The Porsche Macan is one of the best-driving SUVs money can buy – whether you pick the previous petrol car (that’s still on sale in the UK) or the brand-new electric one.
But it’s not the only posh SUV that deserves a place on your driveway, so here are the best alternatives to a Porsche Macan.
Jaguar F-Pace
We start with a car that’s no longer available to buy new, but the Jaguar F-Pace is still well worth a look if you want a sporty SUV. It’ll still put a smile on your face down a country lane, and drives much better than its size and heft suggests. And that size means it’s far more spacious than the Macan. Its powerful petrol engines provide a good comparison for the Macan, while there’s a 5.0-litre V8 SVR range-topper if you want speed and thunderous noise.
Shop used Jaguar F-Pace cars for sale
BMW X3
There’s a new BMW X3 on the block – the G45 for BMW nerds – with pointy styling borrowed from the divisive iX. But we’ve kept with the last-shape, curvier G01-generation X3 for this list, because it’s slightly better to drive – a key attribute if you’re comparing one with a Porsche Macan. The X3 in our pictures is a fantastic premium midsize SUV, offering a luxurious interior that’s pretty easy to work your way around, plus brawny engines and high-speed refinement. Hunt out an M40i or the raucous X3 M for proper Macan-rivalling performance.
Shop used BMW X3 cars for sale or read our BMW X3 review
Porsche Panamera
If it’s the SUV shape of the Macan that you’re not sold on, the Panamera gives you all the Porsche-ness in a lower, sleeker body style. Even the standard Panamera has over 350hp and a five-second 0-62mph time, while the range-topping Turbo S E-Hybrid comes to the party with 782hp and a 2.9-second acceleration sprint. Mind you, you could buy two Macans for the Turbo S’ £175,000 price.
Mercedes GLC
The standard Mercedes GLC is all about comfort and stately materials, but the AMG-tuned GLC 43 and 63 will be up your street if you want Porsche-like performance. Even the 43 has 421hp and matches the Macan S’ 4.5-second 0-62mph time, or there’s the 63 plug-in hybrid that will outsprint almost any Macan, even the electric ones. AMG GLCs are rude and in-yer-face next to the almost understated Macan, with an immense amount of street presence.
Shop used Mercedes GLC cars for sale
Alfa Romeo Stelvio
The gorgeous Alfa Romeo Stelvio might feel like it’s been around since Leonardo Da Vinci was a boy, but it’s still one of the best-driving SUVs and, therefore, a top-drawer rival to the Macan. If you can afford the Ferrari-engined Quadrifoglio range-topper, you’re in for a fantastic time, but we’d choose the cheaper Veloce – it still feels sporty and fast, and it’ll still keep the local petrol station attendant employed, but at around half the price of the clover leaf-badged Quadrifoglio.
Shop used Alfa Romeo Stelvio cars for sale or read our Alfa Romeo Stelvio review
Audi Q5
You can think of the Audi Q5 as a cut-price Macan, because delve deep and you’ll find some shared parts. That includes the 265hp petrol engine, which feels powerful and kicks the Q5 down the road with brute force. There are diesel and plug-in hybrid engines if you’re not super keen on the Porsche-like thirst of the petrol engine, and a range-topping Audi SQ5 that blends seemingly endless power with respectable long-trip fuel economy.
Shop used Audi Q5 cars for sale or read our Audi Q5 review
Mazda CX-60
It’s not often you can mention Mazda in the same breath as Porsche, which is testament to how posh the CX-60 feels inside – especially on top-spec cars that feature Nappa leather and delicate trim inspired by historic Japanese craftsmanship. There’s a plug-in hybrid which tries to act like a normal petrol engine whenever possible, or a mile-munching 3.3-litre diesel that, thanks to some very clever engineering, returns over 55mpg – some way north of the diesels in the GLC, Q5 and X3.
Shop used Mazda CX-60 cars for sale or read our Mazda CX-60 review
Range Rover Velar
The Range Rover Velar appeals to a very different sort of driver to the Macan. Essentially a reduced-fat version of the full-size Range Rover, the Velar is comfortable and wafty. It’ll soothe you rather than entertain you, which’ll be just the job if you’re stuck in gloopy traffic on the way home from a long day at work.
Shop used Range Rover Velar cars for sale or read our Range Rover Velar review
Ford Mustang Mach-E
Let’s not forget that the Porsche Macan is now available as a fully electric car, but still with a focus on luxury, performance and handling. For two of those, the Mustang Mach-E excels. It’s posh by Ford standards but not exactly Porsche levels of plushness, but it looks exotic and drives like a sports car. The range-topping GT has a brawny 487hp available every time you look at the accelerator, good for a Macan-rivalling 0-62mph time of 4.4 seconds.
Shop used Ford Mustang Mach-E cars for sale
BMW iX
When developing the iX, BMW threw all its EV knowhow at it and created a thoroughly impressive SUV. It’s as luxurious as any BMW, still good to drive and has a usable range figure, while also being seriously refined. Inside, it boasts a high-end infotainment system and the sort of opulent passenger space that used to be reserved for Sir Alan Sugar and his cronies. Now, with used iX cars being good value, even your kids can get used to being driven around in quiet luxury.
Shop used BMW iX cars for sale
Want something even more fun to drive? Check out our list of the best sports cars to buy this year.
