Bartek Sikorski

Porsche Cayman 9ff CR-42 - Freakin' Fast
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9ff CR-42 Layout
Longitudinal mid-engine, rear-wheel - ONLY REGISTERED AND ACTIVATED USERS CAN SEE ALL LINKS - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER
Engine
4.1-liter flat six, forged internals, carbon-fiber intake with ram-air functionality, - ONLY REGISTERED AND ACTIVATED USERS CAN SEE ALL LINKS - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER, reprogrammed ECU
Transmission
Six-speed manual, Cayman S short-shifter, Zaks clutch, limited-slip differential, lightweight flywheel
Suspension
Two-way adjustable shocks, metal rose joints
Brakes
Four-piston front calipers, 13.8-in.carbon-ceramic rotors, Stahlflex lines
Wheels
9ff centerlock, 8.5x19 (f), 10x19 (r)Michelin Cup 235/35 (f), 265/30 (r)
Exterior
9ff - ONLY REGISTERED AND ACTIVATED USERS CAN SEE ALL LINKS - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER, rear diffuser

Mighty mutant Cayman
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The day Alfred Nobel combined the relatively innocuous components of nitrates and glycerol was a wondrous day for us all. On their own, they were fertilizer and fat,respectively; together, they could split the world in two.
Porsche's 911 Carrera and Cayman could represent those two elements: a fat man's sports - ONLY REGISTERED AND ACTIVATED USERS CAN SEE ALL LINKS - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER and mid-range fertilizer for Porsche's sales figures. But German tuning firm 9ff has blended them together in its Dortmund lab to produce the CR-42, a 911-engined Cayman so volatile it could convince George W. Bush to invade Germany.
It's common knowledge the mid-engine Cayman could have toppled the 911 had - ONLY REGISTERED AND ACTIVATED USERS CAN SEE ALL LINKS - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER wanted to consign its greatest car to the trash. All it required were a few extra ponies and a limited-slip differential for this lithe sports car to leave the icon breathing its dust. Porsche couldn't let that happen and deliberately filed down the crocodile's teeth.
Jan Fatthauer doesn't work for Porsche. He owns 9ff, the tuning firm that produced the world's fastest production car (for a while, at least), which recently turned attention to the Cayman. He fitted that LSD, and then couldn't stop himself.
"The Cayman is a much purer - ONLY REGISTERED AND ACTIVATED USERS CAN SEE ALL LINKS - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER than the 911," he says. "The basic configuration is near perfect, if you can do without four seats. And we saw so much potential. Porsche has other considerations, but we just wanted to make a great car. And the Cayman is the best starting point in the line-up."
He went for a full engine transplant, grabbing the nearest 3.8-liter from a new Carrera S and boring the cylinders out from 99mm to 102mm. That encroached into the soft aluminum of the casing and required further reinforcement with Nikasil to stop the block melting after the first dose of throttle.
Fatthauer reveals the new engine is no match for the 996's unburstable 3.6-liter; it even comes with a Chinese stamp on the casting. So the Nikasil is just as important as the forged pistons, engorged intake manifold, an air filter to better feed the monster and a stainless steel sport exhaust featuring 9ff's trademark woven-steel exit pipes.
New software for the ECU and a lightweight flywheel complete the engine upgrades and this little Cayman now has real bite--420 bhp and 320 lb-ft of torque in a3000-pound package.
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The CR-42 hits 60 mph in a claimed 4.4 seconds, thanks in part to the LSD with its 40/60 percent locking mechanism and the outrageous dose of extra power. It can bang with the `grown-up' Porsches until the very furthest reaches of the performance envelope, before kicking in their teeth through the corners. With the flamboyant approach 9ff has to exhaust tones, you'd think the flat-six had been mounted inside the cabin.
Banging through the gears (with a short-shifter pillaged from the Cayman S) is altogether sharper, courtesy of a bespoke Zaks clutch with a 30 percent stronger pressure plate. There's no rubber in the gate, just metal rods and ball joints, plus shift cables from the mighty GT3 RSR.
The top end is just 195 mph, agonizingly close to the milestone 200-mph mark that would elevate this car to iconic status and leave even the 997 Turbo behind in every single way. But modifying the cogs in the Getrag gearbox is apparently out of the question.
Porsche's Cayman was never about straight-line speed anyway; it's the precise and fluid handling that excites everyone. Yet placed next to the CR-42, the standard car would feel like it was suspended on Jell-o.
The Sport Hockenheim suspension system has full metal rose joints, rather than rubber bushings that could contribute a vague feeling to the donor - ONLY REGISTERED AND ACTIVATED USERS CAN SEE ALL LINKS - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER steering. And it's all adjustable. Center-lock wheels show how far 9ff has gone to reduce the unsprung weight--these things are a nightmare to get past the TV approval process and cost a fortune. Fatthauer is understandably proud of the achievement and is selling them like the proverbial hot cakes.
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Aside from its racing technology, 9ff invests more time than most ensuring those stunning white - ONLY REGISTERED AND ACTIVATED USERS CAN SEE ALL LINKS - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER are aligned, as Fatthauer claims far too many people worry about race suspensions and then forget the basics. This attention to detail shines through everywhere at 9ff. When we arrived at the workshop, one employee polished our footsteps from the mirror-finish floor. I have seen this only once before--in McLaren's pit garage at a Grand Prix, back in the days when they were winning.
So the handling shouldn't come as a shock. The CR-42 contents itself with grip, grip, and more grip--all controlled with the fingertips as it hangs on at ludicrous speeds. And should you overstep the mark, the LSD will catch the car--which is a big, big deal.
Mid-engine cars have a much earlier and less forgiving point of no return when it comes to lateral slip, unlike the more adjustable 911. Take the stock Cayman past 30 degrees and it could bury you. The LSD fitted here means you can chuck the car in with confidence. It also makes - ONLY REGISTERED AND ACTIVATED USERS CAN SEE ALL LINKS - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER refusal to fit this kit seem doubly cynical. The diff takes a razor-sharp precision instrument and makes it fun; anybody who owns the baby Porsche should get one.
Thought that one area you surely couldn't improve on is Porsche's PCCB ceramic brakes? Think again; 9ff has beefed up the front buffers. Stepping on the middle pedal with any conviction now feels like a head-on collision, as the seatbelt cuts deep and eyes lunge for the windshield. Fatthauer actually prefers the steel units for fast road use--even he thinks the ceramic items might be a touch extreme.
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The best part about this car is that it's a total sleeper. Only those with the inside knowlege will realize that this Cayman demands absolute respect and deference."This was always our philosophy," Fatthauer explains. "We wanted to build subtle-looking road cars with racecar performance. The Cayman is a perfect example. The basic aerodynamic work was good, so we don't need to put wings all over it."
A four-piece front spoiler and rear diffuser help suck the car to the deck deep in triple figures while saving weight. That and the wheels are the only subtle visual distinctions from the standard car. Plus the fact that this one has just made off into the middle distance.
Obviously, the monstrous mods come at a price. The full works car costs over $170,000--more than the 997 GT3 it recently went head-to-head with in an unofficial test. But bear this in mind: the GT3 didn't just lose, it was blown off the track. How hard is that to imagine?
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