Gemballa went about changing over as many steel panels as possible.

Clearly, the company likes carbon fiber. Gemballa Chief Executive Officer Andreas Schwarz says “Carbon-fibre is a high strength, low weight structural material that needs to be used honestly, and not just for decoration.” Indeed.

The companies efforts have shaved off 154 lbs versus the standard Cayenne. To really show where carbon fiber has been used, the pieces have been left unpainted for contrast.Other changes include the extremely large 22-inch alloy wheels.

As far as the engine, there is far more than a Bully Dog here. Gemballa is working on a a Stage Two engine conversion. The package used turbocharging to increase the Cayenne's output to 700 horsepower and 738 pound feet of torque. Only 30 Tornados are slated to be built. No word on pricing or delivery time yet.