When Porsche renamed its Cayman the 718 Cayman back in 2017 and replaced the car's six-cylinder engine with a turbocharged four-cylinder, part of the connection to the 911 — something so intrinsic to the Porsche experience — was lost. There's nothing wrong with the four-cylinder 718's performance certainly, but the driving experience is all a bit soulless. Thankfully, there's a heaping dose of James Brown in the 2021 718 Cayman.
The Cayman got a brand-new six-cylinder last year with the debut of the GT4. For 2021, Porsche is following it up with the 718 Cayman GTS 4.0. It has the same naturally aspirated 4.0-liter flat-six engine as the GT4, albeit with a bit less horsepower (394 horsepower compared to 414 hp in the GT4). You do, however, get all the comfort and accoutrements you'd expect from the GTS model line as well as a lower price.
More than ever, the 718 Cayman is an appealing lead-in to the venerated 911 lineup. It could very well be hard to choose between a Cayman GT4 and, say, a base 911 Carrera. Other notable sports car rivals include the BMW M2 Competition, Chevrolet Corvette, Jaguar F-Type or even top-end versions of the Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Camaro. So should Papa get a brand-new 2021 Cayman? Read our Expert Rating below to help you decide.
The 2021 718 Cayman sports car is available in five trim levels: the base 718 Cayman, 718 Cayman T, 718 Cayman S, Cayman GTS 4.0 and 718 Cayman GT4. All models are rear-wheel-drive and come standard with a six-speed manual transmission. A seven-speed automatic (PDK) transmission is offered as an option.
2021 Porsche 718 Cayman
2021 Chevrolet Corvette
The mid-engine Corvette is a worthy rival to the Cayman, with stirring performance and enough convenience to work as a daily driver. The Corvette handily beats the Cayman when it comes to price, which helped it vault to the top of the class. Read Edmunds' long-term road test of the Chevrolet Corvette.
The BMW M2 might be small, but it packs a lot of performance into that tiny footprint. Rear seats also make it more convenient. It comes as no surprise that the BMW costs less than a similarly equipped Porsche Cayman, which means you'll have a larger budget for tires and track days.
The nearly identical Boxster takes the Cayman formula and chops off the roof for an open-air experience. It'll cost you a few thousand dollars for the privilege, but considering the already exorbitant price, it's not that big of a deal. Performance is close enough that most drivers won't be able to tell the difference.
When Porsche renamed its Cayman the 718 Cayman back in 2017 and replaced the car's six-cylinder engine with a turbocharged four-cylinder, part of the connection to the 911 — something so intrinsic to the Porsche experience — was lost. There's nothing wrong with the four-cylinder 718's performance certainly, but the driving experience is all a bit soulless.
The usual suspects are all here, such as the Audi RS 5, the BMW M2 and M4, the Chevrolet Corvette and the Jaguar F-Type. The new GTS 4.0 certainly ups the Cayman's desirability factor among this group. Should you want a more visceral but just as engaging experience, Ford has the Shelby GT350. It undercuts the Cayman GTS 4.0 by around $20,000 but also falls far short of the Porsche's high levels of refinement.
Sublime is very nearly an overused word when it comes to describing the handling of the 718 Cayman, but it's still the most accurate one that comes to mind. This new GTS has a standard adaptive sport suspension (PASM), which lowers the ride height by 20 millimeters (about 0.8 inch). It also gets torque vectoring (PTV) and a mechanical limited-slip differential as standard.
The GTS 4.0 retains the familiar layout of other 718 Caymans albeit with an extra dose of simulated suede upholstery. The fuzzy stuff covers the seat centers, door panels, armrests, shift lever, steering wheel and headliner. As with any Porsche, you can further tailor the interior to suit any whim or taste (or lack thereof). The GTS' standard sport seats are well shaped and supportive. The optional Full Bucket race-style seats hold you in even more snugly, but they're primarily meant for track driving, not daily commuting.
The 718 Cayman offers 14.9 cubic feet of total cargo capacity, but it's split between two trunks: one in the front and one in the back. That means larger bags will likely stay at home, but there's still enough room in the front cargo area to hold a decent amount of groceries or a couple of soft-sided bags. Competitors such as the M4 and the Shelby GT350 offer less overall capacity, but do so with a more traditional trunk capable of holding larger bags. Those cars also offer more small-item storage as well as incidental storage by way of their small back seats — something the Cayman lacks.
Should you not want the full sport experience of the 20 mm lower suspension on the GTS 4.0, Porsche offers a middle ground with a 10 mm lower ride height, which promises a bit more ground clearance and a slightly softer spring rate. There's also a form of cylinder deactivation, alternating between cylinder banks every 20 seconds, to improve fuel efficiency. The changeover isn't something you can feel, but you can certainly hear it. Thankfully, it's easy to disengage.
Edmunds saysWhile the 718 Cayman is undeniably one of the best-handling sports cars on the market, you could previously point to the car's lackluster turbocharged four-cylinder engine as a reason for a compromised résumé. Porsche has fixed this for 2021, however, with the introduction of the GTS 4.0 trim and its 394-horsepower 4.0-liter flat six-cylinder engine and six-speed manual. The new GTS has reignited our enthusiasm for the mid-engine Porsche.
According to Edmunds’ car experts, here’s what’s new for the 2021 Porsche 718 Cayman:
The least-expensive 2021 Porsche 718 Cayman is the 2021 Porsche 718 Cayman GTS 4.0 2dr Coupe (4.0L 6cyl 6M). Including destination charge, it arrives with a Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) of about $86,800.
Other versions include:
