The Reign of Sports Coups: A Tale of Handling Supremacy

In the realm of sports coupes, one name has long reigned supreme: Porsche. The Cayman, with its 2.9-liter model, has been a benchmark for handling and performance. With a price tag of £38,000 and a naught-to-62 time of 5.8 seconds, it's no wonder this car has captured the hearts of driving enthusiasts. However, as we all know, there's always a new challenger on the horizon, and in this case, that challenge comes from none other than Lotus.

Lotus is renowned for building cars with incredible balance, and their latest model, the Evora, has exactly the same power-to-weight ratio as the Porsche Cayman. But what sets the Evora apart is its ability to deliver outright pace without sacrificing handling. With a starting price of £50,000, it's clear that Lotus is targeting the high-end market with this new model. The question on everyone's mind is: which is the best handling car?

As we get behind the wheel of a Porsche, something familiar and enjoyable happens – our smile widens as we experience that lovely throaty flat-six engine sound. But even as we push this car faster, we start to notice something peculiar. Adding power just brings us terminal understeer. The 750-pound kick differential might be the culprit, upsetting this particular car on a no-surface track. We know it won't be easy to set a fast lap, so we're in for a treat.

We're off with our first gear, and as we take the hairpin turn, we notice that this is not the Porsche we've grown to love and enjoy. The weight distribution seems off, and power feels distant, making us question whether it's truly designed for driving enthusiasts. We ease into fourth gear at 18 miles an hour and cross the finish line in one minute and 25.8 seconds – a respectable time, but not quite up there with the Lotus.

Now that we're feeling confident behind the wheel of our Lotus Evora, we can appreciate its handling prowess. The cable-operated gearbox might be a bit quirky, but it doesn't detract from the overall driving experience. The front still grips, and the rear still slips – that perfect balance we've come to associate with great handling. And yet, despite having more weight over the rear, which should make it even more susceptible to understeer, the Evora manages to look beautifully neutral on the way in and exhibits a smidgen of oversteer on the way out – just as it should.

We can already imagine ourselves enjoying this car's handling to the fullest. We take the first checkpoint at 120 miles per hour, where the Lotus is indeed a fraction of a second faster than its Porsche counterpart. Down the straightaway, we're only slightly off pace, and our lead continues to grow with each subsequent checkpoint.

Finally, as we approach the finish line, it's clear that the Evora has taken the top spot – not just in terms of raw speed but also in handling. With a 9.1-second lead over its closest competitor, this Porsche Cayman might be cheaper, but for outright pace and handling supremacy, there's a new king on the market, and its badge is proudly emblazoned with the Lotus logo.

As we stand at the start line, ready to hit it again, we can't help but wonder what other surprises await us in this battle of wits between these two sports coupes. Will the Porsche regain its edge, or will the Evora continue to prove why it's the new benchmark for handling? Only time will tell, but one thing is certain – with both cars on the track, we're in for a treat that'll leave us grinning from ear to ear.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enin terms of pure handling one sports coupe has reigned supreme over recent years the porsche cayman this 2.9 liter model costs 38 000 pounds and with a naught to 62 time of 5.8 seconds it's got a decent turn of speed but lotus are also renowned for building cars with incredible balance and their latest model the avora has exactly the same power to weight ratio as the km it's over half a second quicker to 62 but it 000 costs more all i want to know though is which is the best handling car first up the porsche getting behind the wheel of a porsche puts a smile on your face that lovely throaty flat six two point nine strange in the back encouraging me hold but i have started to notice as i push this car a bit faster adding the power just brings me terminal understeer this car does have a 750 pound kick differential and maybe it's that that's upsetting this particular car on this no surface just driven off the road ah this is not gonna be easy time to try and set a fast lap start the clock my first gear for this hairpin oh that's so good snatcher fourth gear 18 miles an hour this is not the sort of porsche i've grown to love and enjoy lift right weights of our weight far away away from the power wait wait wait power the finish line and the porsche crosses the line in one minutes 25.8 seconds time for the lotus straight away i'm feeling i've got some handling to enjoy not quite so sure i enjoy lotus's cable-operated gearbox but the handling the front still grips the back still slips and the smile still smiles the legend has actually got more weight over the rear so the front should be even more susceptible to understeer and yet it doesn't look beautifully neutral on the way in with a smidgen of oversteer on the way out just as it should be okay tiff too much too much too much too much calm down now we've got to the lap time i think already i'm going to enjoy this oh a little bit too much but that's just a lovely dream faster onto the straight the lotus is 0.2 of a second up at the first checkpoint 120 nearly reading faster than the porsche maybe a bit too much again tip but we got away with it and quicker down the street it's 0.9 of a second up at the second checkpoint i tell you what this is a beautiful handling car and the avora maintains its 9 10th lead to the finish the cayman might be cheaper but for outright poison pace there's a new king of sports coupes and it's got a lotus badge as the start line approach we both got ready to hit it okayin terms of pure handling one sports coupe has reigned supreme over recent years the porsche cayman this 2.9 liter model costs 38 000 pounds and with a naught to 62 time of 5.8 seconds it's got a decent turn of speed but lotus are also renowned for building cars with incredible balance and their latest model the avora has exactly the same power to weight ratio as the km it's over half a second quicker to 62 but it 000 costs more all i want to know though is which is the best handling car first up the porsche getting behind the wheel of a porsche puts a smile on your face that lovely throaty flat six two point nine strange in the back encouraging me hold but i have started to notice as i push this car a bit faster adding the power just brings me terminal understeer this car does have a 750 pound kick differential and maybe it's that that's upsetting this particular car on this no surface just driven off the road ah this is not gonna be easy time to try and set a fast lap start the clock my first gear for this hairpin oh that's so good snatcher fourth gear 18 miles an hour this is not the sort of porsche i've grown to love and enjoy lift right weights of our weight far away away from the power wait wait wait power the finish line and the porsche crosses the line in one minutes 25.8 seconds time for the lotus straight away i'm feeling i've got some handling to enjoy not quite so sure i enjoy lotus's cable-operated gearbox but the handling the front still grips the back still slips and the smile still smiles the legend has actually got more weight over the rear so the front should be even more susceptible to understeer and yet it doesn't look beautifully neutral on the way in with a smidgen of oversteer on the way out just as it should be okay tiff too much too much too much too much calm down now we've got to the lap time i think already i'm going to enjoy this oh a little bit too much but that's just a lovely dream faster onto the straight the lotus is 0.2 of a second up at the first checkpoint 120 nearly reading faster than the porsche maybe a bit too much again tip but we got away with it and quicker down the street it's 0.9 of a second up at the second checkpoint i tell you what this is a beautiful handling car and the avora maintains its 9 10th lead to the finish the cayman might be cheaper but for outright poison pace there's a new king of sports coupes and it's got a lotus badge as the start line approach we both got ready to hit it okay\n"