The Porsche's Garage

On September 3rd, 1875, an innovative engineer by the name of Ferdinand Porsche was born. In 1906 Ferdinand became the Technical Director at Austro-Daimler in Wiener Noustadt, Austria. This was where and when the design of the Austro-Daimler touring car & legendary Mercedes Compressor took place. Three years later Ferdinand鈥檚 son Ferry was born. By 1923, Ferdinand had won 3 motor sport competitions, one being the Prince Henry trials in which he designed and raced the sports car. At the pinnacle of his career, Ferdinand opens his own consultation and developmental work company in 1931 called Dr.Ing.h.c.F.Prosche KG. Between 1931 and 1933 the company solely focused on design and consultation. It wasn鈥檛 until 1934 that Dr.Ing.h.c.F.Prosche KG got order to design and construct what is now the German Volkswagon. By 1939 the 鈥淏erlin-Rom-Wagon鈥?was successfully built. What鈥檚 also important is that this car was essential to the foundation of Porsche鈥檚 future Designs.

And until this shiny Guards Red 718 Cayman rolled up to our office, I鈥檇 only driven the 2.5-liter in both S and GTS configurations, and I had nothing to say in contradiction. A stint in this base Cayman, then, was an attempt to both go straight to the source and satiate my curiosity. Let鈥檚 get right to it. In terms of outright performance, balance, feedback, and fun factor, the 718 Cayman is one hell of a car. And I must note that while this is indeed a base Cayman with the 2.0-liter engine, Porsche gussied up this loaner with a few performance-enhancing options. First, as much as I鈥檇 have liked to sample the purist-spec six-speed manual, this was equipped with the excellent seven-speed PDK dual-clutch transmission, so off-the-line launches and quick downshifts were more impressive than those possible with a three-pedal car. It was also fitted with Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM), along with the ever-popular Sport Chrono package. The latter adds Sport and Sport Plus modes to a steering-wheel-mounted selector, along with launch control and active driveline mounts.

However, the Cayman was not fitted with ceramic brakes, Porsche Torque Vectoring (PTV), or Power Steering Plus鈥攁ll optional extras this car definitely doesn鈥檛 need. The 2.0-liter is a direct replacement for the older, last-gen 981鈥檚 base 2.7-liter naturally aspirated flat-six. It isn鈥檛 really all that different from the bigger 2.5-liter, only differing in cylinder bore and its different turbocharger. Both engines are downsized iterations of the 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged flat-six in the 991.2 Carrera, with the 2.0-liter carrying the same bore and stroke of the six-cylinder, but with slightly taller pistons. As expected, they share a bunch of similar parts with the big-boy Carrera, including main bearings, alternator, fuel pump, vacuum pump, camshaft bearings, intake valves, timing chain, connecting rods, and piston rings. Tell that to the 914 owner who chants 鈥渙ne of us, one of us鈥?when you roll up to the next Rennsport. Stay in your lane, Mr. Volkswagen. In a way, that makes it more intriguing than the older six-cylinder. It鈥檚 charming in the same way the Lamborghini Urraco鈥檚 V-8 was a Countach V-12 with four cylinders lopped off. Oh, and it doesn鈥檛 hurt that forced induction makes it torquey鈥攔eal torquey.

Compared to the older 2.7-liter, the 2.0-liter has 73 additional lb-ft, for a thumping total of 280 delivered at much lower rpm. This means that as equipped, this test car can scramble from zero to 60 mph in a very respectable 4.5 seconds. Packing 300 horsepower means it continues to pull after the torque peak, only stopping when it hits its 170-mph top speed. Out on the open stretches of ridge roads in the San Gabriel mountains north of Los Angeles, the 718 Cayman鈥檚 acceleration is strong, not waning until the speedo points somewhere north of 80 mph. Even then, you鈥檒l continue to accumulate speed until things get uncomfortably blurry. Contrary to what you might hear, the flat-four rumble doesn鈥檛 cheapen the experience. It鈥檚 gruff and unapologetic about its small displacement; as one coworker put it, 鈥渋t鈥檚 rude, in a good way.鈥?If the Boxster were launched with this soundtrack from the get-go in 1996, this would likely be a nonissue.

For tighter, twistier stuff, I buzzed over to the canyons bordering Malibu. The Cayman ripped through the switchbacks at a pace you鈥檇 expect of something far more expensive, with smooth, quick steering and impeccable mid-engine balance. Pure grip from the medium-performance Pirelli P Zero tires was impressive, allowing you to learn the capabilities of the car long before you ran out of roadholding (or talent). The brakes and the suspension damping were similarly remarkable, though are you really that surprised? This is the same Cayman/Boxster playfulness we鈥檝e known and loved for 23 years. When you鈥檙e done messing about and need to make it through L.A. Cayman settles down to VW Golf docility with a semi-cushy suspension tune and silken gearshifts from the automatic transmission. Thanks to the mid-engine configuration, there鈥檚 two storage areas for all your Oreos: a flat-loading duffel shelf around back, and a reasonably cavernous compartment up front. So it鈥檚 good鈥攔eally, really good. Better than you might have heard. Of course, I do think without that snappy PDK, this might be a different experience, and I鈥檓 not sure all its character will translate during a quick test drive at your local dealer. If you鈥檙e interested, do make sure to take one for an extended period of time. In typical Porsche fashion, this doesn鈥檛 come cheap. 70,000 718 Cayman S, an upgrade that鈥檚 probably worth it, even if you get a stripped-out model.