Is the 718 Cayman S Still the Best Sports Car Money can Buy?
Autocar UK hailed the 718 Cayman S as the best sports car for your money. Does it hold up?
Autocar‘s Matt Prior likes the 718 Cayman S. He likes it so much that he took to some of Britain’s prettiest back roads for some seat time. Its easy to see what he likes about the Cayman S. The Cayman S is cheaper than the 911 and other stratospherically expensive performance cars.
The Cayman S’ performance, however, is anything but bargain quality. With lightweight construction, 345 horsepower, and 309 lb-ft torque, the little Porsche is a serious sports car. Pair that with a six-speed manual transmission, and the Cayman S is a driver’s car as well.
So that’s it then, right? Matt Prior wouldn’t be so quick to re-crown the little Cayman S. Porsche chose to endow the 718 with a turbocharged 4-cylinder engine to replace the high-revving flat 6-cylinder. Prior takes issue with that decision.
Although the boosted 4-cylinder powerplant is more fuel efficient and made the 718 faster, it does so with compromise. Prior found the post-transplant Cayman S to be less responsive.
Furthermore, he states that the 718 lost the delicious musical feedback of the flat 6-cylinder engine with the evolution to a more efficient heart. Autocar still hails the little Porsche as one of the best buys in the sports car segment, but it may have tragically lost a little thunder.
Photos: Autocar