For what its worth...

Unofficial info I got from Germany today is that the Cayman S power increases by just 20 HP for the 2008 model. Which is pretty well insignificant. Only time will tell how it pans out.

How does that relate to other models (Boxster, 911, base Cayman etc) as I'm sure any upgrade will be part of an overall plan.

It will be interesting to see how they accomplish this. Today, you could de-snork and install an Evo intake and be there. I can't think they would change the engine to a 3.6 and de-tune it 10HP. Either way 20hp is a non-event. It could mean that major Cayman improvements are not coming down the pike until after the 998 makes its' debut. Good news for current Cayman owners, bad news for those excited about the continued development of the 987. As with all rumors, though, should be taken with a grain of salt.

I am left wondering if Porsche actually intentionally detuned the Cayman engine to keep it safely lower than the Carrera. If they did, then it will be pretty easy to loosen up some more power.

My 1986 944 Turbo was tuned down to 217hp. In 1988, they increased boost by a few pounds and suddenly the same engine was making 247hp. Of course it's not easy to compare a turbo because of the ease of boost control. But, if Porsche say tweaked the ignition timing and VarioCam Plus maps, they could easily hold the Cayman back a little.

Think about this for a second. In 2000 the Carrera had a 3.4 Liter horizontally opposed 6 cylinder engine that made 300 hp and 258 ft-lbs of torque. Fast forward 6 years to the Cayman S, same engine design, same displacement, add 6 years of improvements including VarioCam Plus and the result is a loss of 5 hp and 6 ft-lbs. Hmmmm........ Have we ever known Porsche to step backwards like this?

My guess is that Porsche did not optimize this car and that because of that they know exactly what to do to it to loosen up another 20 hp. We need to figure out what that recipe is and we will be able to bring the 295 hp models to life just like I did with my 944 Turbo.

A 20 HP jump is a bunch for Porsche......usually they dole it out 5 or 10 at a time, but this seems to be changing. I'm willing to bet the Boxster S will stay pat for a few years with the 295 3.4 while the Cayman gets bumped the 20.....I'd really like to know which engine they are going to use though.....3.4/3.6?......my guess 3.4. I'm sure the 997/998 will start with around 350.

I know there are all sorts of tricks to bump the HP of the present Cayman......but I'll take factory bumps any day over mods. If the 2008 stays with the 3.4.....I'll keep my croc for a few more years......if it gets the 3.6, I'll start thinking!

4by4

Can your sources confirm Mega's thread that DSG is coming for 2008?

Just to stir the pot a little. I was speaking with my Porsche Service Manager the other day and he mentioned that the 3.4 was capable of 340 to 350 hp. So I would assume that they will be tweaking this engine for the forseeable future.

20hp is not huge...but as Atlas_Croc had stated...it's big in Porsche terms. What would be more meaningful is where the additional hp and tq will show itself in the rev band. Either way, it should be expected that Porsche will continue to improve the 987...I don't see why they would not.

Also, I can't imagine the base Cayman sticking with the 2.7 for long. Anyone willing to bet that Porsche will insert the 3.2 before long?

More horsepower through better breathing.

Makes sense and very easy to extract from the car.

I'm sure you're right, TurboFlat4, but...

I hope not. At least that's how I saw it when I test drove back-to-back the 2006 987 Boxster and Boxster S. The 2.7 987 simply felt better to me; the 3.2 didn't resonate in the car the way the 2.7 did. It wasn't apples to apples, I know (different chassis tuning, etc.)

Now that I drive a CS, would I make the same choice between the 2.7 and 3.2? Hard to say. But I know that the 3.4, though it feels very different, has for me that same "right" resonance in the car.

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It's essential to view the horsepower increases from Porsche's perspective which is in terms of marketing rather than performance. Now that the Boxsters have the Cayman engines, which Porsche hopes will attract new customers for the ragtop, it's time to put some distance between the Boxster and Cayman line once again. Think about these incremental improvements as being targeted toward people on the fence who need an incentive to buy, rather than something to motivate current owners to upgrade. I would never have traded my 986 201 HP Boxster even for the last 986S 2003 with 252HP. There wasn't enough difference to justify the monetary outlay. I'm not sure what it would take to get me out of my Cayman S, this car is that good.

Let's be honest for a moment folks, our engines produce more than 295 hp from the factory already anyway. Porsche's 295 number is at what 6250 rpm and the dyno charts all show the car making HP up to redline. Porsche could do nothing to the engine and advertise 20hp more and it would probably be about right as Porsche has left itself some wiggle room already with regard to HP numbers. That being said I would expect minor ECU tweaking would "guarantee" 15-20hp more without doing anything significant to the engine at all. If Porsche opened up the breathing on the engine then the results could be dramatic, look at my car with a few breathing mods it produces 305 to the rear wheels, equivalent to 360 at the crank. That's a 65HP gain on paper...

15-20 hp more in the Cayman isn't likely to entice current owners to ditch their cars in favor of a new Cayman, as somsone said this would be designed to pick up new buyers and stay 'somewhat' competitive in the never ending HP wars.

That's all assuming this "source" in Germany is even accurate.

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