I woke up today to find my Cayman on the front cover of USA Today - Guards Red, SD wheels. - a closer look and one of my favorite car column authors - James Healey reviews it 11D.
<br style="font-weight: bold;" />Overall: Inspired[/quote]
<br style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; background-color: rgb(255, 0, 0); color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /><span class="Title">Give me Cayman or give me death[/quote][/quote]
[/quote]The engine's cackle and rough idle suggest you're dealing with a temperamental machine.
You're steeled to it, figuring it's the small extra price of driving a Porsche. So it's a joyous surprise when you let out the clutch on the 2006 Cayman S coupe and find it moves off easily, smoothly, ready to do your bidding instead of demanding that you do its.
How refreshing. A car that works right, goes fast, looks great, drives easily.
Porsche says Cayman — a hatchback coupe body atop a revised Boxster convertible chassis — is meant to fill the price and image gap between Boxster and 911. It gives Porsche a third sports car that marries the midengine agility of Boxster and the performance of 911.
Cayman's 3.4-liter six-cylinder engine slots between 911's 3.6-liter and Boxster S's 3.2-liter. Cayman's uses the so-called VarioCam Plus technology from the 911. It continuously adjusts the engine's power curve for the conditions at hand.
That's one reason it moves off from rest so easily, with the only possible jerk being you if you get so full of yourself or sufficiently enraptured that you forget the traffic needs of those around you. And it's why the engine can seamlessly go from puttering about to fiercely lunging at the horizon.
It's why, as you accelerate from idle to flat out, the aural sensations inside the car flash through gurgle, whine, moan, bellow, shriek — almost faster than the ear and mind can identify each sensation. Even non-smokers will be reaching for unfiltered Camels after a full-throttle blast in Cayman.
Short-wheelbase sports car. Must be harsh-riding, right? Nope. Another nice surprise. Firm, yes. Disagreeable, no.
The test car had the optional
Sport Chrono Package that provides sport and normal settings. Sport firms the suspension and provides more fuel for smaller movements of the throttle so the car leaps forward even more vigorously.
The interior is about right, too. You'll find it easy to come up with a good driving position, once you get used to pedals closer together than is typical and offset slightly right.
The manual gearshift has a slightly rubbery feel between gears, but engages each of the six slots with mechanical certainty.
Controls are straightforward and include a nifty climate-control setup. You can turn each of the three normal airflow positions — floor, dashboard, windshield — on or off independently, giving you more control over where the air blows.
And who'd ever have thought that a German automaker would deserve applause for thoughtful cup holder design? Cayman's two are spring-loaded and tucked behind a strip on the passenger's side of the dashboard. Pop down the trim, push lightly on either holder and it extends, swivels and opens.
Just as Cayman's cotillion manners are an appealing counterpoint to its rambunctiousness, so its hatchback handiness is a nice balance to its small size. The engine is in the middle. That means there's space for a trunk front and back.
The front space is deep but otherwise small. A couple of soft bags would fit. The rear provides access to a wide cargo area as well as a useful shelf behind the seats. The backs of the seats even have small hooks for grocery-bag handles or whatever.
Outside, Cayman amazes and delights without overwhelming. The straightforward slant of the roof and the protruding snout that seems ever to be looking for more road to eat are echoes of the 911. But the rear fenders are sensual beyond decency. They arrest the eye and give the mind pause: Is this a Porsche or Ferrari or some obscure custom machine or what?
Gripes? Always.
• Price. [/quote]Starts at about $60,000; tester was about $71,000. Wouldn't it be marvelous if you didn't have to be rich or indentured to enjoy such brilliant automotive execution? The test car's price is about where a base 911 starts.
• Filling and fussing.[/quote] The engine is only accessible from underneath, which means that the fill tubes for oil and coolant are in the rear storage area. You'll need a steady hand or really wide funnels to avoid a mess.
Jump-starting requires you to remove a panel near the driver's left leg to reach battery contacts.
There's no spare tire. Instead you get a kit that's supposed to temporarily plug holes.
•Ambiance lapses. [/quote]Steering-column stalks for cruise control, turn signals and other functions feel cheap. Aluminum-look trim is plastic and not always the robust kind. Satellite radio's not available (on any Porsche sports car, though on the Cayenne SUV) for lack of a suitable antenna.
<br style="font-weight: bold;" />• Key. A silly little matter. [/quote]The fob makes it too easy to bump the unlock buttons for the front and rear trunks as you fish for the key in your pocket or purse.
• Quality. [/quote]Unknown because it's a new model. Porsche as a brand was near the bottom in the most recent Initial Quality Study (IQS) by consultant J.D. Power and Associates. Only Volkswagen, Land Rover, Mazda and Suzuki scored worse. Power's IQS asks owners to report problems during the first 90 days of ownership.
On the other hand, Porsche scored near the top in Power's Sales Satisfaction Index, meaning buyers were well-treated by dealers. It was second to Lexus in Power's dependability study, which measures problems after three years of ownership. It was first in Power's APEAL study, which tallies what owners like about their machines.
If Cayman follows that pattern, it means you'll enjoy the purchase, need things fixed shortly after you drive off the lot, but love the car anyway and won't have many problems as it ages.
Porsche is a tiny presence in the USA, about 32,000 cars sold here last year. Ford sells that many F-150 pickups every two weeks. But judged by Porsche standards, Cayman is a home run. On sale only since the middle of last month, it's instantly the best-selling Porsche car and lagged by only five units the best-selling Porsche, Cayenne SUV.
So, Porsche gets a showroom hit that didn't cost a fortune to develop because it's based on the Boxster model already in production. And you lucky ones get one of the best-integrated vehicles ever and one of the best sports cars imaginable.
2006 Porsche Cayman S[/quote]
• What is it?[/quote] Midengine, rear-drive, two-seat, high-performance sports car, manufactured for Porsche by Valmet in Finland.
It's a hatchback coupe body on modified Boxster roadster chassis, meant to fill a price and image gap between the $55,000 Boxster S and the $72,000 911 Carrera.
<br style="font-weight: bold;" />• How soon? [/quote]On sale since Jan. 14.
<br style="font-weight: bold;" />• How much? [/quote]Starts at $59,695 including $795 destination charge. The sky is the upper limit because Porsche will custom-build to buyer's taste. Expect to pay full window sticker price, online car-shopping sites say.
• Who'll buy? [/quote]Porsche says 88% are men, 65% are married; average age is 45.
<br style="font-weight: bold;" />• How many? [/quote]Porsche doesn't forecast, but sold 1,023 in the USA the first two weeks on the market, a pace that makes it the company's best-selling car.
<br style="font-weight: bold;" />• What's the drivetrain? [/quote]3.4-liter, water-cooled, flat-six-cylinder engine rated 295 horsepower at 6,250 rpm, 251 pounds-feet of torque at 4,400 rpm; six-speed manual transmission; traction control. Five-speed Tiptronic automatic is $3,210 option.
• What's the safety gear?[/quote] Front, side and head-curtain air bags; anti-lock brakes, stability control.
• What's the rest? [/quote]Standard features include air conditioning; AM/FM/CD stereo; power steering, brakes, windows, locks, mirrors; outside mirror defrosters; trip computer.
More details at
www.Porsche.com/usa.
• How big? [/quote]Small; 172.1 inches long, 70.9 inches wide, 51.4 inches tall on a 95.1-inch wheelbase. Weight is listed as 2,954 pounds. Rated to carry 640 pounds of people cargo and accessories. Combined cargo space in front and rear trunks is listed as 14.1 cubic feet.
• How thirsty?[/quote] Manual transmission model is rated 20 mile per gallon in town, 28 on the highway. Automatic is 20/27. Trip computer in manual transmission test car showed 15 mpg in mix of highway and vigorous in-town driving. Premium fuel (91 octane) is required to get advertised power. Regular is OK temporarily, but Porsche says don't make a habit of it.
<br style="font-weight: bold;" />• Overall: Inspired.[/quote]
<span class="Title">Cayman S #3362
K-Man-Sculpture.net [/quote][/quote]
Edited by - K-Man-sculpture.net on 02/25/2006 09:06:16 AM
