Cars

Porsche Cayenne set a new record with impressive Airbus A380 feat

  • A Porsche Cayenne once towed an Airbus A380
  • The impressive feat earned Porsche a Guinness World Record
  • You can see it in action in the clip below

Published on Oct 01, 2024 at 2:28 AM (UTC+4)
by Claire Reid

Last updated on Oct 04, 2024 at 7:43 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by Tom Wood

A Porsche Cayenne was able to successfully tow an Airbus A380 weighing 285 tonnes, setting a new Guinness World Record in the process. 

Believe it or not, the completely unmodified Cayenne S Diesel hauleed the Air France aircraft 42 meters at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport. 

The feat saw the Porsche Cayenne earn the world record for ‘Heaviest aircraft pull by a production car’. 

A Guinness World Records adjudicator branded the performance as ‘most spectacular’ and ‘remarkable’.

DISCOVER SBX CARS: The global premium car auction platform powered by Supercar Blondie

The Porsche Cayenne managed the pull without issue

This isn’t the first time we’ve seen mind-boggling records set by everyday production vehicles – such as the time a Land Rover once towed a 110-tonne road train across the Australian Outback, or when a Range Rover Sport made history after tackling China’s Tianmen Mountain Road to get to Heaven’s Gate. 

Back in 2017, the Porsche Cayenne earned itself a spot in the record books thanks to its ability to pull an entire Airbus A380. 

Porsche Cayenne did the unthinkable with an Airbus A380 and set a record in the process
Porsche

Cool footage of the event shows the 4.8-meter-long Porsche hauling the 73-meter-long passenger plane along the hangar without a hitch. 

The car used was a stock standard Cayenne S Diesel which produces 385 horsepower. 

The feat was branded ‘remarkable’

A special towing attachment that sat on the Porsche’s standard tow bar was used to hook the car up to the plane 

“It did it – I’m so relieved! We don’t usually go this far to test the limits of our cars but I think today we got pretty close,” said Richard Payne, a technician at Porsche GB.

Porsche Cayenne did the unthinkable with an Airbus A380 and set a record in the process
Porsche

“I could tell that it was working hard but the Cayenne didn’t complain and just got on with it.

‘My mirrors were quite full of Airbus, which was interesting. 

“Our cars can go a bit beyond what our customers might expect – they’re designed to be tough.

“But even so, what the Cayenne did today was remarkable – we drove the car here from London – and I plan to drive it home again, having towed an A380 in between. 

“Credit should go to the team in Stuttgart who developed the car – they did a thorough job. I’m also very grateful to Air France and its engineers for their generosity in allowing me to tow their beautiful aircraft.”

user

Claire Reid is a journalist who hails from the UK but is now living in New Zealand. She began her career after graduating with a degree in Journalism from Liverpool John Moore’s University and has more than a decade of experience, writing for both local newspapers and national news sites. Across her career she's covered a wide variety of topics, including celebrity, cryptocurrency, politics, true crime and just about everything in between.