2013 Car and Driver Lightning Lap

Red__Zed

If you've ever driven the cars in question, it's quite obvious that the Mustang and 370Z are much closer than the 370Z and the Cayman S--which should come as no surprise to anyone who understands physics.

The Mustang and the Z share handling dynamics far more closely than most here would like to admit. If anything, the Z brings with it more of the slow-me-down push than the Mustang does.

There's a lot of give-and-take between the Mustang & Z in terms of handling (SRA issus vs toe-steer, weight vs balance) that makes the evaluation somewhat subjective. If you prefer a car that rotates easily, the Mustang will likely be your preference, as long as you don't mind a little extra weight. On the other hand, if you'd like something smaller and lower-slung, the Z is a no-brainer, as long as you don't mind pushing a bit more in the turns (or running 305s up front).

As compared to the Cayman S, there's really no give and take--the only thing the Z has on the Cayman is straight-line power(and cost!). The brilliant and precise chassis in the Z pales in comparison to that of the Cayman. The engine placement and balance puts the Z (and frankly, most other cars) to shame.

The gap between the Z and S is far bigger than the Z and Stang...as you might expect given the price. The M3, 370Z, and Mustang all share a pretty similar handling mentality (lot of power and a lot of weight on the front axle).