Giantviper

The problem is that in every other car porsche ahs made along with every other car any car manufacturor has made the rag tops are always more money then the coupe becuase of the cost of the rag top and the motors inviolved in it. We all know both the Cayman and Boxter ahve the same internal number in the porsche factory, 987. That means the factory recognizes the Cayman as a Boxter Coupe. So every one with a senseable mind is asking y would a coupe ever be more money then the rag top? Maybe its just me but i have noticed an excess of Caymans sitting at the porsche dealers in my area and i bet it is becuase of that exact reason. Coupes are always faster then convertables so that is not a good reason to make the coupe more money.

Do not get me wrong I think they are awsome cars (I ahve yet to ride in one but hear they are great to drive) I just think the price point with the rag top less money is killing the car.

mborkow

porsche was able to offset part of the R&D costs of the boxster by using the same technology on the 996. if there is no similar way to offset the re-engineering required for the cayman, then the cayman would end up being more expensive.

fast1

You could be right, but I believe that it's more likely that Porsche bases its pricing policy on what they think the market will bear.

MikeBat

We have to compare apples with apples. Otherwise, we venture into the hypothetical end of the debate.

A 2.7 Boxster with stock suspension and brakes vs a Cayman equipped similarly is not the same as an Elise vs Exige. The Exige has a lot more track equipement and a tweaked motor. Same for the Viper I believe.

That said... add me to the chorus of folks saying that the Cayman S and Cayman price strategies are upside down and somehow insulting.

I would not want to read a 350Z vs Cayman comparo.... it would hurt my soul.
350Z $28k coupe, 300hp, 0-60 5.8s......
Cayman $49,400 coupe, 240hp 5.9s

SciFrog

It is amazing they can actually sell the Cayman over a Boxster... More amazing is that people buy them... It has been proven many times now, the Cayman is just a Boster with a fixed roof, developpement cost must have been super low considering how many parts the Boxster and Cayman share...

Dan V

I'm sure that anyone who has bought a Cayman will assure you that it is a completely new design, and any resemblance to a Boxster is completely coincidental (like the resemblance of Porsche Cayenne V6 to VW Touareg V6)

Doug&Julie

Not true. Fixing a hard top to the Boxster chassis meant the whole car had to be re-developed. A coupe is far more rigid than a convertible, so the suspension can be tuned very differently...far more stiffly than a convertible suspension. Then add in the completely different 3.4 motor that has the Vario-Cam and we're talking about a different automobile. In fact, I read a review where Porsche said the Cayman S is "more 911 than Boxster".

TheOtherEric

Sorry but I find your argument (that Cayman is not a Boxster) lacks any support at all.

1) "Retuning" the suspension means nothing more than slightly different springs and shocks. Big deal. Perhaps sway bars too, but again no biggie. No increased costs here.

2) The base cayman's motor appears to be the exact same 2.7L variocam as the base boxster. And besides, an extra 0.2L in the "S" doesn't make it a "different automobile" than the Boxster S.

3) Porsche saying that the Cayman S is "more like 911 than Boxster" is just marketing drivel, pure puffery. Of course they'll say that to help justify the price tag, but it's clearly BS.

The Cayman is a Boxster, even PAG admits that (see press release linked above). Internal designation is the same too.

BiggerTwin

I have no problem with that since numerous automotive magazines have consistently called the Boxster one of the best handling cars in the world. I personally think Porsche is testing the water to see if people will pay more for a more powerful Boxster coupe. If there are more people like SciFrog than me, the Cayman will be a footnote in Porsche history. If there are more people like me, the Cayman could well turn out to be the 3rd coming as Excellence hinted in their test of the new Porsche. Only time will tell which camp is correct and whether Porsche made a pricing mistake or engaged in masterful marketing. They have to tread carefully since they don’t want to hurt their icon 911 until they know they have a better and more profitable car.

Alan