Porsche decided to hold its press conference in a separate room from the main hall on Tuesday. Assuming their would be news of the Panamera at the press conference, nearly every journalist jammed into the tiny space and, despite no news of the Panamera, a riot occurred when Porsche began handing out its press kits. To the small German woman I stepped on to get my press kit, please accept my deepest apologies. All is fair in love and auto shows, though.
So here it is, the 295-hp welterweight that Porsche is slotting between the Boxster and the 911 Carrera. Every bit a
Porsche, the Cayman S gets to 62 mph in 5.4 seconds on its way to a top speed of 183 mph. The mid-engine coupe actually
has a fair bit of luggage space (14.35 cu. ft.) and some trick hardware in the form of Porsche’s variable valve timing
called VarioCam Plus, its Active Suspension Management that actively adjusts the dampers at the touch of a button and
optional ceramic disc brakes.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
ben @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
that interior is downright nasty. not in a good way. and the back doesn't look that porsche-level either. besides that looks sweet tho!
mike @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
i want one. i want it now
Patrick Haney @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
Did they have someone stuck in the 70's develop the interior separately from the people who came up with the rest of the car?
I'm really loving this car, especially the way the back section opens. I never thought I'd see the day when Porsche made a hatchback AND it came to the US.
Josiah @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
To be fair to Porsche, who gives a crap about the interior? Porsche is all about racing so the only thing people should be concerned about is how fast? how good are the bakes? how good is the suspension? and how much? heh
And to be fair to the shmucks who can afford this, yes the interior is pretty crappy and I would be slightly pissed (for about .004 nano seconds) if I shelled out the cash for this and got in to see a pretty average interior. Of course, key in the ignition, foot on the gas would put the biggest fricken smile on my face and the crappy taculr interior would be long forgotten.
But just think, if the interior were better, this car wouldn't have any faults! And what fun is perfection anyways? /sarcasm (just in case we have trolls in the audience)
jamie @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
Sooo sweet! I love those sexy curves. And 300 horses to boot; (okay 295 but who's quibbling?).
Mike @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
I definitely want one. My local dealer has already taken deposits on their initial allocation. So... if you want one too, hurry.
Harry @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
Love the idea of the mid engine Porsche hatchback. Please make a decontended club racer version with a lower sticker price ($39K?). Hatchbacks are supposed to be cheaper than convertibles.
Please don't spoil the pics by superimposing "AutoBlog" on the car.
BrunoMaglia @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
As a BMW owner and fan it pains me to say this, but the truth must be told. Take a lesson BMW - THIS is how you migrate a drop top into a hard top!! Very nice execution and I'm with Josiah - when people see this car on the road, they're not going to TRY to race up to it to get a better view of the interior.
Motorin' @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
Definitely a hot car...the interior (in that color) is not so hot. I predict that to be one of the rarer options, but it could just be the camera. The burnt orange leather interior in the Maserati with the black stitching is surprisingly awesome.
At first, I thought there was a chance the Cayman could nicely slot under the 911, but it's so good looking, I wouldn't be surprised if it really starts to take a bite out of 911 sales.
Rich @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
Car looks great. I am usually a Corvette fan, but I really like this one.
PS- Lose the phantom "Autoblog" logo on your pics.
Jackson Landers @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
Why does Porsche want to spend all of this money developing a new vechicle just to cannibalize sales from the 911 and the Boxster?
Now the Panamera, that's going to bring in a LOT of new business. People who don't even care about cars are excited about that. But I think that the Cayman will eventually go down in Porsche history as an asterisk. A car that was nice enough compared to most other cars on the road but not anything new or special or different in any way compared to other Porsches. A car born out of a spread sheet rather than a real idea.
By the way, no, this is not Porsche's first hatchback. The 928 was a hatchback.
Scott Rogers @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
The interior will look much better when it has no carpet, a roll-cage and racing seats.
I hope they remove the Autoblog text from the paint before it reaches dealers. :)
Yes I will picking one of these up.
EdwoodCA @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
Right on Jackson... and just to try and complete the list of hatchback Porsches that came to the U.S.: 924, 944 & 968.
Perhaps, that fellow is a bit too young to remember??? [Enjoy it... 'cause it sucks to get old, lol!]
Mulo @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
The interior is actually very nice (front part almost identical to new Boxster, only the portion over the gauges is different, obviously very different behind the seats) . Feels and looks much nicer in person, particularly with the full leather option. The Terracotta interior is tough to take, since the color is everywhere. Everything feels of excellent quality and decent ergonomically (a few too many small buttons, esp. with PCM). The black and sand beige are beautiful. Not Aston Martin level of elegance, but it's not an Aston Martin in any way.
nastinupe @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
This is the same interior that's in the Boxster. It just doesn't look good in all red. It is beautiful in tan, black, or dark brown. Go to the dealership and check out a Boxster for yourself.
n8 @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
Jackson: I'd say making a more affordable Porsche is a good idea.
It won't cannabalize sales much from the Boxster: Boxster's main appeal is the ragtop, not performance. It won't drag too much on the 911 either: those with the 20g will spring for the 'real' Porsche with the four-wheel drive, better performance, nostalgia and of course the extra two seats in the back for the family, dog and two sets of golf clubs.
I think this is a good entry for Porsche. At the lower price point it's almost competitive with the RWP of a Corvette. I'm not going to argue the performance advantages of Corvette over Porsche just yet though - we'll have to wait until we see this on the road. But I have a sense that Corvette has always been more about striagh-line speed than handling, and these two would be a good heads-up match on a good track.
If the Boxster was a "chick Porshe" then the Cayman is a man's Boxster. A real man-chick's car. Er. Chick-man's car. Whatever. It's nice.
davej @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
the GOOD: Yet another beautiful Porsche.
the BAD: Autoblog ruins the pictures of it by superimposing their logo on them. I'll bet the 3 with the silver background were not even taken by Autoblog, but supplied by Porsche. Isn't that copyright infringement?
Michael @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
All of Porsche's interiors suck. They still make kick ass sports cars, though.
M.Fisk @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
The Cayman is the car that the engineering group wanted to turn the 911 into at one time.But of course that didn't happen,God forbid no rear engine!But now they get there way with the new Cayman,it's the balanced race toy for the true Porsche boy.I've just ordered one and can't wait.Oh,don't get that orange interior.
M.Fisk @ Dec 18th 2005 11:07PM
The Cayman is the car that the engineering group wanted to turn the 911 into at one time.But of course that didn't happen,God forbid no rear engine!But now they get there way with the new Cayman,it's the balanced race toy for the true Porsche boy.I've just ordered one and can't wait.Oh,don't get that orange interior.