Aston Martin V8 Vantage vs Porsche Cayman

Sales figures for November saw Aston sell 39 cars, against 142 in November 2007. Why? Well, the Vantage’s fuel economy of 16mpg, a CO2 output giving a £400-a-year tax bill for cars registered after March 2006, and a halving of its value in two years tell you all you need to know.

The credit crunch alternative is the base Porsche Cayman. It means a couple less cylinders and a power reduction of more than 100bhp, but also 30mpg and half the road tax. So you lose that V8 yowl, although you gain something worth just as much: sublime handling. The latest Cayman S came second in our Performance Car of the Year, and you can expect great reliability and build quality, while Vantage owners have endured a litany of problems from electrical glitches to leaky bootlids.