I bought a Peridot Cayman R in Feb 2012 that someone else ordered from Gaudin in Las Vegas and for whatever reason did not purchase. Your analysis of the R is accurate. I owned and drove it in the mountains for 11.5 years racking up 66900 miles of pure fun. It still drove and looked brand new when I traded it in. It never needed a single repair. All I did was maintenance per Porsche's schedule. Many people do not like cars with high miles and considered this car high mileage, but I think properly driving it right, getting the oil up to temperature every time it is started, and taking care of the exterior and interior are what is important. I got 81% of my new car purchase price back when I traded the R in for a new Porsche a month ago. So to those who like cars such as R's with low miles, good for you. But I think I am the real winner since I enjoyed my R on the road and got most of my money back with 11.5 years of trouble-free fun driving.
I love the Cayman R. Additionally, CRs have GT3 doors, GT3RS door cards, GT3RS 4.0L steering wheel, RS door pulls, around 100lbs less than an S, lightest Porsche 19in wheels at the time, true aero, black headlight trim which signifies the model, etc. I really wish you could have driven a manual as it makes your experience even more special but I understand using PDK on the track.
I drove a manual Cayman R for a week back when it was new (press loaner), and I loved it. It was one of the top 5 experiences I’ve had in a car, which was partly due to the fact I was able to drive Northern California back roads all week in it. I am biased towards manuals, but I’m impressed by this car’s PDK, particularly when in Sport Plus.
I believe the 10 HP difference between the 987.2 Cayman S and R is the result of a better breathing exhaust (not to be confused with PSE), rather than any difference in the engine itself. I also own a Peridot R with the 6 speed manual. I’ve put a little over 50,000 miles on mine since I bought it. I’ll drive mine until I can’t get in or out of it anymore 😊.
The one thing Porsche got right with the 981 GT4 over the CR and Spyder is that it only came with 3 pedals :) PDK is a wonderful transmission, but the heel & toe experience in these cars is unreal.
I have the Cayman R in Peridot. That color in that car can only mean one thing.... Cayman R. I like the PDK and the sport and sport plus really make. People don't realize how much this does for the car. I would not own the car without the Sport and Sport Plus. I have a 991.1 Turbo S. If I had to sell one it would be the Turbo S. The Cayman R sounds better, much more fun to drive, you have to work it make it go fast and pushing it full throttle is sounds great, just stock exhaust. Acually the R is more comfortable than the Turbo S. The car just turned 61,000 miles. I keep thinking I will trade it and the Turbo S for a GT4, but just not sure. I need to go drive a 718 GT4. I live about 72 miles from Road Atlanta and 72 miles from the Tail of the Dragon. So I am blessed with living in the mountains with tons of roads. You feel like the car is part of your skin and in the turbo s you feel like you are just sitting inside a spaceship. Come down and we can put you on the tail of the dragon in the Cayman R. Just the right wheel base for the Dragon.
I'm most surprised by only 563 CR's served in the US, especially when you consider how many GT3s and RSs are sold each year, as well as how many GT4s have been sold.
I drive a 987.2 boxster spyder, Soul headers and exhaust, modded intake and throttle body, Cobb tune, numeric shifter. Love the car and have no plans to sell. Design is aging very well, all inputs are amazing, car feel light and very easy to flick around. Plenty of power for a weekend canyon carver or on street. Many faster cars out there, but man, not more entertaining.
More exterior shots please. It seems like after the first few minutes, we never saw the outside of the car again (other than the view of the hood from inside of the car).
I have owned an R for 4 years dailyed it for a year and it’s been a weekend toy since. It’s such a great car for British roads, the main issue with it is that it’s such a good car for the 35-40k pounds they cost in the U.K. that the money required for a meaningful upgrade just seems too much. Yes a 981 GT4 is a better car, but you need another 30-35k When you think I have to hand over the R and 35k it seems too much! Same thing sort of applies to getting a cheaper car, i fancy an evo 5 But nice examples are 20-25k and they don’t seem worth 10-15k less than the R 😂
I beat the piss out of my 6speed manual cayman r on the track for 7 years. Never had oil starvation issues. Rock solid reliable, no mods needed, other than the center radiator, which I think comes standard with the pdk.
I own an R and have developed it for track events. My experience is this R is an R light meaning as delivered it was not acceptable for track use when using dedicated track tires like Hoosiers. The LSD gave up early on and I upgraded to an OS Giken. The brakes are the same as the S and were good for about 15 minutes on track before going soft. I have upgraded to Brembo 6 piston front and 4 piston rears and have no braking issues. I went through two power steering pumps before adding a cooler. I also added an additional front radiator for engine cooling. The shock/spring/sway bar set up is a slight upgrade but I went with adjustable front and rear bars from Tarrett Engineering and JRZ shock/spring package. I did adjustable control arms front and rear with toe lock out plates and front shock plates. I would say the R as delivered is a more sporty version of the S. If you want a track Cayman the GT4 is track ready and as delivered is the best choice. What the R has as delivered is lighter weight then the S and a bit more power but I don’t think it is as strong as Porsche’s other R models. Saying all that mine as developed is a blast on track and you can upgrade as needed. It’s a great platform for fun.
"Also, Damon says in the video that this Cayman R is lightly optioned" He said "lightly modified." I read somewhere that the PDK offsets any weight savings that the R otherwise has. You can make an S faster and more "balanced" for less than the price difference but at the end of the day the R will still be worth much more.
Started with a 2006 Cayman S. Got the track bug. Modified it to the point of death. Bought an Aston Martin V8 Vantage GT. Then traded that on a V 12 Vantage GT. All of these cars were manual. Then got a Cayman R in exact spec as this one, PDK. Loved it for a year. Then sold it and bought a 981 GT4 ( manual of course , as they all were). Bought the Cayman R because I missed the mid engine balance the V12 AM did not have…..then bought the GT4 for the track worthiness and manual transmission. Have had the 981 GT4 for several years and NEVER selling. That being said, the light and nimble feeling of the R is special among modern cars. I have to go to my old 1983 911 SC to improve on it, and that’s comparing apples to oranges. Good review.
I owned a Cayman R, and it definitely is special. However, I tried to use it as a daily driver, and it beat me up. I think this review did not take it on the variety of roads that shows the harshness over marginal roads. Other than that, however, it was great on both the road and the track. I ended up trading it for a 911, which was good, but not as special. If I could have afforded to have the car for weekends and the track only, it would have been great to keep it.
The Soul exhaust is good for about 10hp when coupled with K&N filters (and somewhat loud so beware). I own a 981 which is a much stiffer, slightly lighter car and also much better looking with a nicer interior imo. A better value albeit without the rarity of the R model. This example could have a software upgrade for the PDK.
