Porsche 968

The Porsche 968 simply means the legacy of the Porsche 944 gets to live on. In 1991 the Porsche 944 S2 was discontinue but the Porsche 968 was waiting in the wings to make its debut.

Porsche has been busy working on a replacement model for sometime which originally was going to be called the 944 S3 but with so many new features they thought it was better to actually give it an entire new image.

It hit the market retaining all of the great things of the 944 and added all the great new features. If you thought the Porsche 944 looked great, the Porsche 968 is even more impressive with its sleek new lines while still clearly keeping its 944 image.

It has fully integrated bumpers that are actually an extension of the Porsche Carrera 2, the air intakes have been rearranged, and it comes with pop up headlamps, red lenses neutral dense taillights, with the 968 lettering on the rear deck lid.

The 16 valve DOHC inline 4 cylinder aluminum block has plenty to offer with an amazing 236 HP at 6200 RPM. It has a compression ration of 8.3:1 and 13.1 lbs per horsepower. You can choose from a 6 speed manual transmission or 4 speed tip-tronic.

The independent front has lower control arm, spring struts, and anti roll bar while the independent rear has semi trailing arms, anti roll bar, and transverse torsion bars.

Fuel consumption isn't really great but there are worse. It gets 17 MPG in the city and 25 MPG on the highway. Of course this is the type of car you want to get out on the road and let loose.

You'll get ¼ mile in 14.4 seconds with the 6 speed or 15.1 with the tip-tronic transmission. You get 0-60 MPG in 5.9 seconds with the 6 speed or 7 seconds with the tip-tronic.

The Porsche 968 coupe has the best balance of any of the Porsche bodies and it has more power than the 944 with the 240 HP off the 3.0 liter engine. The increased HP is partially a result of the Vario-cam which is a camshaft chain drive that has an adjustable tensioner.

The Porsche 968 was produced from 1992 to 1995 and it truly is a classic sports car in both the 2 door coupe and 2 door convertible versions. It was sold in Germany right up until 1995 and when production and sales ceased it really was the end of a Porsche era.

The Porsche 968 engine was the second largest 4 cylinder engine that was ever put into a production car and it had the second highest output of power passed only by the Acura.

The Porsche 968 borrowed the Brembo 4 piston brake caliper system and you'll find it on all four wheels. You'll also find a Macpherson strut front end, steel uni-body structure, and aluminum front A arms.

Now here's something else to think about. How often do you get to put this kind of power on the street and stay legal? Well here's your chance. The Porsche 968 CS is street legal but it truly belongs on the track. It's been stripped out to lighten it up and it's got plenty of power to impressive them all.

Porsche is a company that's smart! They keep the great components, have no trouble with innovative changes, and they have a way of putting it all together to provide a performance car that's high in demand.




By : Wayne Treister
Wayne Treister has been owned and ridden Porsches for 15 years. Visit his Porsche site at http://www.porschesworld.com to learn more about the different models.

Porsche Cayman S

If you are new to the world of Porsche and haven't been keeping up with the Porsche changes the Porsche Cayman S is basically a Boxter with a hatchback and a steel coupe roof.

But wait there's a little more to it. The Porsche Cayman has a stiffer set of springs for the strut suspension, thicker anti-roll bars, and it comes standard with 18 inch wheels.

The Porsche Cayman uses the familiar 3.4 liter engine seen in the Porsche M96, Porsche Boxter, and Porsche 911. Of course it's been tweaked and now it delivers a whopping 295 HP and 255 pound foot of torque. The old Porsche Boxter version had only 280 HP and 236 lb-ft to offer.

From 0 to 60 is capable in 5.1 seconds you'll find your top speed at 171 MPH. That's all the speed you'll ever need. The PSM or Porsche Stability Management System is standard equipment on the Caymen. And the Sport Chrono package with built in lap time counter will be optional.

Another option is ceramic brakes. If you aren't familiar with ceramic brakes you should be. These brakes are half the weight of stand cast iron brakes. You get exceptional braking power, less heat fade, and low brake dust. They Porsche Cayman brakes are identical to the Boxter's with just a little more air cooling and ABS tweaking.

A look at the exterior and you will instantly know that the body is built off the Boxter platform. In fact many of the body panels are interchangeable. The rear windows are the same shape as the 911 if you were to turn them on end.

The Porsche Cayman has a rapidly sloping hatch that drops quickly and deeply and it is accented with a scripted Cayman S on the rear wing which deploys at speeds over 75 MPH.

The hatch is a nice light weight which rises with no effort presenting you with a nice size trunk that is a decent depth. It's very similar to the Boxter trunk.


And there was some smart design thinking here. An aluminum scuff plate covers the area from trunk up to the cargo shelf. There are also two narrow storage bins and there is plenty of useable floor space.

If you are familiar with the Porsche Boxter when you park yourself in the driver's seat you'll instantly feel like your back in the Porsche Boxter except that the instrument faces are gray and the cargo shelf is behind your head. So are you ready to take it for a cruise?

First thing you'll notice is that the Porsche Cayman fits both driver and passenger snuggly. You'll notice the night tight suspension and how the car hugs the road never missing a beat. It's impressively intuitive as long as you don't mess up.

The steering puts you in complete control with the blacktop and its responsible and sensitive to your every mood. Drive it neatly and it will never let you down. Know your car and how to drive and it will be hard to be outperformed.

First impressions are that the Cayman is as snug-fitting for the driver as it was for the passenger and that the mid-mounted engine makes life hard for the air-conditioning; the cabin serves up rump roast over frozen heart as a summer dish.

The chassis has been seriously beefed up and is more of a partner than ever before. Combine that with the Michelin tires that have amazing gripping you are going to have a ride like nothing you've experienced before.

The new Porsche Cayman is everything the Porsche 911 has always been and more. It's not only a great ride on the street it's also a great track ride. It sounds great, looks great, and performs great. But then after all it's a Porsche and would you accept anything less? If there were awards for best car this one would certainly be in the running.

If you haven't checked out the Porsche Cayman be sure you do!




By : Wayne Treister

Wayne Treister has been owned and ridden Porsches for 15 years. Visit his Porsche site at http://www.porschesworld.com to learn more about the different models.