Purist’s Dream: 400 Horsepower Naturally-Aspirated Cayman (Video)
Matt Farah falls hard for a built-up 987 Cayman.
When the Boxster and Cayman added “718” to their name last year and a turbo flat-four replaced the normally-aspirated flat six, there was a bit of an uproar in the Porsche community. While horsepower went up, many felt that the character of the car was compromised.
This 2008 Porsche Cayman, built by the Porsche specialists at Road Scholars, has plenty of character. That character comes in the form of a 4.2 liter X51 engine producing roughly 400 horsepower at the rear wheels. That’s just an estimate, since the car was recently completed and the engine has but a scant 800 miles on the odometer.
Who better to break it in than Matt Farah? In this video, he slides behind the wheel for one of his famous one-takes. He explains that this 2008 Cayman has been subjected to much more than just a motor swap.
Nearly every body panel on the car has been massaged and modified to optimize aerodynamics and fit wider tires. It’s a nice, subtle widebody look that’s not overbearing like some recent SEMA builds.
Right off the bat, the car has a sound that could never be replicated by a turbo four. According to Matt, the car is friendly and easy to drive, but angry and eager, too. It’s easy to drive – and easy to drive fast, too.
The stock transmission is augmented by a CAE ultra shifter, with a very short, tight action. It took a little time for Matt to get accustomed to it, but he had nothing but nice things to say about it once he did.
Aside from the shifter, mega-wide wheels, and body panels, the car is almost entirely built from stock Porsche components. It’s a well-balanced package that proves the point that a well-developed Cayman is capable of running circles around a 911.
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