By Nauman Farooq

The Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger (a.k.a. the “Governator”) was in Switzerland this week and dropped by the Porsche exhibit at the 79^th Geneva Motor Show, to check out their new models. Of main interest was the Cayenne Diesel SUV.

This might not be the first diesel powered Porsche ever produced, they made tractors back in 1934 called the Master AP144, which produced just 50 hp.

Arnold Schwarzenegger (photo: Porsche)

The Cayenne Diesel has a lot more power though, 236 hp to be precise. More impressively, this 3.0-liter, variable geometry turbo-charged, V6 unit produces an incredible 405 lb/ft of torque.

That enables this vehicle to accelerate from 0-100km/h in 8.3 seconds, and will hit 214 km/h flat out. Not bad performance numbers for any SUV, let alone a diesel powered one.

Power is still sent to all-wheels through a six-speed, Tiptronic S, automatic gearbox.

Porsche says that the Cayenne Diesel would have a range of over 1000 km on a single tank, which carries 100-liters.

These are certainly impressive numbers for Porsche’s first ever passenger diesel vehicle, however the “Governator” seemed to be more interested in Porsche’s other latest offering, the new 911 GT3.

For now, the Cayenne Diesel is not planned to be sold in North America, but that decision might change.