MickOpalak

I wouldn't say no one. The people running that turbo kit know.

pstoppani

Mick, I am seeing your point. However, I think people read a magazine article like that and don't realise that there is a major difference between the two car's tires which significantly alter the performance results.

My point is that the test results are more about the tires than the cars so the ariticle should be called Yokohama 048Rs vs. Michelin PS2 (or ContiSports, I don't recall which of these were fitted on that Cayman).

One has to read that article knowing that some of the results are about the cars and some are about the tires.

pstoppani

Until ForceFed has put many 10s of thousands of miles on that car, they don't know either.

MickOpalak

I followed behind and along side a silver Cayman this morning on the way into work. It's definitely a handsome car, dare I say, better looking than a 911.

I still though can't get by the fact for the average price of a Cayman S ($70K - $75K) one can get a fully loaded Corvette Z06 that is also quiet, comfortable, has tons of storage space and will absolutely spank a Cayman on a track.

LastGT3

Mick - you are right that ne w Z06 smacks of a sea change of what to expect in terms of performance. I am looking forward to seeing them first hand at my track.
I think of 2 things when I think of the Z06 and frankly the CaymanS, and all the new gen cars:
1. I am I an e-nanny guy or not? (eg brake-forget, turn-forget, power-forget)
2. is it reliable - & proven to me (ie I will watch the gus with the new Z06 to see what their experience is);

As you can see, The lotus, the 996GT3, the Viper are some of the only recent cars to still be drivers-only cars (ie NO IC for You!) - thats what attracts me to them.
For me to really love the Cayman, I need it stripped.

pstoppani

There is no "probably" about it, the Z06 is a lot faster than most anything street legal that one might bring to the track.

However, if you guys think comparing an Exige to a Cayman S is silly, then comparing a Z06 to either one is even more silly.

The Z06 drives completely differently than either car; there is no finese to it. I prefer a finese car since I'm not interested in being the fastest bloke; I'd rather enjoy my tactile relationship with the car in the corners; which is why I prever the Elise over anything I've driven at the track.

The Z06 is more of a bruteforce car; the joy of driving it comes mainly from the frightening speeds it can achieve!

Doug&Julie

Not to mention, it's still a GM car...

MickOpalak

A-ha! Someone finally sees my point of view. The Cayman S is to the Exige as the Z06 is to the Cayman S. Can't be compared in terms of driving experience. The Exige is, as Alan DeCadent said, "a civilized go-kart". No one will ever accuse the Cayman S of that.

LastGT3

pstoppani - yep that Z06 is a brute, but is 500hp unique today given 500hp audis and bmw's.
The only thing I cannot stand is the StabMgt system making that thing drivable - as the driving experience between low hp low torque cars is vastly different from a high hp car.- and takes a lot of skill and patience to finesse a heavy high hp car to get good times on a roadcourse without writing it off. I have 2000 GTS Viper without anything, and I can tell you driving a 3400 lb car fast without abs or any stab mgt is obviously slower, but when youy are on your game, the reward for finesse far outweighs my shutting off the brain to be that 2 sec faster - plus you do get more of rush knowing its only you preventing you stuffing it.
The same can be said for an Exige. Not so for the Cayman nor the usual 996 or 997 - 996GT3 excepted (abs only).

Z06 drivers do not require that same level of skill thanks to silicon.
The Exige is more of a "drivers car" than a car running stab mgt. - that is why one cannot compare the driving finesse required to drive a CaymanS and an Exige - To be fair, on the other hand, the hp diff makes the the Exige more docile (slower)- again all lotus needs to do is come to plate with power (6 cyl) so it can be the devil - it should be with just more power that is reliable (nat aspirated please).

pstoppani

It is a travesty that the Exige doesn't have another 40 ponies...

BTW - Exige/Elise have ABS also. And, people can order them with traction control.

Personally, I'm not bothered by the computer nannies; they are good for when driving on the street; good safety equipment. It can all be turned off at the track

mgsimmer

Does anyone know whether the C&D Cayman had PASM?

LastGT3

I think that blue Cayman S on the C&D did have it (PASM).
Again, given they ran streets (OEM) against R compound (OEM) is telling - To be honest, think That CaymanS did far better than I expected.

MickOpalak

40? How about another 100? Or 200? That would be sweet.

MickOpalak

The fact that the Exige comes with R compounds from the factory and the Cayman does not tells a lot about both car's intended functions and customers.

MickOpalak

They can also be ordered with a limited slip differential. That's an interesting story. The designers of the Elise/Exige say that the car was always designed to run with an open differential and is actually slower around their test track running a LSD. However, American autocrossers begged and pleaded for a LSD. Wanting to cater to their largest market, the US, they gave in and began testing various types of LSDs. They found that with a LSD the car more prone to snap oversteer, so they automatically include electronic traction control with the LSD, if its ordered. Because they can, they also offer the traction control as a stand alone option without the LSD.