Cindy-Lou Dale has mixed feelings about the new Porsche 718 Cayman S. She hits the rural roads of England to put the little snapper through its paces.
When Porsche’s new entry-level sports car rolled off the delivery vehicle, I was taken aback by its striking colour – Miami Blue. Its silhouette, still very recognizably Cayman, is now more refined than its voluptuous forerunner. Just sitting on my driveway,
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The new 718 Cayman S has gone four-cylinder turbocharged. It may well be more powerful than its 6-cylinder predecessor, but the sound is not that of a recognisable Porsche product – it is that different. In outright volume, which there is plenty of, it’s clattery and industrial-sounding, reminiscent of an old Harley Davidson.
I took the 718 S for a long post-midnight drive from Manchester to the Romney Marsh. On the motorway, it performs beautifully, with a stern hold on the road. The major changes are to the Cayman’s engine, where Porsche engineers have installed the Cayman’s first-ever flat-four – a 345bhp, 2.5-litre turbocharged engine that’s more powerful and quicker than the six-cylinder Cayman GT4. Even with the additional 35kg turbocharger, this stick shift reaches 62mph in 4.6 seconds, and tops 177mph.
The driving position is terrific and feels wonderfully low-slung without significantly diminishing visibility, and the controls are just where you want them. I love the way the gear box holds onto second gear, only requiring a change at 70mph, and third gear needing an upshift into fourth at 110mph. In its normal setting, the 718 S is quiet, not too jarring, and all-around pleasant.
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The 718 Cayman S is cheaper to tax and more economical than its six-cylinder big brother. Hard driving has it down to 17.7mpg, and near 30mpg on a long, steady cruise. In real terms, my 280-mile journey, which involved some daunting speeds and tight bends, took the fuel gauge just one click below half a tank! Dial the switch to Sport mode (which engages the sport pipes) and the steering becomes heavier, with the throttle response sharpening up.
However, the real fun happens in Sport Plus. Take all you get in Sport mode, throw in a more sports-oriented ride (like taking out traction control) and the 718 Cayman S feels like a proper sports car – direct, tight, fast, fun, with phenomenal steering feedback. There’s no turbo-lag to speak of and acceleration is forceful, with a punchy turbo delivery above 2,500 revs, throwing in a full whack of thrust.
There is something visceral about driving a stick shift, making you feel part of the whole package, which is why I took the 718 S off the motorway, heading to the wild and woolly countryside of England. Here, this pocket rocket came into its own as I barrelled it into bends at breakneck speeds, which it just shrugged off with grace and agility – the Porsche loved it!
Okay, enough about the driving and handling, let me tell you about what is inside. The two-seater cockpit has been given a small going-over, with the biggest change being the new 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system and a 918-inspired steering wheel (there is no auto-off handbrake – it has an electronic handbrake that releases automatically when the seatbelt is fastened). Storage is tight, with both the trunk and frunk having just about enough space for a soft overnight bag in each compartment.
Aside from cosmetic tweaks on the outside and a redesigned interior, things have been tightened up and revised – wider back wheels, upgraded brakes; a redesigned chassis.
In several ways, the four-cylinder Cayman is better than what has gone before it, but this isn’t enough to compensate for the deficiencies of the engine. Sitting in the cockpit it may initially feel less upmarket, less sophisticated than it did before, cheap even, which of course it isn’t. The 718 S starts at US$62,600 – my test vehicle weighed in at just south of US$80,000 with a heap of options one might otherwise find as standard. To my mind, that’s a lot for a sports car with a four-cylinder turbo engine.
So, there is no wholesale dismissal of the 718 S. This is Porsche’s Go-Kart – on steroids. You’ll become accustomed to the way it sounds. I know I did, and dare I say, I was starting to like it.
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This story originally appeared on The Journal by Astleys of London
