Z356

I just came back from the LA Auto Show. There I talked to two German employees of Porsche AG (Sasha Glaeser and Michael Hack who were sent to Los Angeles for this introduction) and obtained their input. I have been surprised by some of the negative responses in our forum to the introduction of the Cayman R. So if you are in the market NOW for either a Spyder or a Cayman R, consider the following before you finalize your purchase plans:

a) The Cayman R will have, at a minimum, as good a chassis as the Spyder. If you liked that Boxster model, you can be certain that you will be given something that might handle just as well as the beloved Spyder...and perhaps better!

b) Unless anyone can prove that the Aerokit being used on the Cayman R and Cayman S doesn't work for its intended purposes, Porsche's use of these bits on this model doesn't make its utility any less desirable. And since almost no one spends the money on the Aerokit if one is buying a Cayman S, it will be quite novel (and probably attractive) to all who see it! So this complaint is a red herring. The Spyder has its signature 'humps' but the Cayman R will have a look that will be very distinctive too, especially when combined with some of its special colors and contrasting accents!

c) Cayman R will be introduced as a MY2012. If I order a Boxster Spyder today (for which I have an allocation from my dealer), I would only get a MY2011. A MY2012 purchase at this date will, all things equal, preserve value longer and depreciate less. MY2011 Spyders will have a very long run, from March 2010 deliveries until probably summer of 2011. I suspect that there will be a MY2012 Spyder, but a rather short run as the new platform of the Boxster/Spyder will arrive, I think, as a MY2013 in early spring of 2012. Bottom line, the MY2011 Spyders will be produced in greater numbers and that will hurt its resale value in the future. The Cayman R run, by definition, will be one year shorter than the total Spyder production, and thus potentially will be fewer in numbers. Which will increase its chances to retain its value, relative to the MY2011 Spyder, in the long run. So if you are deciding between a Boxster Spyder today and a Cayman R, and have no preference or firm requirement for either a convertible or a coupe, a case could be made that the MY2012 Cayman R might be a smarter financial buy.

d) The Cayman R will get the same black accent treatment (also available in Silver for certain exterior colors) on rear view mirrors, spoiler wing (+side air intakes) as Porsche gave the 997 .1 gt3 RS. And at no extra cost. On all its colors, not just the green metallic most of you hated (C.J called it barftastic). The .1 gt3 was not offered this contrasting color accent treatment. And on the .2 RS, accents in black (vs Red or Gold) will cost you a fortune! Again, black or silver contrasting accents are 'no cost' on the Cayman R. These are not available on the Spyder, period. And the Cayman R will have a special & proprietary metallic color exterior (Peridot) at no extra cost. In the gt3, there is no proprietary special exterior paint. In the gt3 RS, the special paints cost an additional $3,000+. In the Cayman R, the proprietary signature color comes at no charge! In the Spyder, it doesn't really exist! They have one special color, Cream White, that is not popular and is almost never ordered. The Cayman R will offer a wide selection of exterior colors. You don't like Peridot pea green, fine, how about Speed Yellow with black accents? Or Meteor Grey, Dark Blue Metallic, or Amethyst? A choice of 15 colors in total! And on the Spyder...you have just 8 colors to choose from, if you include the rarely seen Cream White! Big difference in choices, don't you think?

e) The Cayman R will get, according to Michael Hack and the MSRP display in front of the showcar, an Alcantara steering wheel as standard equipment. The 997 gt3's all get an Alcantara wheel, although the wheel style in the Cayman R will be the SportDesign, model, similar to the PDK paddle wheel on the Spyder. The Alcantara shifter & brake lever can be added for $1880. And a Alcantara roof lining can be added for $1180. Alcantara arm rest and side door panels is available for $655. If you do all three options, you basically have a similar interior as a normal gt3 or gt3 RS, which might be of great interest to many customers who favor that look, which is associated in Porsche with the more 'sporting' models.

f ) Last year at this time, when the MY2011 Boxster Spyder was introduced at the same LA Auto Show in November, many took a chance and placed an order, without a test drive and before reading any reviews. Why? Because some liked the concept and were fascinated by the idea of a lighter vehicle & a more focused suspension package. Well, if some of us trusted Porsche back then, why not trust them now to do the same thing to this Cayman R, as they did on the Spyder just recently? Once the reviews start to come in, I am betting the Cayman R will compare very favorably even against the much-praised Spyder (best handling Porsche?) and surpass the lesser Cayman S by a margin. The factory has added (they report) 10 hp to make up for the 44 pounds of weight it will carry over the Spyder (2855 for Cayman R vs 2811 for Spyder). But these may be conservative figures and these R motors might be even more powerful! The factory knows that most likely the Cayman R (as opposed to the Spyder, which they consider more of a back road spirited driver) will be used more often on the track and they know they need to put good numbers on the 'board'. We don't know all the details of the Cayman R suspension as of this date. Who knows, they even might have tweaked the suspension more than on the already excellent job they did on the Spyder . The cars required different treatment underneath due to different weight distribution coupe vs Spyder, higher center of gravity on Cayman, added stiffness, etc. So although perhaps slight, the Cayman R suspension might be even better than the one they developed for the Spyder. We don't yet know...but you can't discount it either.

g) Even if the Cayman R did not fully meet our unrealistic expectations, consider this: The MY2012 Cayman R will be the sharpest tool in the shed in the 987 platform for any amateur track enthusiast for a few years to come. Or those with aspirations to have the very best in a particular model, much as we think the gt3 fits that category in the 911 line up. Sasha Glaeser, from Porsche AG, made the point to me last Friday that regardless when one thinks the new Boxster / Cayman platform arrives for sale in the United States, Porsche will not immediately offer an 'R' version until the new platform is out for a few years, and they are able to test the new chassis to a full extent and make a decision of what tuning it needs to qualify as a special 'R' or 'CS' product. Like it or not, this is the best Porsche will offer on a Cayman version (just as the Spyder is the best you can do on a Boxster) for probably at least three years!

h)And don't worry too much about the 'shock' some feel that Porsche has used the sacred 'R' moniker on something so 'pedestrian' as this Cayman. If PAG Board of Directors approved this name, who are we to punish the Cayman R or its prospective buyers for the sins of the corporate parent? Let Chris Harris pontificate, that is his paying job.

So, if any of you, like me, are ready to buy a sports car in the near term, you owe it to yourself to take a close look at this Cayman R and give it proper consideration. z356

n4v4nod

So are you getting one then?

Alan Smithee

Are you trying to sell the car to others, or to yourself?

Regardless, you left out some important considerations:

• The Spyder is a convertible
• Regardless of some black trim, a controversial paint color, and cheap-looking spoiler, the Spyder has more visual impact
• The Spyder is less expensive

batty

I don't doubt for a second the Cayman R will be a fantastic drive, with much of the magic of the Spyder suspension and weight reduction. But a Spyder with sport exhaust offers top down GT3 like canyon wailing and a large dose of Carrera GT visual flair for the absurd price of $60k and change. The Cayman R, great as its sure to be, looks like the best Cayman S you could spec out. When the major selling points in the blogosphere are paint choices, deviating mirrors or model year 2012, then you know someone left a little spice out of the recipe...

Marine Blue

So did they specifically state that the Spyder will be produced through all 12 months of 2011?

Personally I really don't care too much about resale, I'm going to assume that I will be taking a hit regardless. The big question for me is will Porsche add some other colors to their Spyder offering? I really don't want black, white, red or silver. Just curious if you had learned anything else.

Cayman R should sell well but I agree with others that Porsche should have and could have gone further with it.

Z356

Marine - No, I heard no one say if there was going to be a MY2012 Spyder! It is an assumption based on the fact that the Cayman R is a MY2012 and that Spyder production is continuing this Spring since I got an allocation & heard of others. Plus that a MY2011 Spyder was there at Petree Hall for promotional purposes. The Porsche folks were tight lipped about questions of future production or future platform introductions, as is normally the case. Same as Paint-to-Sample on the Spyder which would solved, albeit at a hefty $5,500 cost, the perceived lack of color options on that model. On this specific topic, which I asked repeatedly, the answer was basically "no, we don't offer this at present time and don't know if we will ever offer it on this model".

Batty - When the Cayman R arrives & is tested in the field, my hope is that it will have all the necessary 'condiments' already and will not need any extra 'spice' to prove itself as one of the best recipes Porsche has produced. z356

PogueMoHone

f) above is true. The suspension is improved over the already incredible Spyder.

I found it laughable that people were jumping all over the disappointment that the Cayman R was...well OK the color was fair game.

But this iteration will blow the Spyder away on the track.... remember when the Spyder came out there was the same carping..too many people shoot first and ask questions later!

Again, I repeat an improved suspension over the Spyder, you might say they took what they did with the Spyder and improved it..that has been the Porsche way for a long time.

Actually in the recesses of my mind I seem to remember the same carping over the RS America in 93 (with similar modifications), and look what a winner that turned out to be.

If a Cayman appeals to you...... the Cayman R should appeal more; and it is focused differently than the Spyder, so maybe one of each is the solution!

Dino944

The R is definitely an interesting option to those considering a Cayman S or Boxster Spyder. Overall, I like the idea of more HP and a lighter car. I think the main issue is people may have expected significantly more HP and maybe even an increase in torque on a Cayman R

I do like the additional color choices of the R compared to the Spyder, especially dark blue. However, I find the contrasting colors for mirrors and spoilers make those pieces look like aftermarket add ons. In addition, I'd prefer the standard Cayman spoiler or the spoiler found on the Spyder rather than that funny little aero kit rear spoiler, which detracts from what to me is a really beautiful clean design.

I'm sure the R will be a great seller, and maybe it will have added appeal to those who are not happy with the Spyder's 2 piece top. But I'm not sure that it is as significantly different from a Cayman S as say a Spyder is to a Boxster S.

Bob Rouleau

For track oriented drivers, I would expect the Cayman R to be a better performer than the Spyder. In the same way as the Cayman S beats Boxster S on a circuit, the more rigid platform of the Cayman is likely to provide improved suspension and handling. Then there is the issue of the speed limit on the Spyder top.. that is creating problems for PCA regions. Do they run top down, with arm restraints? No decision has been made yet and the implications for the Boxster are also a headache. In most if not all PCA regions, Boxsters at DE run top up. If the Spyder can run top down ... well you can see the implications

MikeBat

The only arguement I see where the Cayman R is a home run is the potential of the model year.

It is unanimous, Cayman is more of a track car than the Boxster.

That said, there are other cars Porsche builds which may be more expensive, but have more development for the track and that proof will be in the pudding.

So, at the track a Cayman R may best a Spyder, but lose out to a GT car.

As a street car, the Spyder takes the cake.

And as a dual purpose (street and track) car, well, I guess that depends on the ratio of track vs. street and the importance of either that an individual owner will attribute when his wallet casts it's vote.

Marine Blue

If someone is looking for a dual purpose track/street car at a good price point with a warranty the Cayman R will be hard to beat. As good as the Spyder is, it really is more of a fun weekend sunny day car.

IMHO the Spyder is hard to beat as a third car for limited use with ultimate fun factor. Top down driving is a completely different experience which really doesn't insulate you from your immediate environment, almost like riding a bicycle or motorcycle but with added safety. This experience can't be matched with a coupe. So it really depends on what the buyer wants.

Personally I hope a few people sell their Spyders for a Cayman R so I can pick up a nice used Spyder at a good price point!

Rob T

I've got to admit that this Cayman R has placed some serious doubt in my mind regarding whether I want to go forward with finding a used Spyder, or waiting for the Cayman R to hit the dealers before making a final decision. I still love the looks of the Spyder better, but the soft top factor still gives me some level of concern, even though it will be a weekend car and I live in SoCal.

Marine Blue

Having lived in SoCal I have no idea what you're concerned about. Rain is very predictable and rare.

Now if you prefer a coupe vs roadster that is an entirely different argument.

Personally I wouldn't consider the Cayman R since I don't want another coupe nor do I care for the looks of the car overall. Again it is all personal preference since performance of both cars is exceptional.

Rob T

I agree with you on all accounts with the exception of the looks of the Cayman R (I think it looks good, just not as good as the Spyder).

My concern with the soft top has absolutely nothing to do with rain. Even if I got a Cayman R, it wouldn't see the rain either. I'm just a little concerned with the wind noise and how much of an issue that can be on longer freeway trips. One reason I am looking to replace my Lotus Exige is that my wife doesn't like how loud it is inside the car (in addition to being a PITA to get in and out of, and has an extremely hard ride).

The physical act of removing and replacing the top is of minor concern. I think it simply adds to the character of the car.

Marine Blue

Rob have you driven a 987 Boxster? They are incredibly quiet with the top down, even at highway speeds of 70 mph you can have a normal conversation with the passenger. I test drove the Spyder with Sport Exhaust and I didn't think the noise was unreasonable. You might consider taking a test drive of both cars with your wife before making a decision.