2007 Porsche Cayman

The Cayman's all-aluminum four-cam, 24-valve flat-six "boxer" engine displaces 2.7 liters and pumps out 245 hp, enough to launch it to 60 mph in just 5.8 seconds with its base 5-speed or optional 6-speed manual transaxle. The Cayman S packs 50 more horses from 3.4 liters of displacement for 5.1-sec. 0-60 performance with its standard 6-speed manual. Both sacrifice nearly a second of that quickness with the available 5-speed Tiptronic automatic, which offers manual shift control via fingertip controls on the steering wheel crossbar.

Styling

One racer-like engine feature is dry sump lubrication, which moves the oil reservoir to a separate tank mounted apart from the engine instead of a pan underneath it. This ensures that the oil pickup never runs dry under high cornering loads, which can lead to oil starvation and serious engine damage. Porsche says its integrated dry sump system precisely monitors oil level and displays it on demand, so there is no dipstick. While it can be a pain to call up the oil level on the instrument panel, it's much easier than accessing the mid-mounted engine under its cosmetic cover behind the rear seats.


Both Caymans share the Boxster's sophisticated suspension, and their fixed-roof coupe architecture provides a much stiffer structure to help it work. The body of the Cayman S is twice as flex-resistant as the Boxster's, and its torsional stiffness nearly matches that of the current Porsche 911 Carrera. This added stiffness enables the engineers to optimize its suspension for truly outstanding dynamic performance. Even with 30 fewer horsepower, it rivals the vaunted Carrera's lap times in testing at Germany's storied Nurburgring racetrack.


The Cayman S is one of the most precise, tied-down and exhilarating sports cars we have ever driven. With engine performance perfectly matched to its superb chassis, it can put a smile on any driver's face at any speed on just about any road. Riding on (optional) 19-inch wheels and tires, it felt as firmly stuck to the road as a burr on a hairy dog's back.


Especially notable is the Cayman's ultra-precise and communicative variable-ratio rack-and-pinion steering, which becomes more direct when the steering angle exceeds 15 degrees from center and offers a tight turning circle of just 36.4 feet. Not to mention its Porsche-typical superb brakes, which can snub the car down from speed like an aircraft carrier arresting cable.