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Porsche Cayman
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The Porsche Cayman is a mid-engined, rear wheel drive 2-seat sports car produced by Porsche AG of Germany. First launched in the 2006 model year, the Cayman is a coupé derived from Porsche's second generation Boxster convertible. Like the Boxster, the Cayman is assembled in Finland for Porsche by Valmet Automotive. Porsche's Deputy Chairman, Holger P. Harter confirmed that their contract with Valmet Automotive will end in 2012, and the Cayman's production will be outsourced to Magna Steyr Fahrzeugtechnik of Graz, Austria.
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The Porsche Cayman is a mid-engined, rear wheel drive 2-seat sports car produced by Porsche AG of Germany. First launched in the 2006 model year, the Cayman is a coupé derived from Porsche's second generation Boxster convertible. Like the Boxster, the Cayman is assembled in Finland for Porsche by Valmet Automotive. Porsche's Deputy Chairman, Holger P. Harter confirmed that their contract with Valmet Automotive will end in 2012, and the Cayman's production will be outsourced to Magna Steyr Fahrzeugtechnik of Graz, Austria. (Panorama, 2008)
Development
After two years of development, the first model of the coupé to be released was the Cayman S (type 987.120). Photographs and technical details were released in May 2005, but the public unveiling did not take place until the September Frankfurt Motor Show. The S suffix (an acronym for Sport
or Special) indicated that this was a higher performance version of a then unreleased normal model. That model, the Cayman (987.110), went on sale in July 2006. A motorsport-tuned model, the Cayman RS, is rumored to have been tested at the Nürburgring that same year.
The Cayman coupé (project 987c) and the second generation Boxster convertible (project 987) share the same mid-engined platform and many components, including the front fenders and trunk lid, side doors, headlights, tailights and forward portion of the interior. The design of the Cayman's body incorporates styling cues from two classic Porsches; the 550 Coupé and the 904 Coupé. Unlike the Boxster, the Cayman has a large hatchback for access to luggage areas on top and in back of the engine cover. The suspension design is fundamentally the same as that of the Boxster, but features revised settings appropriate to the increase in chassis stiffness resulting from the Cayman's fixed roof.
The 3.4 litre flat-6 boxer engine (M97.21) in the Cayman S is derived from the 3.2 litre powerplant (M96.26) that was used in the Boxster S, but features cylinder heads from the Porsche 997 S's 3.8 litre motor (M97.01) which have the VarioCam Plus inlet valve timing and lift system. A less powerful but more fuel efficient version, the 2.7 litre M97.20, powers the base model. The use of these new powerplants exclusively in Caymans ended in MY 2007 when Porsche upgraded the Boxster (987.310) and Boxster S (987.320).
A 5-speed manual transaxle is standard on the normal Cayman (G87.01), while a 6-speed manual (Getrag 466) is the default for the S (G87.21) and an option on the normal (A87.20). An electronically controlled 5-speed automatic transaxle (Tiptronic) is also available on the S (A87.21) and the non-S version (A87.02). Other options include active shock absorbers (ThyssenKrupp Bilstein GmbH's DampTronic, rebadged as PASM by Porsche), ceramic disc brakes (PCCB), xenon headlights (Hella's Bi-Xenon) and an electronically controlled sport mode (Sport Chrono Package).
Cayman S Porsche Design Edition 1
It is a model designed by Porsche Design, commemorating 35th anniversary of Porsche Design. The all black car features black leather and Alcantara upholstery, black center console, dashboard, and door trims, black Alcantara steering wheel, the gear lever, the handbrake grip, and the roof lining, standard Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM), 19-inch 911 Turbo wheels with 235/35 ZR 19 front and 265/35 ZR 19 rear tires. Body is lowered by 10mm. Standard equipment includes an elegant briefcase containing the Flat Six Chronograph, a pocket knife, a pair of sunglasses, a pen, and a key ring – all in black, even the knife blade.
777 vehicles were produced as 2008 models. It went on sale on November 2007 in Germany, followed by the US in January 2008. Base price is 58,600 Euros.
Cayman S Sport
Porsche also announced the production of limited Cayman S Sport, to be available on October 2008 as a 2009 model. It features a freer-flowing exhaust, which raises power from 295 hp at 6250 rpm to 303 hp at an identical 6250 rpm. The Cayman S Sport comes in Bright Orange and Signal Green (from the Porsche 911 GT3 RS), as well as Carrera White, Speed Yellow, Guards Red, Black and Arctic Silver. The Cayman S has striping on the sides, black 19-inch wheels, as well as an Alcantara steering wheel directly from the 911 GT3 RS. The instrumentation loses its hood. The body is lowered by 0.4 inches, and the performance exhaust system is louder. 700 are to be made for worldwide market, with 100 for the U.S. and Canada. It will cost $69,900 USD.
Awards
The Cayman has been the recipient of a number of awards, including:
- Automobile – All-Star 2007, Best Sports Car 2006
- Car & Driver – One of the 10 Best Cars 2007-2009
- World Car of the Year (WCOTY) – World Performance Car of the Year 2006
- Top Gear – Sports Car of the Year 2005
- Auto Express - Greatest Drives & Best Sporting Car 2007 & 2006
- Frankfurt Motor Show - Autoweek Editors' Best in Show 2005
- Playboy Magazine - Car of the Year 2006
- J.D. Power’s Initial Quality Study, Best Compact Premium Sporty Cars 2006
- J.D. Power's Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout Study, Best Compact Premium Sporty Cars 2007 & 2006
- Wheels Automotive Design Awards, Best Exterior 2006
- Car Plus Magazine Car of the Year Award, Best Sports Car 2006
Performance
The performance of the Cayman S approaches that of Porsche's flagship sports car, the 911 Carrera. Rally legend Walter Röhrl lapped the Nürburgring Nordschleife track in a Cayman S equipped with optional 19" wheels, PCCB, and PASM in a time of 8 minutes, 11 seconds. The time for a standard Cayman S, as published by the manufacturer, was 8 minutes, 20 seconds. In contrast, Röhrl recorded 8 minutes, 15 seconds in a 911 Carrera.
The similarity in performance between the two cars has led to speculation about whether the Cayman S will cannibalize sales of the Carrera, as the basic Carrera's recommended retail price in the United States is $12,400 higher than that of the Cayman S.
A Cayman prepared and run by privateers Jürgen and Uwe Alzen finished fourth overall (of 220 entrants) in the 2007 Nürburgring 24 Hour race, ahead of two flagship Porsche 997 GT3 RSR's, a 997 GT3 Cup, and a 996 GT3 Cup. Another two privateer Caymans, entered by CSR and MSpeed, finished 22nd and 117th overall, respectively. Porsche disclaims support for the Cayman teams, while supporting some or all of the 997 teams.
A sports car feature which is not offered by Porsche for the Cayman is limited slip differential (LSD). Some commentators have speculated that LSD is not offered, even as an option, because the Cayman S's performance would then be too close to that of the 911 Carrera (see Crippleware). Several tuning companies offer Cayman buyers the ability to retrofit an LSD. Also the biggest engine (3.8l) or the turbo engine is not available in the Cayman.
In the 2009 model, a LSD will become available as an option if PDK is installed. The base Cayman gets an engine upgrade to 2.9L (265 bhp), and the Cayman S a 3.4L (320 bhp). This is significantly more than the current offerings, as even the factory tuned 2008 Cayman S Sport with its special exhaust system only produces 303bhp from its 3.4L powerplant.
Performance data | Source | 0-60 mph | 0-100 km/h
(62 mph) | 0-160 km/h
(100 mph) | 0-200 km/h
(125 mph) | 1/4 mile | 1 km | Top speed |
|---|
| Cayman | | Manufacturer | 5.8 s | 6.1 s | 14.2 s | - | - | - | | | Cayman S | | Manufacturer | 5.1 s | 5.4 s | 11.7 s | 18.6 s | - | 24.3 s | | | Auto Motor Sport | - | 5.5 s | 12 s | 19.2 s | - | - | - | | Automobile | 5.1 s | - | - | - | | - | - | | Car and Driver | 5.1 s | - | 12.0 s | - | | - | - | | Road & Track | 4.8 s | - | - | - | | - | - | |
Name
Cayman is an alternate spelling of caiman, a reptile in the same family as the alligator. The car is not named after the Cayman Islands; rather the islands' also derive their name from the caiman. On the same day that the first Caymans arrived at dealerships for sale, Porsche adopted four caimans at the Stuttgart's Wilhelma Zoo.
Specifications
| Model | MSRP (in USD) | Horsepower | Torque | 0-60 mph | Top Speed | Fuel Economy (United States Environmental Protection Agency?) | Official Model Site/Minisite |
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| Cayman | $49,400 | | | 5.8 s |
(5-Speed/6-Speed)
| | / |
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| Cayman S | $59,100 | | | 5.1 s | | | / |
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Deliveries
| Calendar Year | U.S.A. (Normal/Special) | North America | Rest of World | Total | Notes |
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| 2006 | 1160 / 5865 | 7313 | 8984 | 16297 | |
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| 2007 | 2650 / 3377 | 6249 | 8736 | 14985 | |
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| Total | 3810 / 9242 | 13562 | 17720 | 31282 | |
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Second Generation
The Porsche Cayman has had their second generation introduced for the 2009 model year. The Cayman's engine has its displacement increased from 2.7 liters to 2.9 liters and has a 20 horsepower increase to 265hp while the Cayman S gets direct injection and a 25hp increase from 295hp to 320hp. Both the Cayman and Cayman S have a 10hp power advantage over its roadster sibling, the Porsche Boxster. On the front end, each have their own design for the front bumper. The front signal lamps are designed differently. While both use LED signal lamps, the Cayman’s LED are arranged like the face of dice while the Boxster gets a horizontal row of 4 LEDs. The Porsche Tiptronic S automatic gearbox was replaced by the 7-speed PDK dual clutch transmission for the new model. The PDK outperforms the manual transmission with a 0-60 time of 5.4 seconds versus 5.5 seconds for the manual. The PDK with the sport button option lowers the 0-60 time to 5.2 seconds
Also a limited slip differential is now a factory option
See also
External links
- at Porsche's website
- - official minisite
- - official minisite
- - site of the official Porsche Club of America (PCA) registry for Caymans
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