Yesterday I had the pleasure of test driving a Cayman S and a Vantage coupe within 30 min of each other at the same dealership. The bottom line for me was that I'd prefer to drive the Cayman and I'd prefer to look at the Vantage. The Vantage is in my opinion the prettiest new car that is available. It is strikingly beautiful in a subtle way. Driving it would be showing off without over-the-top flashiness. Driving the car was a different matter. Compared to the Cayman, it felt heavy, less refined, and less responsive. In all fairness, I should state that the Vantage didn't have a manual transmission. The problem is that the automatic/paddle transmission really sucked. The throttle responded to my foot worse than a civic. I distinctly remember smashing on the gas to pass a few cars and having to wait for what seemed like 2 seconds before the car actually accelerated. The engine note was exciting but it also sounded contrived.

The Cayman was so much more fun to drive. It did EXACTLY what I told it to do without any concern. Maybe I am a control freak. It felt light in my hands and it brought back meaning to the overused term "handles like it's on rails." If I didn't have any sense, I would feel confident doing anything in the Cayman. It was snug, I loved the seating position, and I felt comfortable driving it almost immediately. By the way, the Cayman is also a beautiful car.

While talking to the salesman we compared the two cars as if they were women. The salesman said that he preferred fiery Latin women that are sometimes a bit unpredictable... i.e. the Vantage. Well, I like my cars to shut up (outside of the exhaust note) and do what I tell them to do when I tell them to do it I also loved the sound of the whirring flat six behind me. It almost sounds like a turbine.

I am pleased to say that when my pockets are full enough to purchase a proper sports car, I am sold on the Cayman. This forum rocks! It is the reason why I have read so much about what I consider to be the best sports car on the market. I am making it a personal goal to attend Croctoberfest within 2 years in my very own Cayman S.

The CS is my favorite car, of all that I've ever owned, but if I could afford it I'd have a Vantage Coupe. with the manual transmission. I got the chance to drive a colleague's when I was in the Bay Area recently, and it's simply intoxicating. Rather heavy, but no worse than the new M3. The CS is probably a better sports car overall, but the Vantage is pure romance. Even the cockeyed instruments are cool. This is an academic question for me, though. The new ones are about $140K.

Was it the updated one with 420hp?

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2008 Cayman S, Black, Floormats

380hp. I don't have much sensitivity for acceleration differences, which makes the Cayman even more attractive. I can barely notice the difference between my 330i and the Cayman in terms of straight ahead movement. Going into turns is a different story. My bimmer would have been in a ditch had I tried some of the stuff that I did in the Cayman. I had much more fun slamming the Cayman into the corners of merge ramps vs flying straight ahead in the Vantage.

Since Prodrive took over they revised the suspension, tranny settings, and added 40hp. I noticed quite a bit of difference between the two. Wouldn't buy one over an R8 but it is quite a bit better.

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2008 Cayman S, Black, Floormats

Very nice thread. plz post other information related to it if u have.