I agree. Coming FROM a Cayman S, the extra space behind the seats adds a lot of convenience for me, too. I don't have kids, but I do have a car loving dog, and I prefer throwing a shopping bag or something in the back seat for quick runs to the store.

 

Anyone with younger kids (or who likes a more open feeling interior, the rear-engine handling - which is easily noticeable to me on normal streets if you have a cresting turn, prefers the looks, etc.) is laughing right back at you.

I could take 3 people in the sedan or SUV too, but I can generally take the 911 in a case like that. Guess which I'd rather be able to do?

 

Totally agree. The back seats in the 911 allow me to always have one in the garage. I was about to buy a mclaren, but my wife said not unless I buy a new 911 first. She loves being able to shuttle the kids around instead of driving her benz. Mclaren is coming this summer

 

This game has been played since 1997 when the Boxster came out.... and before that with the 914-6 that just couldn't get an S motor. (Everybody put them in anyways.) In fact, the Boxster looked a bit too much like a 911 in 1997 so they had to change it.


Sooner or later Porsche knows that the top of the line must be a mid-engine car. Truth is that with the stretched wheelbase, the 991 could flip it's engine location and that should be the next GT2 or 3 or 4.


It's got to happen. It is just a matter of when. Physics will not change. Maybe after they lose to Ferrari so many times that their pride can no longer stand it.


Mikie

 

I love my Cayman R but not having back seats is getting old. I see myself eventually getting into a Carrera S no matter what horsepower the Cayman comes out with in the future. They should definitely offer this option or Cayman tho I don't think it will affect 911 sales at all.

 

for me it's a no brainer always have and always be a mid engine fan. If the Cayman would become Porsche's flag ship you would see all the favorable design feature go on the Cayman as they have done with the 911. As for those of you who chauffeur their children around in their Porsche, I would not want my kid slobber all over my leather seats. Candies, kids and other things associated with them don't belong in the Porsche, get a mini van to drive your kids around. Just saying !!!
If money were no object I would have a 918 sit in my garage, strike that, I would be driving it everywhere and not to show it off but because I would like the way the car handles. My 2c

 

Prefer Cayman with the same power. No doubt.

 

Yes if:
1) I already owned a 911 (i.e. - the check box has been checked)
2) If they rebranded it and called it a 911....

 

I would pick the 320HP Cayman over the current 911 no matter the HP difference. Additional power in the Cayman would be icing on the cake, but for me it's not necessary. Car is just fine the way it is.

The bigger issue is the complexity and price points of both cars - 911's and Cayman/Boxsters. Much like contemporary BMW's, Porsche seems to be losing its way with complex options that have the OPPOSITE effect Porsche intended when they designed/offered them. They're pushing me away from wanting to own a newer one. Bigger/more expensive/more complex/heavier = much less appeal to me.

 

And my '11 Cayman S w/PDK & Sport Chrono only has 320 hp, and I'd still select it over any 911 - simply an overall better handling car. 400hp? I think you just match the HP/lb. ratio of the 911 4S and I'd be happy - and that would be about 367 hp - easily done on the de-tuned 3.4 liter.....

But I don't expect any 911 owners to agree with me. I've noticed over the years that the 911 crowd and the Cayman crowds are usually very different set of people, each quite set on their car.

Oh, and I think the Cayman is a more beautiful car than the 911......

And yes, I've driven 911's, though not a 4S or Turbo.......

When I was looking for my S after my definitely underpowered '08 base, the local dealer kept trying to put me in a 911 - I told him if he gave me one, I'd sell it and get a Cayman S......

 

Maybe you haven't noticed yet, but Ferrari isn't winning enough of anything for Porsche to want to emulate them. On the track or street (or sales or profit margin). Same for Audi. If anything Ferrari has been the primary motivating factor for Porsche to stick with the 911 because Porsche has beat the brakes off of them so many years. The newest 911 won Leman's with a 1-2 finish and could have won the Daytona 24 with a 1-2 finish if one car didn't break so they only won first place. Meanwhile, Porsche continues to sell 911 race cars by the droves and make billions through their racing program, all centered around 911's.

A Mid-Engine car can never replace the 911. The 911 sits perfectly between luxury and practicality in a place where any form of mid engine would not thrive nearly as much.

The 911 isn't going anywhere, Porsche will simply charge more for a limited production mid engine supercar (918,960) and charge less for a small nifty more budget friendly car like the Cayman and Boxster which even their sales fall off a cliff after so many years while 911 sales continue to get better and better. It makes the most business sense.

If Porsche wanted to emulate someone, it should be Corvette.

 

I already have a 2010 Cayman S 3.8 with around 400hp at the wheels and a 2013 991 S Cab with 400 at the flywheel. Very different animals. I am happy driving a 991 cross country all day and then giving it a bit of a thratch when conditions allow and I'm in the mood. There can be absolutely no doubt that the Cayman is in another league when it comes to handling. Give it the oomph it deserves and all the good underpinnings and you have a machine that can live with pretty much anything out on the track. Of course, as PGmbH don't make the Cayman with all the goodies it ends up costing rather a lot more than a 991. But boy oh boy is it worth it

 

A bit of irony 70-odd years later as the first Porsche WAS a mid-engined '356'....converted to rear engine before production because of the more useable interior space and the existing VW configuration.

 

I looked at both , found the Cayman lacking in room to put the seat back far enough and a slight claustrophbic feeling due to the engine bulkhead being so close to the seats. In the end I bought a 2013 ,2700km used 991 , which was about the same price as a new Cayman. It was close !

 

911, no doubt about it. Another reader has mentioned Cayman ergonomics. I second that. Not being able to lean the seat back is a back breaker for me. And leg room is limited. Beyond that there is a quality difference, and I like the unique handling characteristics of the 911.