CTC Review: 2009 Porsche Cayman

[CD_Editor]

Day 1:

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I wish summer would come sooner. Every year, it seems like the hot weather does not arrive in the capital until mid-August, and when it does come, so does my yearly Porsche review.  Not that I'm complaining about it: it simply would be nicer if both summer and the Porsche arrived earlier.  Last year, it was the Boxster and Boxster S back-to-back (view the review here) in early September; this year it's the Cayman and it is happening in late August.  More...

[Nick]

Now this is a real enthusiast car.

[quadzilla]

Wow, talk about your mono-toned interior. They even colour matched the steering wheel. Don't like that.

Interested to see how the PDK does in regular driving and the lack of real paddle shifters. Kind of shocking from a company that builds race cars.

Otherwise, I'm a huge Porsche fan and would love to take one of these out for a spin.

[safristi]

..I WANTS ONE...................is there a Cash Fer WANKERS programme................

[Yanick]

It's sad to see the US price not matching the Canadian one. It seems to be a good weekend ride. I have been told that Porsches are quite expensive to maintain... Of course i suppose if you have the money to buy high performance cars, you don't care, but a money pit can persuade customer to go buy a model maybe less exclusive, but scoring even in the entertainement departement

[TopGun]

Wow, talk about your mono-toned interior. They even colour matched the steering wheel. Don't like that.

Agreed quad...I'm a charter member of the "Any interior colour other than black" club, but Porsche puts way too much of what should be a contrasting colour in the interior.

Guy down the street from me has a Cayman S...sounds pretty nice driving by...by no means an attention getter in black though.

[Zombie]

I much prefer the look of the Cayman over the Boxer but why is the Cayman ~5K more expensive?
Is this the only car that has a cheaper convertible version?

I still love this car but I guess the sales numbers for the Boxer might be a bit higher then the Cayman so maybe that explains the higher cost.

Wing can you take me for a spin around the block?

[Greg B.]

It seems to be a good weekend ride.

I agree, but for that purpose, I have to think that the droptop Boxster would be far more preferable.

[Autorevu.blogspot.com]

I test drove a Cayman-S and let me tell you: WOW!

Awesome isn't a word I normally use for test drives, but it sure reached that when I drove it! Arguably the best car I ever driven, bar none.

[Just Bob]

I really like the Coxster, but would give up a little interior quality for much better handling and two extra seats in the Lotus Evora.  Although I'd wait for the supercharged Evora S.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJkH_dNGr8E
(6:00) lol

[speed12sil]

I test drove a Cayman-S and let me tell you: WOW!

Awesome isn't a word I normally use for test drives, but it sure reached that when I drove it! Arguably the best car I ever driven, bar none.

Drove one a couple months back, and must say the new Cayman S indeed has noticeable power increase over the old one. Steering is splendid of course.

Drove a M3 too, can't decide which is better for weekend, M3/C63/CS...

[golfmajic]

For some reason folks have a bug in there hats about cars without power seats.
Well maybe in a luxo ride but a sports car it should not be a problem, set the seat and leave it. A sports car is often a one person ride, power seats add weight.
I would forfeit power seats for auto dim mirrors and rain sensing wipers any day.

[iwc]

*ewhhh* that monochromatic interior is awful. I love the tan seats and would like tan inserts in the door, but please use a black dash and steering wheel.

[ovr50]

"I would forfeit power seats for auto dim mirrors and rain sensing wipers any day."

It just shows that one man's trash is another man's treasure!!

Personally, I would take power seats any day over auto dimming mirrors (which never dim enough IMO) and over rain sensing wipers (which never seem to sweep when I want them to).

 

[Railton]

Wow, talk about your mono-toned interior. They even colour matched the steering wheel. Don't like that.

Agreed quad...I'm a charter member of the "Any interior colour other than black" club, but Porsche puts way too much of what should be a contrasting colour in the interior.

Guy down the street from me has a Cayman S...sounds pretty nice driving by...by no means an attention getter in black though.

Once and awhile he drives up and back through our court as well. I thought he and his Wife or Girlfriend (Mistress?) were just house hunting every Sunday.
Railton

[nsmyhte]

Hey Wing,

What's your opinion on Porsche's choice to put rocker switches on the steering wheel as opposed to paddles on the column? I've read other reviewers say they don't like them.

[Demosthenes X]

"I would forfeit power seats for auto dim mirrors and rain sensing wipers any day."

It just shows that one man's trash is another man's treasure!!

Personally, I would take power seats any day over auto dimming mirrors (which never dim enough IMO) and over rain sensing wipers (which never seem to sweep when I want them to).

 

IMO, power seats are useful only in a shared car, and only if the car has memory seats. Otherwise, they simply add weight and are another thing to go wrong. As the only driver in my car, I cannot remember the last time I adjusted the seat... power seats would be a complete waste. But autodimming mirrors and rain sensing wipers would be downright handy! Actually, I would settle for wipers that turned off when stopped (i.e., at a red light) and wiped when I hit the accelerator...

[tpl]

I wonder if that transmission software will find its way into the VW DSG. I am sure the PDK controller ( electronics and mechanics) is quite similar to the DSG but from your description the software is superior.

[quadzilla]

IMO, power seats are useful only in a shared car, and only if the car has memory seats. Otherwise, they simply add weight and are another thing to go wrong. As the only driver in my car, I cannot remember the last time I adjusted the seat... power seats would be a complete waste. But autodimming mirrors and rain sensing wipers would be downright handy! Actually, I would settle for wipers that turned off when stopped (i.e., at a red light) and wiped when I hit the accelerator...

My GTi does that. When stopped the wipers go down one level until you take off again plus when you put the car in reverse the rear wiper wipes.

As to power seats, I actually don't like them at all. I had them in my Mazda6 and am very glad they don't come on the GTi. Everytime my partner left the seat forward it would have stand there waiting for the seat to move ever so slowly back to my position. I also love the fact that VW uses a dial for the recline vs a lever.

[Yanick]

I agree that the boxster is quite a car too for the weekend. And it's cheaper yhan the cayman when used. I'm just not fond of convertibles. Too hot when the sun is hitting hard, cold if windy etc... I suppose i live in a place to far in the north (Saguenay's fjord) to really enjoy this type of car. Targa though could be interesting.