Porsche Cayman S Sport: Spotted

A limited edition (and very good) Porsche that doesn't cost the earth - surely not?

A lot of Porsches are expensive. In other news, Donald Trump is President of the United States and smoking is bad for you. These things you know already, however depressing the reality.

Need more proof? This 968 Club Sport is for sale at £32,000 with 120,000 miles, there's a 928 up at £95K and the seller of this 993 Turbo wants £180,000. Yikes.

However, if you look hard enough, there are pockets of the Porsche range where positive news for prospective purchasers can be found. Take a look at the Cayman S Sport, for example.

Now the Sport is not a forgotten GT4, or anything close. What it is, however, is a lightly tickled and very rare version of the original Cayman S, which is a very good place to start for a great car. It's not dissimilar in mindset to the Cayman R - a little more power, lower suspension - albeit probably not as hardcore.

Launched in 2008, the S Sport was a run-out special for the first 987 generation of Cayman. Power was up slightly to 303hp, PASM that dropped the car by 10mm was standard and a range of GT3 RS style liveries were available. Just 700 were produced with a numbered plaque - but of course - to identify yours.

This Cayman S Sport is the only one for sale on PH at the moment, believed to be one of just 69 in the UK. Think how costly other Porsches of which so few were produced might be, particularly the models you might actually want. And it's an original Cayman too, the ones that people crow on about now because they have hydraulic steering and naturally aspirated engines, rather than being sullied by EPAS and turbos.

Caymans can be had for very little money nowadays, with this £22K S Sport at the top of 987.1 values. That money can get you into a 987 facelift car with similar miles to the S Sport, or a regular Cayman S with fewer miles, so you certainly won't want for Cayman choice. Or another colour, for that matter.

No story on this era of Cayman would be complete without discussing the IMS and bore scoring issues - more detail in the PH Buying Guide - and so that's something you need to be aware of. While issues with later cars are believed to be less common (this Cayman is from 2009), is is known to affect all first-gen Caymans. The rear main seal issue that can cause an oil leak is common to all first-gen Caymans, but it's less serious than the other two problems. It should be noted that the facelifted 987s do avoid that problem altogether.

So should you buy it? Well, while it is top money for a Cayman - and certainly not in the GT3 strata of special Porsches - a limited edition should always be in demand. That it represents the fastest and most focused of those original Caymans shouldn't go unnoticed either. Orange may be a bit much for some, but there's no doubting the inherent quality of the smallest Porsche sports car in any form - time to try it before the world wakes up!

PORSCHE CAYMAN S SPORT
Engine: 3,392cc, flat-six
Transmission: six-speed manual, rear-wheel drive
Power (hp): 303@6,250rpm
Torque (lb ft): 251@4,400rpm
MPG:
CO2: 254g/km
Recorded mileage: 79,000 miles
Year registered: 2009
Price new: N/A
Price now: £22,490