A closer look at the luxury Porsche Cayman.

From inception to the current model, a short history of the Porsche Cayman.

Although not released until July 2006, the Porsche Cayman made its original debut at the 2005 Frankfurt Motor Show under the guise of the Posche Cayman S. Directly descended from the iconic Porsche Boxster, the Cayman shared a range of features with its famous ancestor including the same mid-sized engine platform, side doors and interior styling. In addition to sharing styling traits with the Boxster, the Cayman also borrowed a range of features from the 550 Coupe and the 904 Coupe.

Often compared to the manufacturer’s flagship car the 911 Carrera, the Porsche Cayman S could match the Carerra almost step by step when it came to performance and speed. When raced by rally legend Walter Röhrl the Cayman S recorded a time of 8 minutes 20 seconds, just 5 seconds short of the lap time set by the Carrera 911 earlier in the day.

The second generation Porsche Cayman raced onto the market in February 2009. Designed slightly differently to the first generation, the second generation’s engine displacement was increased to 2.9L. In the new model the Porsche Tiptronic S automatic gearbox was replaced by the trendy 7-speed PDK dual clutch transmission, with a sport button option lowering the 0-60mph time to 5.2 seconds.

The Porsche Cayman R was released in 2011 and featured new lightweight wheels, lighter doors and a brand new body kit. Replacement of heavier kit saw the Cayman R shed 54.8kg of extra weight and the inclusion of new sports suspension meant the new model came in at a full 20mm lower than the former Cayman model.

Throughout its history, the Porsche Cayman has won a host of prestigious awards including the Top Gear Sports Car of the Year 2005, the World Performance of the Year 2006 and the Motor Trend Best Driver’s Car 2009.