Cayman, the Perfect Porsche

It's a driver's dream come true. Perfect Porsches are represented in the Cayman series. Here are some reasons why nothing is better.

Mid-engine

Porsche put balance back into their cars when they moved the engine from the rear to the middle. A car handles better when center of gravity lies low somewhere near the center.

On the road again...
The engine roared from the rear in old 911s, creating severe oversteer. (This is when you turn the wheel and the back of the car swings to the front.) Four-wheel-drive Carrera 4 attempted to correct the problem, but only created another: severe understeer. (This is when you turn the wheel and the car keeps going straight.) Neither one is good for keeping the car on the road.

With the engine right behind the seats, dead center of the car, the Cayman goes where you turn the wheel, no more and no less. Mid-engine mount keeps you on the road when your mind is elsewhere.

Smooth

Gearbox and suspension play major roles in Cayman's smooth performance. Driving one hard is like having a cool chocolate smoothie in summer. The swallow is like silk with no effort, and you get a rush of pure pleasure while it goes down.

The gearbox allows for less-than-perfect shifting. For those drivers who go through gears in quick jerks, the Cayman removes the uncomfort of interfaces on the shift. You know these drivers. You know they know how to drive smoothly, but don't. The Cayman tames their driving to civilized. You can go with them in a Cayman anywhere AND enjoy the trip.

Suspension, and the "feel" it delivers in the cab, is adjusted to soft or sport with the flick of a rocker switch. Want a cushy ride? Well, I wouldn't go quite that far, but a softer ride is found without touching the switch at all. Switch to "sport" and the Cayman delivers to your bottom every crack in the road. Use "sport" when you like knowing where they are.

"S" for sassy, "R" for racy in Caymanese

295 Horses pulling 2900 pounds delivers quite enough get-up-and-go. And the Cayman is packed in a package so tight that you can squeeze it into the smallest of parking spaces. Besides, with that much b.h.p. you got to the spot first and slid your Cayman into it like a slippery bar of soap.

If that isn't beneficial enough, there's the new Cayman R. Not yet available for public consumption, "R" in the new Cayman stands for remarkable, refined, and racy. It weighs 121 pounds less than Cayman S ("S" for Cayman Sport), puts 10 more horses to work, and a lower suspension by 0.78 inches.

I want one. "S" or "R," or any Porsche Cayman with or without letters will do. And no, I accepted no gifts for writing this piece, but I sure hope somebody thinks of offering.

Source: Till Daun, "Right Down the Middle," Christophorus, The Porsche Magazine, Issue 348, Feb-March 2011, p. 33.