Haven't seen this posted, a review of the Cayman on MSN website: 'It's a highly emotional thing to design a two-seat, mid-engine sports coupe,' explained Kulla, 'and especially with Porsche, it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.'
Veteran Porsche race car driver Hurley Haywood—on hand at the event in Alabama—who has driven Porsche cars to three wins in the famed 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race and five wins at the 24 Hours of Daytona, described the Cayman S to MSN Autos this way: 'What makes the Cayman S so special . . . is a car that is extremely well balanced. . . .It is a very beautiful car to drive and it is also a very beautiful car to drive very hard, which is a lot of fun.'
Summarizing his feelings about the Cayman S, Haywood said, 'The Cayman S is the kind of car that will make a huge variety of people feel like they're really great drivers, and that is a great attribute . . . the sports car's ability to take a very diverse field of people and make them all feel like they're really great drivers because there are no bad habits with this car.' We totally agree. [/quote]
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<h5>Preview: 2006 Porsche Cayman S </h5>
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<td height="10">A new mid-engine coupe from Porsche, the Cayman S is based on the Boxster S, but also draws components from the legendary 911 Carrera.</td>
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<td class="ali">Porsche's new mid-engine coupe builds on the Boxster S, but kicks it up a notch in the performance department. </td>
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<td class="c">Designing a two-seat mid-engine coupe for Porsche is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, according to Matthias Kulla, general manager, Design Style Porsche.</td>
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<td class="c">The distinctive rear view of Cayman S highlights shapely fender lines and a fast roofline. </td>
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<td class="c">From this angle, the Cayman S will not be mistaken for any other car on the road. </td>
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<td class="c">Side vents add style to the Cayman S, but more importantly deliver cooling air to the engine compartment.</td>
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<td class="c">The gauge cluster presents essential information to the driver in a quick, business-like format.</td>
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<td class="c">The Porsche Cayman S bears a strong family resemblance to other Porsche models on one hand, yet has its own individual character on the other. </td>
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<td class="c">A stainless steel bar divides the rear luggage compartment into two sections, and includes four tie-downs, a luggage net, and a luggage retention bar between the head restraints.</td>
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<td class="c">The interior is functional, yet elegant and sporty, with the feel of a classic German sports car.</td>
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Based on the
Boxster S
roadster, the 2006
Porsche Cayman S
draws both inspiration and components from the legendary
Porsche 911 Carrera
. The all-new Cayman S is the first mid-engine coupe from Porsche since the 914 model of the 1970s—other than the limited-production
Carrera GT
supercar.
According to
Porsche
, sports car enthusiasts have been asking the German automaker for a sportier version of the Boxster, which led to the idea of building a mid-engine coupe based on the Boxster S. The mid-engine Boxster roadster debuted as a 1997 model, receiving developmental updates since that time; the Cayman S now hits the streets as the mid-engine coupe version benefiting from those years of refinement.
But it would be unfair to describe the Cayman S as merely a Boxster coupe. With the addition of a fixed roof, a more powerful engine, a refined suspension and the latest technology, the Cayman S becomes a Porsche with distinct character and style all its own, making it greater than the sum of its parts.
MSN Autos had an opportunity to be among the first to see the Porsche Cayman S in the real world, driving it on back roads surrounding Birmingham, Alabama, before putting the coupe through its paces on the challenging Barber Motorsports Park road course.
Designing a New Porsche
The opportunity to design a new Porsche model doesn't come along very often, and Matthias Kulla, general manager, Design Style Porsche, who is responsible for the exterior styling of all Porsche models, explained to MSN Autos the challenge, and the responsibility, of designing a new Porsche sports car.
'It's a highly emotional thing to design a two-seat, mid-engine sports coupe,' explained Kulla, 'and especially with Porsche, it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.'
'The Cayman S was a great challenge for us and the reason why the Cayman S was such an interesting car to design lies within its package. A mid-engine, two-seat design is special because of its engine position. It means the wheelbase is actually longer than that of a Porsche Carrera, and at the same time the rear overhang is shorter. Since the Cayman S is a two-seat car, we could allow for a much lower, faster roofline. It drops down earlier and makes for a much faster back.
The rear fenders make the Cayman S so special. It's a very muscular, softly modeled shape that rises behind the door and over the rear wheel. The fact that it is high and the roofline is low creates a very unique shape on any car today. In this shape, the rear fender is actually higher than the rear deck in between.'
The Cayman S really stands out when on-road with other vehicles—particularly the distinctive design at the rear, and the way that light plays off the rear fenders. From behind, the Cayman S looks like no other car— and the treatment will undoubtedly become its trademark.
The Cayman S possess a distinctive overall profile, with what could be described as a bubble forming over the seating area before the fastback roofline. While from a distance the front of the car may seem similar to both the Boxster and the 911 Carrera, the Cayman S is easily distinguished by fog lights positioned in front of large air intakes, fixed in place by two horizontal bars.
Kulla summarized the final result: 'The idea behind this car was to create a car typically Porsche on one hand, but on the other hand does not look like other Porsches in our sports car family. And we achieved that by being a little bit more generous with the shapes over the rear wheels, with a lot of crown on the roof, and with, overall, a car which . . . has a novelty to its design features.'
Delivering the Performance
When we had a chance to drive the Cayman S for the first time, we found it very easy to drive. The clutch take-up is very smooth, with the shifter feeling direct and precise. The steering is quick and responsive, offering a level of feel and feedback rarely found in today's cars with power steering. The car we drove was equipped with the optional Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) which allows the driver to select two suspension setups. According to Porsche, PASM Normal offers a smoother ride for rough roads than the standard suspension, but automatically firms up when the driver makes aggressive inputs, while PASM Sport activates much firmer damper control for more dynamic handling.
Pushing the car hard on the autocross course, or driving at speed on the track, we found the Cayman S very composed and totally predictable, without any surprises.
The most recognizable trait is the overall balance of the handling, even when pushed very hard on the track. Compared to the Boxster S, which is already a balanced car with great handling characteristics, the stiffer chassis and suspension give the Cayman S an extremely stable feeling. The car follows steering inputs without stepping out of line.
Veteran Porsche race car driver Hurley Haywood—on hand at the event in Alabama—who has driven Porsche cars to three wins in the famed 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race and five wins at the 24 Hours of Daytona, described the Cayman S to MSN Autos this way: 'What makes the Cayman S so special . . . is a car that is extremely well balanced. . . .It is a very beautiful car to drive and it is also a very beautiful car to drive very hard, which is a lot of fun.'
Summarizing his feelings about the Cayman S, Haywood said, 'The Cayman S is the kind of car that will make a huge variety of people feel like they're really great drivers, and that is a great attribute . . . the sports car's ability to take a very diverse field of people and make them all feel like they're really great drivers because there are no bad habits with this car.' We totally agree.
Power Behind the Performance
The Cayman S is powered by a new 3.4-liter horizontally opposed 'boxer' 6-cylinder based on the 3.2-liter Boxster engine, but adds the cylinder heads and VarioCam Plus technology from the Porsche 911. The Cayman S is the first car other than the 911 with VarioCam Plus, which controls intake valve and cam timing to optimize power output. The Cayman S engine delivers 295 horsepower and with peak torque of 251 lb-ft available from 4400 to 6000 rpm.
Power is delivered through a modified version of the 6-speed manual gearbox from the Boxster S, which includes shorter ratios for first and second gear. The 5-speed Tiptronic S automatic transmission is also available, allowing drivers to shift manually with fingertip controls located on the steering wheel.
According to performance figures supplied by Porsche, the Cayman S will accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 5.1 seconds, complete the quarter-mile run from a standing start in 13.6 seconds, and achieve a top speed on the test track of nearly 171 mph. Even with this level of performance, the Cayman S is rated at 20 mpg city and 28 mpg highway while qualifying as a low-emission vehicle (LEV II) in the U. S.
Sporty, Elegant, and Functional Too
Not to be lost in all this discussion about the exterior styling, balanced handling and spirited performance is the style and comfort of the interior.
While owners will undoubtedly seek out the Cayman S for its performance, the interior is functional, yet elegant and sporty. With the feel of a classic German sports car, the cockpit emphasizes function over form—with excellent ergonomics.
The driving position is easily adjustable, and Porsche offers both tilt and telescope adjustments for the steering column. The interior makes occupants feel as if they are wearing the car—not for lack of space (it is actually fairly roomy), but owing to the high-quality materials and impeccable fit-and-finish.
A quick push on the trim strip above the glove box reveals two cupholders that swivel out separately and adjust to accommodate beverage containers of different sizes. While we marveled at the German engineering at work, cupholders seem more than a little out of place in this purposeful, performance-oriented car.
Cayman S has two separate luggage compartments: one in the rear access by the rear hatch, and the other in front under the hood. The rear luggage compartment is divided into two sections by a stainless steel bar and includes four tie-downs, a luggage net, and a luggage retention bar between the head restraints to keep bags safely in position.
New Choice for Enthusiasts
To safely and responsibly experience the new Cayman S, which incidentally goes on sale in the United States on January 14, 2006 with an MSRP of $58,900, new owners would be well advised to seek out a high-performance driving school or a local car club and participate in an autocross or track day.
The performance and handling of the Cayman S are simply too good to safely approach its limits on the street, and we found the real fun of the car is to experience how it responds when pushed hard.
In creating the Cayman S, the German automaker has captured the essence of Porsche and packaged it to deliver a car that enthusiasts (and budding enthusiasts) will love—many will call it one of the best Porsches ever.
There is another thread where Pinky Lai is credited with Cayman design.....this article says it's this guy: 'Matthias Kulla, general manager, Design Style Porsche' Which is it?
I'm sure that Haywood's remarks will be cast in some sort of negative context by the usual peanut gallery. At least none of them can say that he knows nothing about Porsche's or racing!
Chris,
Probably both and even more. I am sure that no ''One Man' was responsible, but this article does led one to believe that Kulla was the father of the Cayman.
Russ
