The new entry-level Porsche Macan will be the German sports car maker's most important model when it arrives here in the middle of next year because it is expected to attract a new segment of buyers.

"Macan" is the Indonesian word for "tiger", and the Stuttgart-based manufacturer is hoping that this baby Porsche SUV will tear into the market and eat up the competition with a price tag of just over $300,000 at today's COE levels.

The Macan's platform is loosely based on that of the successful Audi Q5 sport-utility vehicle model.

But like the bigger Cayenne which uses the same basic underpinning of the Volkswagen Touareg, the Porsche product is expected to be vastly different, with dramatic modifications to the suspension, engine and transmission.

Porsche and Audi are part of the Volkswagen Group.

The Macan is understood to be arriving here in May or June next year, with at least a turbocharged 2.0-litre petrol or diesel engine driving all four wheels through a double-clutch transmission. It will occupy the same class as SUV models such as the Audi Q5, Range Rover Evoque and BMW X3.

But its Porsche branding may be attractive to those who have always wanted to own one but have not been able to afford it until now. As a result, conquest customers are likely to make up a significant proportion of the Macan's buyers.

For now, the cheapest Porsche model is the Boxster roadster at about $350,000 including COE and options.

No official photos and information about the Porsche Macan have been released yet. The car was supposed to have broken cover at last month's Frankfurt Motor Show but did not. Now the rumour is that its world premiere will take place next month at the LA Motor Show.

If so, the lucky Americans will be the first to hear this baby tiger roar on its international debut.

Get The Business Times for more stories.