Review of the new Porsche Cayman S Porsche Design Edition 1

Given that Porsche 911 ownership starts at around £60,000 these days, while the fastest standard version of the next model down, the Cayman coupe, costs just under £45,000, it would seem that there's space for an interim product. Or at least an interim model. Something a little more focused than the standard Cayman. Sopmething perhaps like the Cayman S Porsche Design Edition 1.

The name may be a little convulted but the product itself looks particularly desirable. Only 777 examples will be built and those that make it to the UK will cost £49,890 and come complete with a Porsche Driving Experience course included.

The car certainly looks purposeful, with styling, cultivated by Porsche Design, that aims to impart 'additional luxury and sophistication' to the standard Cayman S. The black leather and Alcantara upholstery is intended to 'harmonize' with refined details such as the instrument dials, the layout of which aims to reflect that of all Porsche Design chronograph timepieces. The centre console, fascia console, and door trims glisten in black, while the three-spoke sports steering wheel, the gear lever, the handbrake grip, and the roof lining are clothed in non-slip black Alcantara. The Porsche logo crest is embossed on the seat headrests.

The vehicle's technical features are equally sophisticated. Beneath the 10mm lowered body, standard Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) automatically controls the firmness of the dampers and features a special Sport mode that can be activated at the touch of a button for an enhanced dynamic driving feel. Five-millimetre wide axle spacers combined with 19-inch 'Turbo' wheels give the Cayman S Porsche Design Edition 1 a purposeful stance that is reinforced further by 235/35 ZR 19 tyres on the front axle and 265/35 ZR 19 tyres at the rear.

Included with each car produced is an elegant briefcase containing the Flat Six Chronograph timepiece, a pocket knife, a pair of sunglasses, a pen, and a key ring, all in black (even the knife blade), in keeping with the vehicle's styling. Owners will be reminded of the exclusivity of their purchase by a badge on the lid of the glove box.

"Porsche will sell every one they can make"

These fripperies apart, it is of course the standard Cayman S recipe - which in itself is pretty desirable. Whispers are that the Cayman S has lapped the Nurburgring in 8 minutes and 11 seconds - a full 4 seconds quicker than a 911 Carrera. It's not slow in other words. If you don't need the 295bhp necessary to do this, there's also a 2.7-litre entry-level Cayman variant with 245bhp for £36,220.

The Cayman S - codenamed the '987 C7S' in Porsche parlance - is powered by an engine based on the old Boxster S unit, but which has been bored out to 3.4-litres. It also borrows the VarioCam Plus system from the 911 which uses electro-hydraulic tappets to vary the timing and lift on both inlet and exhaust valves. Weight has crept by a mere 5kg over the Boxster roadster, endowing the Cayman S with a superior power to weight ratio than its soft-topped sibling. Tipping the scales at 1340kg, the Cayman S is still decidedly svelte compared to the Nissan 350Z (1545kg), the Audi TT 3.2 (1520kg) and even the lightweight BMW M3 CSL (1385kg).

The Cayman S shares around half of its componentry with the Boxster S in order to share development costs between the two product lines but aside from that roof, there are some notable differences. Although track and wheelbase is the same as per the common platform, the suspension has been modified to endow the Cayman with a sharper feel. Firmer springs, stiffer dampers, meatier anti-roll bars and beefier bushings all combine to give the Cayman a more focused agenda. There have also been changes to the stability control system and the anti-lock brakes to give keen drivers a little more margin for experimentation.

And the styling? Well, while it looks great from the front and rear, the three-quarter aspects of the car can occasionally look a little gawky given the domed rear haunches and low bootline. The Cayman shares the Boxster's bonnet, headlights, front wings, doors and tail lights but beyond that the steel metalwork is all custom. The front bumpers have been modified with bigger air intakes into which beady fog lights are indented.

The tapered engine intakes on the side of the car don't look quite as elegant as those on the latest Boxster although the rear hatch design is a very neat piece of styling. This opens remotely via a button on the key fob and offers up a reasonable amount of space. Some storage space behind the seats gives a total of 260 litres which when added to the 150 litres up front means the Porsche is more practical than it has any right to be.Slightly longer than the Boxster, the Cayman is also 13mm taller yet the width remains unchanged at 1801mm.

Keen drivers will know that the addition of a fixed roof brings added torsional rigidity, with improvements to handling and refinement, and the Cayman is said to be stiffer than a 911 Carrera. A rear spoiler deploys at 75mph, doing a good job of alerting the boys in blue should you breach the motorway speed limit - something that should be rather simple to do in a car that boasts a power to weight ratio of 207bhp per tonne. For those who feel that this isn't enough, rumours persist that Porsche is planning a lightweight track special version of the Cayman which could bring back the classic GTS badge.

Until this variant arrives, the Cayman S Porsche Design Edition 1 will do very nicely thankyou. For around £5,000 more than the standard model, it injects a welcome note of purpose and a desirable feeling of exclusivity. Porsche will sell every one they can make.

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