If the reviews from owners and experts are any indication, the Porsche Macan is a seriously well-balanced package. One that does what it’s supposed to do, very, very well. One that ticks all the right boxes. One that’ll be many things to many people, and an authentic Porsche on top of it all. The one Goldilocks would probably choose if she was in the market for a sports crossover.

Styling is elegant, quiet, discreet, understated and dotted with unique touches that reward detailed visual inspection. On board, the cabin is authentically Porsche: athletic, nicely trimmed, comfy and sporty-snug and with signature styling elements in place, including the lengthy console of centre-mounted controls, and the left-hand-side ignition switch.

And although, for the money, one could find a crossover ute that was bigger, or faster, or more off-road capable, or one with a higher towing capacity, as an overall sporty premium-ute package, the Macan is a compelling product. For what most shoppers want from their sporty little premium ute, most of the time, the Macan should hit the mark.

Macan feels like a Porsche, too. The seven-speed PDK transmission shifts in fractions of a second with beautiful rev-matching in both directions. The 3.0L twin-turbo V6 sounds gorgeous, floods the cabin with rich, blurty exhaust noises, and flings the Macan along in a serious 340 hp rush.

And the handling? Almost nobody driving a Macan will take theirs on a racing course, but if they did, they’d find a machine set up very nicely for the job. It’s a frisky bit of fun: for the slightly-stiff suspension setup on rough roads, composure and stability at high speeds benefit in a disproportionately positive way on a course. Body-roll occurs as you dial in a steering input around a bend, after which point the Macan takes a set, stays flat, and darts around like nobody told it that it was a crossover SUV. That’s backed by a steering that’s heavy but quick, which is to say, confidently mischievous.

It feels locked on and stable and surefooted when driven hard, and really push it, and you’re treated to limits that can be explored with a grin and a giggle – not a common attribute of most crossovers. Really give it some heck, and Macan loves to slip and squirm and shift on its contact patches as you adjust its angle via the steering and throttle and brakes.

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