Let’s get one thing out of the way immediately – when Porsche unveiled the Cayman to the world I hated it. I had absolutely no idea why this odd-looking car which looked like a deformed 911 was being produced.
For me, a two-seater Porsche means a 911 or, and I even cringe slightly when I admit this…a Boxster. The Cayman was neither. It was, in my opinion, a poor man’s 911 or a Porsche aimed specifically at girls – essentially a car with no clearly defined identity.
I still feel the same about the Cayman in its basic form but the car I had for a couple of days was no ordinary Cayman. This was the R version.
When I went to collect it, the car was parked alongside a bog standard Cayman and a Cayman S. The difference was startling. The R is lighter and faster than the Cayman S with tweaked suspension and this one was a real eye-catcher – a sort of olive green called Peridot Metallic, with 19 inch Boxster Spyder black wheels.
Inside, the dash is impressive and the steering wheel, alcantara and polished aluminium is stylish and sporty. The test car was fitted with racing bucket-seats which are extremely supportive but a little hard and it is difficult to get out of the car as you have to ease yourself over the raised side of the seats.
My advice, if buying this Cayman, is ditch the bucket seats and get normal leather ones. The outstanding feature of any Porsche is the driving experience. Because the Cayman is very small you feel as if you become part of the car as soon as you settle yourself into the driver’s seat.
Everything is within easy reach, including the touch-screen control centre which operates the audio system and satellite navigation. The test car also had the brilliant PDK transmission system, which provides extremely smooth and lightning quick gear changes. It almost makes the paddle-shifts on the steering wheel redundant, although they are great to use when driving in sport or super-sport mode.
Just to add to the fun element, there is a small button on the dash with a picture of exhaust pipes. Depress this and the spine-tingling engine tone coming from the optional sports exhaust system, which is already impressive, becomes louder, if you fancy showing off.
I was hugely impressed with the response and speed of this car which was fitted with the sports chrono package plus. Weight is down to a minimum thanks to the lightweight aluminum doors, taken straight from the GT3, and steel body and I had as much fun driving this car as I did in an entry level 911.
The Cayman R is also as fast as the standard 911 and because it is a mid-engine car the handling felt very assured and a lot friendlier than its big brother.
The Cayman R is a fabulous car with a big personality and extremely entertaining to drive. It’s probably too small to use as an every day car and I have already mentioned the bucket-seat problem. But apart from those minor gripes, I loved it.
But, at the end of the day, would I buy one? Well, actually, yes, I would seriously consider it. Ok, for a 911 fan like me, it would always be a compromise but a very good one.
The fact is that the Cayman R has succeeded in creating its own solid identity as a piece of kit most sportscar fans would love to own. That’s why, if I had the choice of the entry level 911 or this little beauty I would find it a much more difficult decision than I would ever have imagined.
