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10 Ways the 2014 Porsche Cayman Is Better Than the 911
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10 Ways the 2014 Porsche Cayman Is Better Than the 911
Porsche limits the 2014 Cayman's performance to maintain model-line protocol. Edmunds lists 10 ways the 2014 Porsche Cayman is better than the 911.
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Too bad Porsche will never make a car that would make them great instead of merely 'good enough.'
The 911's CoG is slightly lower than that of the Cayman (last time I checked), but the Cayman's polar moment of inertia is significantly tighter. That means the 911 tends towards stability while the Cayman is more tossable.
I'd wager that up until you get to the tightest corners, the 911 can still hang with, and be superior to the Cayman. That's why it's successful on most race tracks. Once you get to autoX levels or canyon levels of narrow and windy, the Cayman has an advantage.
I would be tempted to replace my 911 (which sees regular track duty) with a new Cayman, were it not for the fact that you can't put a couple of small kids in the back of a Cayman like you can a 911.
...in which case the extra $20-$35K is just a starting point!
Caymans are Porsche sports cars so by definition fantastic; they're just not going to provide as many grins as their unbalanced predecessors.
Oh and by the way, about that "useless" back seat? I've used it in every 911 I've had both for for luggage and in a pinch, for (admittedly uncomfortable) passengers. When the missus tells you we're taking the family hauler on date night because we have to pick up junior on the way home, in a Boxster/Cayman you're out of luck. Think of the 911 as the family sports car.
The engines are very similar, the interiors are not that much different, yeah, the 911 is a bit bigger, but manufacturing costs must be not too far away from each other.
Is it all just prestige mark-up for the 911?
If you know how to control overseer (which you should if you buy sports cars to go fast, not to show off) 911 is actually safer than a mid engine car. A mid engine car will start loosing cornering traction evenly, which means that if it started to slide, it will continue sliding until enough energy is lost. This behavior is ok, if you have enough room to slide to the outside of the turn on a wide race track. But what if it happens on a tight mountain road? 911 in the same situation will start over-steering (i.e. it will actually start turning even tighter) which can be controlled by a driver of a reasonable skill level without using any more room on the road than was originally planned.
Also, while 911 is indeed more likely to start over-steering than a mid-engine car, 911 over-steer is more predictable. The same low polar moment that allow a mid engine car to feel so nimble, can potentially cause difficult to predict snap over-steer if you lift off too abruptly or drive over a patch of wet pavement.
Finally, my perception is that most people who buy 911 buy it for rear engine and the performance it offers, not for status, while those who by Cayman buy it because they wanted Porsche (for status) but could not afford 911 or were too scared that 911 would be too dangerous to drive. In other words, 911 is for performance, and Cayman is the one for women.
While the 911 is superior in a straight line speed ... point to point ... the Cayman will give it hell in the twisties. This why I’m sticking with my 3.4 L Cay. With a few performance enhancements I can live with 3.7 seconds to 60 and a top speed of 175. I’ll rarely rap it up past 150.
But moreover I love the aesthetic appeal of the Cayman and the fact it’s a true 2 seat sports car with no rear jump seat.
And I don’t care what ANYONE says. The Cay handles much better than my 911 ever did. If you’ve ever driven both at a brisk pace through some switchbacks and tight chicanes you’d know exactly what I’m talking about. It’s really easy to swap ends in a 911. The Cayman is much more forgiving and nimble. If you’re preoccupied with straight line speed get a 911. If you prefer more technical driving and want a “drivers car”... seriously compare the Cayman. I think the vast majority of people will see the brilliance of the “gator”