Planet 9

mkiv808 · #1 03-23-2009, 01:01 PM

I've driven a lot of sports cars, but unfortunately have not had the opportunity to drive any Ferrari's, Lambo's, etc.

I will say that the Lotus Elise/Exige have superior steering to the Cayman. They are more responsive and transmit more feel and feedback.

That said, the Cayman is the 2nd best steering I've experienced and I'm sure with a few suspension, tire and alignment mods, it'll be sublime.

But how does it compare to the Italians?

The 360 Modena is on my "wanted" list down the road, and I'm curious as to how the feel compares.

***DaveN007*** · #2 03-23-2009, 01:52 PM

Originally Posted by mkiv808

I've driven a lot of sports cars, but unfortunately have not had the opportunity to drive any Ferrari's, Lambo's, etc.

I will say that the Lotus Elise/Exige have superior steering to the Cayman. They are more responsive and transmit more feel and feedback.

That said, the Cayman is the 2nd best steering I've experienced and I'm sure with a few suspension, tire and alignment mods, it'll be sublime.

But how does it compare to the Italians?

The 360 Modena is on my "wanted" list down the road, and I'm curious as to how the feel compares.

My friend has a 360 and I was not impressed. The F1 gearbox was dreadful, compared to a GT-R at least I wonder how much the exige/elise feel is due to the light weight?

You can get a Modena for $85k right about now, by the way.

I don't know if you consider a GT-R an exotic, but it feels a bit heavier at low speed, then it comes alive. My Cayman felt like a toy...in a good way...when I went back to it.

mkiv808 · #3 03-23-2009, 02:20 PM

It's more than weight on the Elise/Exige. They have completely manual steering and very little rubber bits between the steering and the tires. Also, R-compound tires. Even the tiny, aluminum steering wheel contributes to feel. A combination of factors makes the steering pretty incredible.

The GT-R does not really interest me.

So you were not impressed by the steering on the Modena?

**Chris S** · #4 03-23-2009, 07:50 PM

How did the GT-R enter this discussion? It's a great car, but the steering feel doesn't compare to the Cayman's IMO. I have the same experience - the Elise has the best steering feel I've experienced, followed by the CS and then probably an Evo 8 MR.

***DaveN007*** · #5 03-23-2009, 11:58 PM

Originally Posted by mkiv808

It's more than weight on the Elise/Exige. They have completely manual steering and very little rubber bits between the steering and the tires. Also, R-compound tires. Even the tiny, aluminum steering wheel contributes to feel. A combination of factors makes the steering pretty incredible.

The GT-R does not really interest me.

So you were not impressed by the steering on the Modena?

The steering didn't seem any better than my Cayman, and the performance was not impressive compared to my brother's GT-R. Other than the sound of the exhaust at WOT, it dulled my desire for a 360.

The question was about Cayman steering versus exotics. I don't know what people think is "exotic" enough. That is why I qualified my reply about the GT-R. I must not understand the "feel" part the same way you guys do. I am just thinking about how connected to the road I felt going through the esses at Fernley at over 100 and then up the hoot-n-holler.

An Elise is 1100 pounds lighter than a Cayman. That IS the main difference as it allows for all of the steering bits to be DIFFERENT.

Try an Ariel Atom.

Jacques38 · #6 04-04-2009, 11:03 PM

I've never driven an exotic but aside from a Lotus Elise I've never tried a car that had steering as good as the Cayman-Boxster.

Problem with the Elise-Exige is that the 987 has 90% of the steering while it's 100% more comfortable.