Few things will get me willingly onto an early morning flight quite like the promise of a Porsche waiting at the other end.

Arriving in Adelaide early last Thursday morning, we were greeted by coffees and the full Porsche driving team, assembled in matching branded windbreakers (that we collectively agreed we'd quite like to be on the list for one of). Caffeinated and briefed on the day ahead, we made our way outside the airport, where the real welcome committee was waiting.

Lined up before us was a fleet of Porsche Cayenne Electrics spanning seemingly the full spectrum of the marque's colour palette, alongside a handful of Turbo models. It was an impressive introduction to a car Porsche is positioning as its most customisable Cayenne yet. With the introduction of its Paint to Sample program, there are now 105 exterior shades available (13 standard colours and a further 92 through Porsche Exclusive Manufaktur).

After taking stock of the fleet (and negotiating who would drive what), we paired up and began making our way south from Adelaide towards the Fleurieu Peninsula. I started the day in the Cayenne Turbo Electric, which, on paper, is somewhat formidable: up to 850kW (1,156PS) with Launch Control, 1,500Nm of torque and a 0–100km/h time of just 2.5 seconds.

On the road, that power feels almost absurdly immediate. Put your foot down and the response is instantaneous, but what surprised me more was how composed it remained. As the roads began to narrow and wind through the hills, the steering remained precise and reassuring, the brakes equally so – particularly important when there's that much power sitting beneath your right foot.

One of my favourite features, though, was much less dramatic: the optional Augmented Reality Head-Up Display that projects driving information directly onto the windscreen. Having both the changing speed limit and my own speed sitting naturally within my field of vision meant I could keep my eyes trained on the meandering road ahead rather than continually glancing down at the instrument cluster. It was glorious in its simplicity – and genuinely useful from a safety perspective.

"Put your foot down and the response is instantaneous, but what surprised me more was how composed it remained. As the roads began to narrow and wind through the hills, the steering remained precise and reassuring, the brakes equally so – particularly important when there's that much power sitting beneath your right foot."

The soundtrack came courtesy of Porsche too. The team had created a personalised playlist specifically for our route, which we promptly turned up. Loud. (As the daughter of a sound engineer – it felt like one of the more important features to test and report back on.) The surround sound was beautifully immersive, filling the cabin while the relative quiet of the electric powertrain allowed every detail to come through.

Our destination for the afternoon was Port Willunga, where the hills eventually gave way to one of South Australia's more spectacular stretches of coastline. The day was sunny but cool, the sky a spotless blue above the Gulf St Vincent. Sitting atop the cliffs overlooking the beach, we stopped for lunch at Star of Greece.

After lunch, we headed back to our vehicles – although this time I was asked to relinquish the Turbo. In its place, I had the chance to experience the Cayenne Electric at a slightly more restrained pace as we made our way back through the Adelaide Hills. However, the change of model didn't diminish the sense of capability. The standard Cayenne Electric still produces up to 325kW with Launch Control and reaches 100km/h in 4.8 seconds, while the Cayenne S sitting between it and the Turbo produces up to 490kW and does the same sprint in 3.8 seconds. Across the range, adaptive air suspension with Porsche Active Suspension Management helps reconcile the Cayenne's considerable size with the agility you expect from the badge.

On those serpentine Adelaide Hills roads, it translated into a car that felt surprisingly light on its feet. The steering remained responsive through tighter bends, the suspension settled quickly as the road changed beneath us and acceleration out of corners was immediate without feeling unruly. Inside, I became increasingly enamoured with the dashboard setup. The central OLED Flow Display sits within easy reach, while the broader Porsche Driver Experience combines digital displays with physical controls in a way that doesn't require you to relearn how to operate a car (which is great when you have approximately 15 minutes to acquaint yourself with a new vehicle before hitting the open road). Wireless Apple CarPlay connected seamlessly, meaning our soundtrack and navigation simply followed us into the second vehicle.

“On those serpentine Adelaide Hills roads, it translated into a car that felt surprisingly light on its feet. The steering remained responsive through tighter bends, the suspension settled quickly as the road changed beneath us and acceleration out of corners was immediate without feeling unruly.”

It was also a good day to appreciate the climate control. Despite the sunshine streaming through the glass, the cabin remained cool and remarkably comfortable throughout hours on the road. And depending on specification, the Cayenne Electric offers two- or four-zone automatic climate control, with four-zone climate control standard on Australian-delivered Cayenne S Electric and Turbo Electric models.

Eventually the hills flattened and Adelaide's skyline began to reappear. Luckily, we made it back just before peak-hour traffic, although the roads were busy enough to provide one final test: how does a large, extremely powerful electric Porsche behave when the sweeping bends disappear and you're simply trying to navigate city traffic? Rather well, as it turns out...

Australian-delivered Cayenne Electric models come with Porsche's Parking Entry Package, including Surround View and Self-Steering ParkAssist. The system can identify suitable parking spaces and take control of the steering and forward and reverse movement during a parking manoeuvre, while the surrounding cameras provide a clearer view of what's happening around what is, ultimately, still a substantially sized SUV.

Optional rear-axle steering is another feature that makes particular sense here. At lower speeds, it improves agility and reduces the turning circle by around a metre — the sort of engineering detail that becomes considerably more interesting when you're negotiating traffic, narrow streets and hotel entrances – or, as I found out, when you're throwing a quick U-turn after missing your turn off.

After a full day of driving, the transition from winding coastal roads to Adelaide traffic also crystallised what I liked most about the Cayenne Electric. It can be ferociously quick when the road allows it, but it doesn't demand to be driven that way. Around town it settles into something quiet, intuitive and easy to manoeuvre.

We eventually pulled up outside Eos, Adelaide's relatively new luxury hotel, and handed back the keys before a short journey to nearby Station Road for dinner.

By that point, we'd driven the Cayenne Electric from airport tarmac to rolling hills, along the coast and back through city traffic. And while the Turbo's 2.5-second sprint to 100km/h is certainly difficult to forget, it wasn't necessarily the number I found myself thinking about at the end of the day. Instead, it was the smaller details: the speed hovering within my sightline; Apple CarPlay appearing without fuss; the steering tightening into a bend; the cabin remaining cool and cocooned while the South Australian countryside and sun poured through the windows; and a very good Porsche playlist turned up perhaps slightly louder than necessary.

Cassandra Dimitroff travelled as a guest of Porsche Australia.