Coming from an Elise... Which Cayman?

[Luke-36]

Hi everyone,

I've had my Elise for just over three years now and I've loved every minute of it. I love the high revving 2ZZ and i love the super charger whine, the agility, the driving dynamics and the whole philosophy of it. It's also pretty cheap to run all things considered.

But... It isn't comfortable, you have to be a gymnast to get into it, the missis hates it, the dog doesn't fit in it, the air conditioning is temperamental at best and its very difficult to take on road trips anywhere.



So, i'm looking at Porsche Caymans. Trouble is I have no idea which one to go for.

I know coming out of the Elise it will be a very different car, perhaps more numb, but i don't want to lose any/ much of the performance that the Elise has

I've a budget of around £35k, PDK/Manual i don't mind. If PDK I want paddles and not those strange buttons on the wheel. Aside from that, i'm pretty open.

Which ones should I be looking at?

Here are a few I've found that look pretty good?

https://www.pistonheads.com/buy/listing/13400712
https://www.pistonheads.com/buy/listing/13753988

+ any other cars/models that should be on the list, I am all ears.

Thanks a lot

[hajaba123]

Evora

[swanny71]

Recommend you look at the 987.2 generation Cayman. It feels smaller, lighter, less complicated and in my opinion gives more ‘simple’ driving pleasure than the 981 but still very useable.

I had an Exige and the same issues you have with the Elise. Now in a Cayman R and absolutely love it.

Very best of the 987 breed
https://www.pistonheads.com/buy/listing/13805662

[Andyoz]

R

[Luke-36]

swanny71 said:

Recommend you look at the 987.2 generation Cayman. It feels smaller, lighter, less complicated and in my opinion gives more ‘simple’ driving pleasure than the 981 but still very useable.

I had an Exige and the same issues you have with the Elise. Now in a Cayman R and absolutely love it.

Very best of the 987 breed
https://www.pistonheads.com/buy/listing/13805662

I hadn't considered these, and love the look of the one you've posted. Thanks a lot, i'll check them out!

[mikef]

Luke-36 said:

It isn't comfortable, you have to be a gymnast to get into it, the missis hates it, the dog doesn't fit in it, the air conditioning is temperamental at best and its very difficult to take on road trips anywhere.

I wouldn’t guarantee the Cayman will fix #2, #3 or #4, maybe not #1 either depending on your definition of comfort

[esotericar]

mikef said:

Luke-36 said:

It isn't comfortable, you have to be a gymnast to get into it, the missis hates it, the dog doesn't fit in it, the air conditioning is temperamental at best and its very difficult to take on road trips anywhere.

I wouldn’t guarantee the Cayman will fix #2, #3 or #4, maybe not #1 either depending on your definition of comfort

Caymans are wall to wall carpets, electric everything, aircon, the works. Not remotely hairshirt, easy to get in an out of, plenty of space for dogs (two up, you can get a mid sized one in the foot well and some small ones behind the seats on top of the engine.

Practicality wise, they're on another level from an Elise. The driving experience is another matter. Much more remote than an Elise.

[duncanoaks]

Hi Luke

Interesting post! I had and thoroughly enjoyed both the mark 1 and mark 2 lotus Elise’s.
I then moved to the dark side for a more practical and comfortable car.

A Porsche in any form will be more expensive to run and maintain but several years ago I had a cayman gts as a courtesy car so it must have been circa 2019 plate.

The car was incredible, the feel, speed and agility reminded so much of my old Elise’s and way more exciting than the basic versions.

Try one…see what you think.

Hope this helps.

[julian987R]

Andyoz said:

R

This

[worldwidewebs]

Having had quite a few Elises (still have an S1), Cayman R, Boxsters and 911s (996, 997, 991) over the past 20+ years, I'd say that if you want to retain the performance and handling feel of the Elise but have a more civilised car then you want an Alpine A110. It's much closer in terms of feel to the Elise than any of the Porsche and if you value everything that light weight gives you, you'll love it.

[dunc_sx]

swanny71 said:

Very best of the 987 breed
https://www.pistonheads.com/buy/listing/13805662

Buy that before I do. I went 987.1 Cayman to S2 exige to 987.2. Wouldn't go back to an Elise/exige now, you don't even give anything noticeable up in handling but gain the practicality and quality.

981's have electric power steering btw, some rate it some don't.

Dunc.

[Andyoz]

If buying a Cayman, make sure you get one with PSE or else the Carnewal exhaust mod.

The flat 6 has far more character than the 4 pot (even a SC one) in my opinion.

Caymans don't rattle BTW.

Having says that, I'd like an Elise/Exige one day but I couldn't have one as my only sports car. Also, don't discount a tricked up 911 as you may enjoy playing around with that rear end in corners...996 say

[bosshog]

I have many Elise’s and still have an S1 which I’ll pick over my GT4 for a fun blast around the roads. As others have said the R would be the one to get if you want a Cayman.

Evora NA would also be worth trying out - probably not quite as practical as a cayman but not far off and brilliant handling (I’ve had a couple).

Can comment on the Alpine (out of budget?)

[Luke-36]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions!

worldwidewebs said:

Having had quite a few Elises (still have an S1), Cayman R, Boxsters and 911s (996, 997, 991) over the past 20+ years, I'd say that if you want to retain the performance and handling feel of the Elise but have a more civilised car then you want an Alpine A110. It's much closer in terms of feel to the Elise than any of the Porsche and if you value everything that light weight gives you, you'll love it.

I had an A110 for a month and it was this car that actually put me on the path to an Elise.

Unfortunately 35k doesn’t get you an A110, otherwise this would be #1 on my shopping list

[KPB1973]

Crazy as it might sound, but if you're looking for the nearest experience to an Elise from a mid-engined Porsche, then a nice 986 S would be my recommendation. They have a mechanical rawness that isn't a million miles from an S1 or S2.

Anything 987 onwards is a lot more civilised, which might be what you're after but I wouldn't discount the old one!

[worldwidewebs]

KPB1973 said:

Crazy as it might sound, but if you're looking for the nearest experience to an Elise from a mid-engined Porsche, then a nice 986 S would be my recommendation. They have a mechanical rawness that isn't a million miles from an S1 or S2.

Whilst I'd probably agree with your first sentence, the second is so wide of the mark that it doesn't even register!

Edited by worldwidewebs on Sunday 28th August 16:49

[esotericar]

While I wouldn't say the 986 is raw, it does have a certain mechanical purity or transparency that could be said to be Elise-like, where the 987 is a bit more filtered / contrived.

[worldwidewebs]

esotericar said:

While I wouldn't say the 986 is raw, it does have a certain mechanical purity or transparency that could be said to be Elise-like, where the 987 is a bit more filtered / contrived.

I honestly don't think you'll find any Elise owner agreeing with that statement

[esotericar]

worldwidewebs said:

I honestly don't think you'll find any Elise owner agreeing with that statement

Then they would have misunderstood what I am saying. Which may be my fault in terms of not communicating what I am getting at properly.

[Megaflow]

I went from an S1 Elise to a 987.2 2.9 Cayman, had the Elise for 2.5 years and had the Cayman for 6 years. Superb car.