Two weeks ago, I theorized the spec of my perfect 981 Cayman. For analog driving fun, I’d take the bigger 3.4L engine from the Cayman S or GTS and the 6-speed manual transmission. For hoonability, I’d want the LSD from the Porsche Torque Vectoring package. Finally, for daily comfort, I’d fit the softer PASM suspension and Porsche’s 14 or 18-way power seats with adjustable lumbar support. Altogether, this spec should give me a maximally-fun Cayman that is comfortable in everyday use.
Today I put the theory to the test. Porsche of Monterey has manual and PDK 2015 Cayman GTSes—both with PASM—on the lot. Will either car charm me into 981 Cayman ownership?
(There is one significant, unplanned factor in my test. The Caymans—Caymen?—need a little preparation before I can drive them, so I’m given the keys to a 2007 911 GT3. The GT3 is gloriously involved and surprisingly comfortable. It unintentionally becomes a benchmark for my Cayman GTS test drives.)
I’m most excited about the manual GTS, so it’s the Cayman I drive first. The GTS’s shifter is as sweet and creamy as buttermilk. The stick moves from gate to gate without the slightest hitch, and once driven home, it stands firm and won’t jiggle a millimeter side-to-side. It’s the tightest, cleanest-shifting manual I’ve ever used. The clutch is nicely weighted too, so I’d have no hesitation about driving this GTS every day. (What a contrast to the GT3’s row-through-stone transmission!)
Very quickly, I appreciate how much more comfortable the PASM suspension is than the x73 sports suspension. During my Cayman S drive, I was turned into the Princess and the Pea by the stiff x73 suspension: At slow speeds, even the smallest pavement imperfections left me uncomfortably jostled in the driver’s seat. In contrast, the Cayman GTS’s PASM suspension delivers a luxurious ride. Its compliant shocks smooth out cracks and undulations, and the ride quality is maintained over patchwork roads.
The cherry on top of this comfort sundae is the 18-way sports seat. It’s wonderfully supportive and perfectly adjustable. My cranky back approves!
Another luxury of the PASM GTS is ground clearance. In the x73 Cayman, I looked askance at every dip and driveway. On the other hand, the GTS supports worry-free driving, as it won’t scrape on every speed bump and culvert. (The GT3 can’t say the same. It chuffed its chin on a deep dip.)
I like the full-leather interior of the GTS. The stitched dash and doors look up-market, and the GTS avoids the deformed door-uppers of the base, plastic interior, Cayman S. With the leather package, the Cayman’s interior is elevated to meet the car’s lofty price.
The biggest failings of the Cayman S were its long gears and modest torque. In second gear, the PDK met the rev limiter at ~73 mph. For canyon caning, I only needed first through third! Sadly, the manual’s gearing is even worse. Second gear lasts to 83 mph. 83 mph! What were they thinking? Instead of a three-gear canyon car like the PDK Cayman, the manual Cayman is reduced to two. (Yes, both transmissions’ first gears are tall enough to be used on backroad drives!)
Though the GTS has +15 hp over the S, I can’t feel the added power when my drives are weeks apart. Regardless, the GTS still feels asthmatic below 4k rpm and just adequate near the redline. I really want more punch in a premium sports car. There’s more torque in the new turbo 718 Cayman, but it loses the flat-six’s joyous song.
Over the test loop’s hills and twists, the GTS is balanced, fast, and comfortable (even in the firmest Sports Plus mode), but less magical than the x73 Cayman S. The PASM suspension allows modest body roll and communicates less of the chassis’ work. The minor roll is reasonable for a car as comfortable as this, but it demotes the Cayman’s handling from supernatural to, well, natural. The extraordinary x73 chassis cornered flat-as-a-pancake, hummed with feedback, and it was ever-ready to spring from corner to corner. The PASM Cayman is missing the immediacy and communication of the x73 car.
The Cayman’s PSM (Porsche Stability Management) continues to be a thorn in my side. There’s a button to switch it off, but even then, it sporadically intervenes and squashes my attempts to make the rear end dance! Not that the GTS is a hoon’s best friend; only first gear has the torque to break traction.
One of the manual car’s tricks is computerized rev-matching. The feature makes tricky downshifts—like the second-to-first switch—painless and smooth. The auto-blip would be a boon in traffic and on the track, though it’s disabled when PSM off. (Doing my own rev-matching is easy and fun, thanks to the snag-free stick and predictable NA engine.)
On the highway cruise back to the dealership, I reflect on my drive. I thought the manual transmission would amplify my driving joy and give the Cayman a full repertoire of classic sports car pleasures. Sadly, the 6-speed substitutes one want (shifting involvement) with another (suitable gearing). I thought the PASM suspension would fix the x73 sports suspension’s bobblehead ride—and it does—but PASM further isolates me from tire and chassis feedback that I love. Overall, the manual PASM Cayman GTS feels more synthetic than the PDK x73 Cayman S.
I swap keys for a 2015 Cayman GTS with PDK and PASM and rerun the test route. The PDK GTS drives very similarly to its manual-transmission sister. The GTS is still wonderfully agile, comfortable, sonorous, and (reasonably) quick. The PDK might be minutely faster—it spins the tires up the on-ramp—but the gearing is still too long. The car does 75 mph in second gear, and I wish for more torque under 6k rpm. There’s a lot of real estate under 6k rpm!
The PDK GTS does seem slightly more eager to power oversteer out of first-gear corners. I am unsure of the cause: It could be my increasing comfort on the test route, the PDK’s shorter gearing, differences between the manual’s Continental tires and the PDK’s Goodyears, or the fact that this car has Porsche Torque Vectoring. (I didn’t know it had PTV while I was driving.)
The PDK car’s 14-way seats have softer cushioning than 18-ways, but I love both seats.
As it turns out, my theorized perfect-spec Cayman was wrong. The updated theory says there is no perfect 981 Cayman, but the most involving Cayman fits the x73 suspension for sublime poise and feedback and the 6-speed manual for maximally satisfying shifts. Sports Chrono, PTV, and the leather interior are must-haves too. Please forgive the driver for continually grousing about the jittery ride and lackluster torque.
The real revelation is that my perfect Porsche is not a 981 Cayman at all. Regardless of how it is specced—S vs. GTS, PASM vs. x73, PDK vs. MT—the 981’s mute steering and anemic engine keep me from finding driving nirvana. No, today, my perfect Porsche is a (997) 911 GT3!
9/07/2
Mike's Steering Column 