Yes you read that right, the best motoring journalist current working in the UK, and serial Porsche devotee, Chris Harris, has just bought a Cayman. And not some fancy dan tuned up job, nope he's only been and bought a basic 2.7 with the 17" wheels. Top bloke!

And his conclusion?

"one of the most competent cars the company has ever made"

Read all about it ... page 90, in the new issue (March 07) of GT Purely Porsche.

5 or 6 speed? What colour? Did he get a discount?
He is also a fan of the Carrera.

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2007 Porsche Cayman 2.7

Silver, cocoa leather interior, 17" wheels, bought as a slightly used car from an OPC, and clearly with his own money.

Respect is due!

Remember Chris was one of the testers in that best handling sports car test they did last year that the Cayman won, so not surprised to see him pick one up...

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K-Man S

to bad for the world he's not a politician

Yeah, but that was the S version, which everyone in the UK raved about. Not so with the 2.7 which got almost universally lukewarm reviews here, which is why I'm all the more pleased to see Mr Harris voting for it with his wallet. Regrettably the piece is not on-line on the GT PP website, because he is his usual insightful self in discussing it.

JH

For a limited period I have hosted a scan here ...

http://www.arthurlea.com/Porsche/Harris/Harris.htm

I wish I got calls offering me nill depreciating rare 993 RS's in midnight blue.

I have just updated my web page

http://www.arthurlea.com/Porsche/Harris/Harris.htm

to include the excellent piece from "Autocar"

You know John, I haven't even driven a 2.7 Cayman, and I knew that all of the luke warm reviews you mentioned were coming before the first 2.7 left the factory. Not because I believe the car deserves 'luke warm', but because I expected this to be the reaction to the marketing strategy of 'launch the Cayman S first, follow with the Cayman".

That strategy was brilliant. It allowed Porsche to control the press in a way that's almost dishonest, but not. No one had ever seen or heard of a Cayman before. Therefore curiosities were high, and many journalist skeptical about the coming 'hard top Boxster'. By making sure that all of the magazines first rides were in the excessive S model, they could ensure that journalists, who are very hard to please, would be blown away. They would write incredible reviews and get the world all excited about the Cayman (S). Once that buzz begins to fade and the bar has been set, it's time to release the bread and butter of the line. The Cayman.

The Cayman possesses 95% of the Cayman S' abilities but comes in at a much more affordable price point, making it more realistic for many owners that can't or would rather not spend the extra money. Once the car is launched, the journalists will test the car and write their articles. But as I mentioned, the bar was set very high by the S model, and that was only 6 months earlier. This is called top down selling. If I was going to try to sell you something, say a pair of loudspeakers, as a skilled salesperson I know that if I start with my best pair, I will set your expectations very high and you will end up buying 1 to 2 steps down from the top. If I started the other way, at the bottom, I will set the bar very low and you will buy 1 or 2 steps up from the bottom. It's a normal human/social reaction.

I'm sure the Cayman is an absolute blast and the fact that Chris bought one shows that true enthusiasts can see what a masterpiece it is. I for one look forward to looking back on this car 5, 10, or 15 years from now. That is when the car's real character and abilities will shine brightest.

For those that haven't seen the AutoCar Best Handling Cars of 2006, http://www.autocarmag.com/VideosWall...=222412&Mode=B

I'm not sure GB's conspiracy theory is very close to the mark. For one thing, the Porsche press office didn't exacly help themselves. They gave possibly the UK's most influential car magazine, (Evo) a Cayman 2.7 spec'd to the gills, but excluding all the options that added to its driving pleasure; PASM, 6-speed, 17 0r 18" wheels, S/C.

As a result, they were comparing a car that cost more than a base Cayman S (around £47k if I recall) with £30k opposition; BMW Z4 3.0, 350z, Audi TT 3.2 and its not really surprising that counted against it.

SS7>