I WOULD have thought that Porsche lost sales of its famous 911 when the slightly smaller Cayman came out.

The 911 is the icon and the one to be seen in, but if you want your Porsche to drive, save some cash and drive its brilliant little brother.

I have been lucky enough to drive three or four of them and each one was like the first day of the holidays.

What a car to drive. From the perfectly weighted and delightfully tactile steering, to the great sounding, free revving mid-mounted engine this is one of the best driver's cars on the planet.

The road holding is sublime, the balance is immaculate, the brakes are perfect and even the ride is much better than any such car has a right to.

It reels in the horizon faster than just about anything and yet will trickle through town in high gear without dramatics. And high mileage is not a problem if it has Porsche service history.

Unlike some 911s, there is a great view all round from the driver's seat, which has enough adjustment for all sizes to be comfortable.

It is only a two seater but there's decent storage in the cabin and two boots - one in front and one above the engine. Go for the 2.7 model - the S is quicker but you'd never notice the difference.

: Pay about £17,300 for an '07 07-reg from an independent dealer, or £23,000 for an '09 09-reg from a main dealer

: 245bhp, 2,687cc, 6cyl petrol engine driving rear wheels via 6-speed manual gearbox

: 160mph

: 6 seconds

: 30

: 42

: 222g/km

: Audi TT