2012 Porsche Cayman R

The 2012 Porsche Cayman R was one of the most-anticipated cars to ever come through the Roadfly office.  The car’s stats are simply stunning: 0-60mph in 4.7 sec. 330hp @ 7500rpm, 2855 lb.  Even the door handles have been replaced with nylon tabs to reduce weight.

The results are predictable.  The Cayman R is virtually telepathic, to the point that it nearly bores you.  It’s so free of vice that you start to feel that it’s just like a normal, civilized car, with a tad more immediacy…and you wonder what the big deal is.  Only when you go back to your daily driver do you realize how responsive the Cayman actually is.

It’s a nearly perfect machine.  It makes few compromises that interfere with spirited driving, but still manages to be completely docile, tractable, and even practical with its two trunks and stellar reliability.  It also gets great fuel mileage, at 19 city and 27 highway when equipped with the 6-speed manual.

Ever gone to a movie that didn’t blow you away at first, but weeks later you’re still thinking about it and can’t get it out of your head?  That’s what my days with the Cayman R left me with.  This car is definitely on my ‘short list’ of cars I want to own before I die.  It’s slightly expensive with a starting MSRP of $66,300, but given how well-built Porsches are in general and how good their resale values are, the price is fair in my opinion.

YouTube Video link: 2012 Porsche Cayman R

Visit the Roadfly forums for a downloadable window sticker.

Vehicle: 2012 Porsche Cayman R
Base Price: $66,300
Price as tested: $73,280
Engine: 3.4L Horizontally opposed 6 cylinder
Transmission: 6-speed manual
Horsepower: 330 @ 7,400 rpm
Torque: 273 lb-ft. @ 4,750 rpm
0-60 MPH: 4.7 sec.
Curb Weight: 2,855 lb.
Warranty: 4 years, 50,000 miles (vehicle)
Fuel Economy: 19 city / 27 highway MPG

2012 Porsche Cayman R

Porsche unveiled the raw and racy Cayman R at the 2010 Los Angeles Auto Show. It’s a lighter (by over 120lb) and more powerful (by 10hp, at 330hp) than the already-potent Cayman S. That gives the Cayman R a lip-smacking curb weight of 2855lb (6-speed MT), and nearly 100hp/liter from its 3.4L flat-6.

It’s raw inside and out, with unique colors and graphics for the exterior, and lots of visible weight reductions inside to give it a race-ready feeling. For example, the standard door handles have been replaced by cloth straps, both for a retro-racer feel and the all-important whittling down of any excess mass.

This is a hotly-anticipated car at Roadfly! We like Porsches, especially Porsches that hearken back to the golden age of club racing. The Cayman R will go on sale in the U.S. early next year with a MSRP of $66,300, excluding $950 for destination.

For more about the Cayman please visit the owners forum: Porsche Cayman Forum

Porsche Cayman R

2012 Porsche Cayman R

2010 Nissan 370Z NISMO

If you haven’t driven the 2010 Nissan NISMO 370Z, you’re doing yourself a disservice.  A high-performance version of the 370Z Coupe, the NISMO has an engine that screams excitement and an exterior that begs to be looked at.

If you’re an automatic-only driver, you’ll be disappointed to learn that this car is out of your league; it’s offered in just one fully-loaded model that’s equipped with a close-ratio six-speed manual transmission— a gearbox that’s required for Nissan’s SynchroRev Match (SRM) function.  The first of its kind in the world, SRM is a fully electronic downshift rev-matching system that seamlessly blips the throttle for you, as a team of sensors respond to the clutch, sifter, and transmission to ensure the drive shaft speed matches that of the engine.  The system works not only during downshifts and upshifts, but can also bring the revs to the optimum level if the driver presses the clutch but doesn’t follow through with changing gears.

Adding to the pleasure of the SRM system is a 3.7-liter V-6, which produces 350 horsepower at 7400 rpm and 276 lb-ft. of torque at 5200 rpm; that’s an increase of 18 hp and 6 lb-ft of torque over the regular 370Z, and the differences are noticeable.  With increased power and no added weight gain, the NISMO 370Z is wildly energetic, and the harder it’s pushed, the better it drives.

Handling has also been improved, thanks in part to stiffer suspension and wider anti-roll bars.  Roll stiffness has been upped by 15 percent, and the front and rear damping factors have been increased by 40 and 140 percent, respectively.  In other words, you can corner with dizzying speed and confidently lay on the gas through each turn.  Those who are enamored by exhilarating performance will instantly be smitten.

Drivers can tear through terrain of all kinds on the 5-spoke Nissan-branded 19-inch RAYS forged aluminum-alloy wheels (19×9.5-inch front, 19×10.5-inch rear) mounted with Yokohama ADVAN Sport Y-rated high-performance tires (P245/40ZR19 front, P285/35ZR19 rear).  Stopping power is supplied by standard NISMO Sport Brakes, which have larger 14.0-inch front and 13.8-inch rear vented rotors, as well as 4-piston front and 2-piston rear aluminum calipers.

As if its performance specs weren’t impressive enough, the changes made to the racing-inspired exterior have yielded a brazen, attractive-from-every-angle body that’s consistently attention-getting.  Not only do the longer nose, new side sills, and distinctive rear spoiler add flash, but they’re also functional, providing increased down-force at high speeds.

The NISMO’s two seat interior features a deeply sculpted gauge cluster, NISMO logo seats, a leather-covered steering wheel, aluminum pedals, a NISMO tachometer, power windows, power door locks, a center console box, and the standard Nissan Intelligent Key.  The interior is uncluttered and simplistic; it has everything you need and is refreshingly devoid of extraneous features.

Pricing starts at $39,130 and, with just three available options, (special floor mats for $115, a trunk mat for $95, and illuminated kick plates for $200) you can load it up and drive it home for under $40,000.

Suffice it to say, the NISMO impressed us and, after driving it for seven days, we were sincerely sad to say goodbye.  Few cars exhibit a better combination of manners and prowess, speed and control, and all at an affordable price.  If you’re looking for a race-bred, factory-tuned sports car that offers extreme performance and intense vivacity, trust us when we say that you need not look any further.

2010 Nissan NISMO 370Z Window Sticker

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