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2020 Porsche 718 Cayman – Review & Road Test


The Porsche Cayman comes standard with a 2.0-liter turbocharged flat 4 Boxer engine (2.0L turbo flat-four; 300hp 280 lb ft torque; 0-60 4.9 seconds).

If the Cayman S (2.5L turbo flat-four; 350 hp 309 lb ft torque, 0-60 4.4 seconds) is a bold smoked Gouda, and the GTS 4.0 (4.0L naturally aspirated flat-six; 394 hp 309 lb ft torque, 0-60 4.3 seconds) a Stilton potent enough to make your eyes water, then the base Cayman is an aged cheddar. Hey, ain’t nothing wrong with a snappy little cheddar.

This 2.0L engine feels super eager. This is the kid in school leaving apples on the teacher’s desk. It really wants to impress, and it does. This particular Cayman comes equipped with the Chrono Sport package, which comes with a $2,600 price tag, and it nicely demonstrates how much this engine is capable of.

In addition to throttle response, the Chrono adjusts settings for chassis and suspension stiffness, amplifies the exhaust sound giving it a snorting crackle, the PDK gets shorter shifts and longer ratios, as well as making adjustments to the steering to help the driver conduct it all. Have fun, maestro.

Porsche’s manual 6-speed transmission and gearbox should really be the standard by which all other manuals are judged. No, I don’t have a stick on this car, but if anyone out there is trying to transmission-shame you for getting Porsche’s world class PDK, yes, even the Cayman’s 7-speed automatic instead of the 911’s 8-speed, well, then their karma in eternity is a droning CVT.

Thanks to the mid-engine placement this car’s got great balance. Turns in the Cayman make you feel as smooth as Lindsey Vonn in the Super G. The upgraded 235/40 Pirelli PZeros up front and 265s in the rear adhere to the road in white-on-rice fashion.

This thing absolutely wants you to flog it though canyons, and it will be gracious and without ego with you as you figure out what it can do, and what you can do with it, even if you’re not Hurley Haywood behind the wheel, or even if you think you are and you’re probably not.

Standard Porsche brakes provide plentiful stopping power paired with this engine, and while you can upgrade to Porsche’s ceramic options, I’d venture to say you don’t need them here.

In Sport+ the suspension settings don’t feel spine compressing. The ride feels stiff enough for firm control, but compliant enough without needing Dr. Feelgood after a drive.

Even driving in normal mode allures. I enjoy driving the Cayman on the freeway as much as I do in the canyons. The only thing that’s inelegant is the auto stop/start function, and that I can blessedly turn off.

If you are looking at the Cayman as a daily then EPA numbers should interest you. (Graphic: 2.0L PDK 22 city/29 hwy, 2.0L Manual 21 city/28 hwy; 2.5L S PDK 21 city/28 hwy, Manual 20 city/26 hwy. GTS 4.0 numbers not currently available.)

With the Cayman, you get a lot of everyday creature comforts. Standard features include filtered climate control, 18-wheels, LED daytime running lights, and your first standard maintenance check at 10,000.

If you’re worried about utility, (5.3-cubic ft front and 9.7-cubic ft in the rear) the Cayman has more storage than you might expect.

Porsche’s option sheet reads like the Cheesecake Factory’s menu, full of yummy things that may or may not be good for you. There are myriad wheel options, a Skittles bag worth of paint colors, and upgrades to things you didn’t even know were upgradable. You can have the climate control panel painted ($780) to match the outside of your car.

Standard interiors in the Cayman aren’t chintzy, but they’re not exactly bespoke either. If plastic isn’t your finish of choice, however, head back to the option sheet. They can cover pretty much everything in leather, including the steering wheel column and sun visors. Trim bits can be had in wood, carbon fiber or brushed aluminum if you prefer.

Apple CarPlay ($360) is available, but sadly no Android Auto that’s what the minus is for. The navigation system on the Cayman costs extra, too ($2,320) and even though Porsche’s system is one of the most intuitive in my opinion, for the huge discount, I’d stick to Apple CarPlay.

The Cayman doesn’t come with much in the way of standard dynamic safety features but does have front and rear parking assist and the rear camera. You can upgrade and get adaptive cruise control that’s only available on the PDK not the manual. It does have stop start, but only to 19 mpg.

Pricing on the 718 Cayman starts at $58,900 and the S will pry almost $72,000 before using the build-a-Porsche website. While pricing on the GTS isn’t available yet, we at KBB think it will come in near the high 80s. As you know if you’ve just made your perfect German fun machine, those base numbers skyrocket quickly.