Saw my 1st Cayman S in the Wild... disappointing
 

Hi,

I was heading to a fav Chicago Hot Dog stand here in Mpls. to feed the Cholesterol Beast while Mrs. MNBoxster is away in NY doing the Barclay's Classic and saw my 1st Cayman S in the Wild.

Before recognizing it as I approached from about a 1/2 block, I thought what an ugly Car! Only as I came upon it did I realize it was a Cayman S. I'd seen a couple at area Dealers before. Set in the ambiance of the Showroom, nestled amongst the 997's and Boxsters, it didn't strike me as particularly unattractive, but on the street, it took on a whole other persona.

To me it looked like one of those caricature 911s you see on Cartoon 'T' Shirts on eBay. And who came up with those ugly appendages that double as Fog Lamps? Obviously the fear of Dachau has faded from the Minds of those in Stuttgart.

I think we've come to an age where No Style has become, or passes for, Style. We've been beset by a generation of Designers whose heads retain the vestiges of Transformers and Big Wheels.

How else do you explain what passes for Styling in the Honda Element, Insight (there's a joke) and S2000, Scion Box, Audi TT and sadly, the Cayman S? Then there's the retro crowd, make a Box, add a Kidney shaped Grill and call it a Bimmer, yea right.

There is some hope, the new MBs are truly Styled (like them or not) and the new Mustang has to earn Retro Look of the Year Award.

The Cayman S may go like Stink, but it is poorly positioned and even more poorly Styled. All good things for those hoping to pick one up used in a couple of years. All of course, one man's humble opinion...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

I thought the Cayman looked fine at the dealership but on the road from the rear I have a hard time telling them apart from the TT. Do love the front end.

Jim, you're a hoot.

Did you know that the artists who did the new Pixar movie "Cars" patterned the Porsche in the film after a Cayman S?

Someone even did a bunch of fiberglass work on one and it appeared in some magazine... was that Panorama, or a R&T? I can't recall right now.

And I really hear what you're saying about hot dogs. I got a craving so bad that I took my wife to the store to get all the fixins for chilidogs and I wolfed down three for dinner last night... and payed the due penalty for that sin, believe me.

I think I'll save my hot dog money for a used Cayman. The look is growing on me something fierce and I do hope they lose a lot of value when they're about 4 years old so I can afford one.

Hi,

The Pic of the Mock-up for Sally Carrera was in the May edition of Panorama, but the footnote says it was a 1999 996 provided by PCNA...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

PS Sally Carrera...?? Does this mean that the 911 is now a Girl Car...?

I don't want to start any trouble - but I liked what I saw....

Also just saw my first Enzo a few weeks ago. That thing sounds better than anything on 2 or 4 wheels...

i understand you are venting. but i think we need to give these cars some time for US to adjust to them. i, for one, don't think the TT and S2k look that bad. Different but not bad. Sure there are things like the aztec and vue that look bad, but that's mostly out of the General.

As for the MBs, didn't they come out and say that the new S has styling cues and derivations from that hideous and hated 7series? the humped out trunk is a dead giveaway.

Also, manufacturers tend to release 1st year models with room to dress up. Now, porsche may not have had these tactics before but you never know with the new business models. but look at the bimmers. if you can find a '92 3series vs. '98. they look like completely different animals. something as simple as a grill or painted skirts changes everything. for something a little more recent, look at a '03 G35 vs. a '06. same model. they don't look the same.

I actually couldn't disagree more. I've seen a few Caymans on the road and parked and I think they look great. I was struck by how much better it looked in person compared to magazine pictures. It's all up to personal taste, of course, but I'm thoroughly impressed.

I too thought the Cayman was ugly in photo's, but when I saw it in person I thought it looked pretty good and the more I see the more I like it.

Speaking of seeing Ferrari's I see this one all the time on my way to work and I just happened to snap a picture of it today. I think it's a 360. BTW driving and taking pictures is not recomended :)

That's funny, I saw 2 of those same type of Ferrari's this weekend and a couple of Caymans. This biggest suprise though was how many Lotus Elise's I saw driving around. They must have just had a shipped somewhere and everyones orders came in, 3 on Sunday driving around.

I have seen a few Cayman S "in the wild" and I think they look great. Like a Boxster coupe.

hey ya i too have seen those f430 ferrari's. crazyyyy i've seen two now here in toronto on the hwy. i want one. maybe two.

the Cayman design is not bad and i particularly like the aggressive bulging muscle appearance. However, I dislike the car name Cayman... Porsche should stick with numbers - 550, 911, 928, etc. no names please..


ps i removed my Boxster S rear deck label.

:troll:

They haven't had numbers on their cars since the 968 went away in '96. There hasn't been a 911 badge since about 1986. But I agree, the name Cayman is kinda stupid.