Sports Chrono Package provides the ultimate in dynamic agility
As a further option, Porsche offers its Sports Chrono Package that modifies mapping for the powertrain and braking systems to provide the ultimate in performance driving. With the optional Sports Chrono Package activated, the 2006 Porsche Cayman S responds even more directly to throttle inputs and offers the driver even greater freedom when driving at the limit thanks to the car’s more sporting set-up of engine management, shifting of the optional Tiptronic S transmission as well as the parameters of the PASM system.
The Sports Chrono Package includes a dash-mounted stopwatch gauge that records lap times on track days or in autocross events. On cars equipped with the optional Porsche Communications Management system, this data can be displayed for review on the navigation monitor screen.
In Porsche’s testing at the Nurburgring, a Cayman S equipped with the Sports Chrono Package was some three seconds per lap faster around the test track.
Large brakes for quick, safe stops
To deal with such dynamic forces, the Cayman S, like Boxster S, uses the same braking system components as the 911 Carrera.
Front brake discs are internally ventilated and measure 12.52 inches (318 mm) in diameter and 1.10 inches (28 mm) in thickness. Rear discs also are inner-vented and measure 11.77 inches (299 mm) across and 0.94 inches (24 mm) in thickness. To provide optimum deceleration, four-piston monobloc calipers — painted red on the Cayman S — grab the discs under braking.
As with all Porsche vehicles, brakes are a critical component to safe driving, so during vehicle development they are put through rigorous testing. For example, before brakes are approved for production, they must be able to go through 25 consecutive cycles involving full acceleration to top speed, followed by deceleration to 62 mph (100 km/h) without fading.
Porsche Ceramic Carbon Brakes available
For drivers who want the ultimate in braking technology, Porsche Ceramic Carbon Brakes (PCCB®) are available on the 2006 Cayman S. PCCB uses 13.78-inch (350 mm) rotors made from a ceramic material that is resistant to corrosion and provide a high-friction surface for optimum braking characteristics even in extremely wet conditions. While larger, the ceramic discs weigh only half as much as conventional metal brakes, thus reducing unsprung weight and enhancing vehicle dynamic capabilities.
Large wheels, Z-rated tires
Standard on the 2006 Porsche Cayman S are 18-inch wheels, eight inches wide for the front wheels and nine inches wide for the rear. The wheels have a unique design that draws on cues from the wheels on the famed Porsche Carrera GT supercar.
Wheels wear 235/40-aspect tires in front and 265/40-aspect tires in the rear. All tires have Z speed ratings.
Four 19-inch wheel designs are offered as optional equipment on the Cayman S. The optional wheels are made from a special flow-forming technology that reduces their weight by some 3 percent compared to wheels made from other processes.
The optional wheels include the same wheels used on the 2006 Porsche 911 Carrera S, a SportDesign wheel with 15 spokes and filigree styling reminiscent of wheels used in international motorsports, the 911 Carrera Classic wheels with five slender spokes and a better view of the cross-drilled brake discs and monobloc calipers.
The fourth optional wheel is a wider, 10-spoke monobloc wheel that runs 8.5 inches wide for the front wheels and 10 inches wide for the rear. As on the SportDesign wheels, the spokes are in a star-shaped arrangement.
Each optional wheel comes with a specially selected tire. Eighteen-inch winter tires also are available.
No spare needed
Like other Porsche models, the Cayman S comes with a special sealant as well as an electrical compressor instead of a conventional (and heavy) spare tire and jack. The Mobility Set is sufficient in most cases to avoid the need of changing a damaged tire on the side of the road and allows the driver to travel at up to 50 mph (80 km/h) to the nearest service center.
Optional tire pressure monitor
Another new safety feature is the optional tire-pressure monitoring system. Wheel sensors constantly monitor the air pressure in each tire and alert the driver with two warnings. A "gentle" warning in white text appears on the digital display within the tachometer if air pressure drops by more than 2.9 psi but less than 5.8 psi. This warning appears for 10 seconds each time the car is started. A "stern" warning is displayed in red text on the tachometer's digital display if air pressure drops more than 5.8 psi or if pressure is falling by more than 2.9 psi per minute. This warning appears as soon as the respective values are exceeded, whether the vehicle is stationary or moving.
Purely Porsche, but also a unique design
Some may look at the 2006 Porsche Cayman and be reminded of the Porsche 550 Coupe or the Porsche 904 Carrera GTS Coupe, both legendary cars from previous eras. Others will notice how Porsche designers incorporated elements of both the Boxster roadsters and the 911 Carrera models into the new two-seat, fixed-roof coupe. Still others will see the Cayman for its unique design, purely Porsche but with distinct styling elements such as its nose section, the way the rocker panels sweep up to the side-mounted air vents like a hockey stick, and the graceful if complex curves as the long sloping roofline narrows as it plunges between the voluptuous rear fenders.
To try to classify the Cayman S as merely the coupe version of the Boxster does disservice to both vehicles, each of which is unique with its own special characteristics.
The 2006 Cayman S presents a new face for Porsche with a more pronounced lower lip and with the fog lamps mounted on bars that extend across the air intakes — with their unique vertical slats — on either side of that lap. The hood sweeps up between the front fenders to a steeply raked windshield.
The exterior design not only underscores the fixed-roof coupe styling, but also enhances aerodynamic control.
The small lip at the bottom of the front end of the car reduces lift forces by 10/1000ths, which at 167 mph (270 km/h) increases the load on each front wheel by 15 pounds (7 kg), producing a significant improvement in stability at very high speeds.
The exterior mirrors are like those used on the 200-mph Porsche Carrera GT supercar and the new and split rear wing moves up some 3.15 inches (80 mm) as soon as the car exceeds 75 mph (120 km/h) to enhance high-speed stability. Rather than a traditional spoiler, this wing keeps air resistance to a minimum while generating powerful downforce.
Airflow beneath the car also is carefully controlled, both for cooling of engine, transmission and brakes and for helping to keep the Cayman S in contact with the road surface. Further, ram air flaps are built in the corners of the fan frames at the front of the car and open at around 45 mph (70 km/h) to reduce throughput of air and thus reduce forces acting on the front axle.
Headlamps use projector-beam technology (bi-xenon lamps are optional). Wide tail lamps are cut into the rear quarter panels. Rear horizontal form bars merge into the specially designed and centrally mounted dual tailpipes.
Overall, the 2006 Porsche Cayman S body is 172.1 inches (4371 mm) long, which makes it not quite half an inch longer than the Boxster and 3.5 inches (x mm) shorter than the 911 Carrera. The Cayman S also is half-an-inch taller (at 51.4 inches or 1305 mm) than the Boxster, though the cars share their width (70.9 inches or 1801 mm) and their 95.1-incn (2415 mm) wheelbase dimensions.
The Cayman S has a coefficient of drag of 0.29 while the Boxster S has a figure of 0.30. Even with its metal roof, the Cayman S weighs 11 pounds less than the Boxster S.
Sophisticated interior with high-quality materials
The interior of the 2006 Porsche Cayman S combines luxury-class materials with the controls and seat bolstering required by the enthusiast driver and thus provides a fitting environment whether traveling across the country or around a racetrack.
While based on the interior in the Porsche Boxster, the Cayman S adds several unique features, such as its long and wide rear package shelf, covered storage bins behind each seat and a revised binnacle above the instrument cluster with a fine metal grid in the open spaces between the circular instruments and the binnacle.
The gearshift lever, steering wheel rim, handbrake lever handle, cover on the storage compartment in the center console and in the door panels all are finished in grain leather.
Aluminum-colored trim accents the interior, which features standard air conditioning and with pollen filter.
The Cayman S has an oversized glove box. An open storage bin is located at the lower front end of the center console with a covered storage box at the rear end of the console. Inside this box are both a coin holder and a 12-volt power outlet. Covered storage areas also are located in each door panel.
A pair of cup holders is cleverly concealed behind a trim strip above the glove compartment. Each accommodates beverages up to 2.91 inches in diameter and swivels out independently as needed.
Four seating choices
Seats can be adjusted in six directions, with electrical control of the backrest angle while fore/aft and height adjustment is manual. Height adjustment incorporates a special step-by-step leveling system between the seat and doorsill for precise and convenient adjustment.
Seats with full electric control are optional and provide seat adjustment in 12 directions, including seat bottom adjusting for angle. The fully electric-control seats include four-way lumbar support.
Sport seats also are available with enhanced lateral support bolsters, both in the seat and back cushions.
A further option is adaptive sports seats that combine larger bolsters with 12-way power controls. These seats can be adjusted to be wider or narrower to better fit the driver and passenger.
Two compartments for luggage
The 2006 Porsche Cayman S features two separate luggage compartments, one under the front hood and the other under the long sloping rear hatch. Combined, they provide 14.13 cubic feet (400 liters) of capacity.
The rear luggage compartment is fully carpeted and offers storage areas on either side of a stainless steel trim strip. The rear section — which is as large as the rear luggage compartment in the Porsche Boxster — is covered by a removable privacy panel when the tailgate is in its closed position.
The tailgate itself is 45.7 inches long (116 cm) and 35.4 inches wide (90 cm) and opens with the help of two-stage, gas-pressure springs. The back edge of the hatch rises more than six feet into the air to provide access to the rear cargo area, which features four tie-downs as well as a standard luggage net. A luggage retention bar between the headrests keeps bags safely in position, even when the driver has to brake for an all-out emergency.
Several choices in audio equipment
The Cayman S comes standard with a Porsche Sound Package including nine speakers: one 2.5-inch (70-mm) mid-range speaker and two .75-inch (19-mm) tweeters in the dash, two 4-inch (100-mm) mid-range speakers and two 8-inch (200-mm) woofers in the doors, and two 4-inch (100-mm)
mid-range speakers in the rear compartment.
The optional Porsche Communication Management (PCM®) system includes available DVD navigation and the ability to play MP3 titles.
A BOSE® Surround Sound System is available as an option. It has 10 speakers and a seven-channel digital amplifier specifically designed for the Cayman S.
Porsche Communications Management available
The optional PCM system offers a further optional enhancement in the form of an electronic logbook that can record up to 1,500 trips taken in the 2006 Porsche Cayman S. It also records mileage, journey length, date and time as well as the starting point and destination address. A programmable HomeLink® system that can open a garage door or turn on the lights in your home is standard.
Additional options are available
Also optional on the 2006 Porsche Cayman S are such features as a roof transport system, rearview mirrors with an automatic auto-dimming function, a Park Assist system that measures the distance to obstacles.
Safe by design
The stiff body shell of the 2006 Porsche Cayman S provides for a high level of passive safety.
Doors are designed and built to optimize safety with an extra steel profile plate. Thus the doors actually stiffen the passenger cell in a head-on collision and dissipate energy around the driver and passenger.
Each 2006 Porsche Cayman is equipped with six airbags including two front and two seat-mounted side-impact airbags. In addition, the Porsche Side Impact Protection (POSIP) system includes head airbags that deploy upward from their housings in the door windowsills. These new airbags provide
a flat cushion that inflates to nearly 500 cubic inches (8 liters) and are designed to help protect the heads of the driver and passenger from broken glass and objects that might enter through the window in the event of an accident.
For 2006, the Cayman S comes equipped with full-size two-stage front airbags featuring an organic-based propellant that not only makes them lighter and more compact, but easier to recycle as well. The passenger seat also features weight sensors that automatically switch off the passenger airbag when child seats are detected.
Both seats also are equipped with three-point inertia-reel seat belts with belt latch tensioner and belt force limiters.
Extensive warranty
Every 2006 Porsche vehicle sold in the United States or Canada is covered by a four year/50,000-mile (80,000 kilometer), bumper-to-bumper limited warranty, which includes Porsche’s roadside assistance program. The galvanized body and 26-step paint and anti-corrosion process enable Porsche to warrant each car against rust perforation for 10 years and unlimited mileage.
In addition, Porsche guarantees the paint finish for three years — also without a mileage limitation.
Information on all Porsche models can be found at www.press.porsche.com in the 2006 Model Year Press Kit section.
Porsche Cars North America, Inc. (PCNA), based in Atlanta, GA, and its subsidiary, Porsche Cars Canada, Ltd., are the exclusive importers of Porsche sports cars and Cayenne® sport utility vehicles for the United States and Canada. A wholly owned, indirect subsidiary of Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, PCNA employs approximately 300 people who provide Porsche vehicles, parts, service, marketing and training for its 210 U.S. and Canadian dealers. They, in turn, provide Porsche owners with best-in-class service.
* Estimated fuel economy figures. Official EPA figures not available at time of publication
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More photos in the 2005 Frankfurt Motor Show Gallery