Posted at 5:45 p.m.
Porsche 718 Cayman
Price: from $70,700
This Porsche offers a finer touch of the road, more biting (and enduring) braking and proves to be just as skilful on the road as on a circuit. But the 718 Cayman is expensive and the bill gets heavier if you give in to the temptation to personalize it ever so slightly. Worse still, in terms of pure performance, the 718 Cayman has, at this price, only a four-cylinder engine with a scratchy voice and modest performance. The Porsche will be preferred to the Z for its consistency and balance on twisty roads. On a straight line, it risks sniffing the exhausts of the Z. Therefore, the 4.0 version of the German ($98,800) seems unavoidable.
Toyota GR Supra 3.0
Price: from $68,460
PHOTO PROVIDED BY TOYOTA
Toyota GR Supra 3.0
The Supra, the most German of the Japanese (it closely derives from BMW’s Z4), has a head start on the Z on a circuit where it appears more efficient and playful. On the road, the difference is more subtle and encourages us to prefer the Z because of its more considerate suspensions (for a sports car) and its greater stability. To this, it should be added that the Z offers more active safety features and is offered at more attractive prices. A four-cylinder Supra then? Sorry, she’s not the weight.