Kate, last time we spoke you were in a 911, now you drive a 718 Cayman. Why do you love the 718 so much?
I love the 718 Cayman so much because I feel that it’s the right sports car for me. I absolutely adore the 911. I live in the inner city with tight streets and small car parks. You need something that is really nimble, sleek and slim-lined that can deal with both the beautiful open roads of the Yarra Valley and also the tight streets I find myself on 90 percent of the time.
Comparing them both in regards to drivability and design the 911, while being incredibly beautifully engineered and one of the best cars on the planet, it’s actually a lot bigger than the Cayman, I feel. When I first jumped in the Cayman I thought “Ah this is the Porsche for me!”.
What are your hidden gems around town?
Some of my hidden gems around town are based in Fitzroy, Melbourne, Australia. I live a lot of my life between Fitzroy and the Melbourne CBD (Central Business District), this is based on where the two locations of Lune are. Some of my favourite places are Morning Market, Marion, Tribal Rose and Somebuddy Loves you.
First thing in the morning, Morning Market is Andrew McConnell’s new venture up on Gertrude Street next to Marion and Cuttler and Co. It feels like a real progression on what people have needed over the last months in their lives, which is a grocery store that provides beautiful daily goods that are locally grown, organic and seasonal. It’s an extension of Marion.
Marion for me is a gem, it has always provided a really beautiful polished yet casual wine bar that, like the 718, does everything to the highest standard but still makes you feel comfortable and you can have fun there.
I also like to drive to Tribal Rose on Smith Street, which I think is the most beautiful florist in Melbourne. The staff that work there are always happy to help me out, because I’m not known to have a green thumb. So I end up having beautiful flowers in my apartment every week because of them.
In terms of non-produce I absolutely love Somebuddy loves you. I probably buy the majority of my clothing there. Lyndsey Spark, the owner, has incredible style and her son loves baking and Lune, so every time I go in there we have a chat about baking and also beautiful clothes.
What’s life like with the 718?
Bloody great (laughs). I feel since I started driving the 718 I really feel like I found my car. Life in the 718 is pretty excellent, I feel like I found the perfect car for me. It feels like the Cayman and Kate Reid are at exactly the same point in their lives: young, single, having a great time, working really hard, trying to be the best they can possibly be and putting a smile on people’s faces. It’s a lot of fun, but it’s also a serious car. It means business. But it still makes people feel really good and that’s what I aim to do when I get up every day and that’s what the Cayman makes me feel. It feels like the perfect car for me.
How do you feel when you drive your 718 Cayman?
Like a bit of a bad ass to be honest (laughs). When I’m driving my 718 Cayman I actually feel like I’m in the perfect car for me. I feel like it’s sleek and slim lined, it’s responsive, it’s noisy when it wants to be, but subtle when it wants to be as well. It’s compact and it makes the most of all of the little storage compartments.
I love the fact that the engine is mid mounted, because I feel like it’s in the car with me. I don’t need a car that can take kids to and from soccer practice, it’s just Lily and me cruising around and I like the fact that it feels like the engine is in the backseat of the car and I can really enjoy the notes that it hits. Every time I put it in Sport mode it puts a big smile on my face.
What are your favourite 718 features?
My absolute favourite feature is that the engine is mid mounted. I love the fact that there is no back seat, because I don’t need one and I prefer to hear that beautiful engine note in the car with me. I think in terms of performance, apart from the fact that the engine does have a beautiful note, it’s incredibly responsive and I drive mostly in Sport mode, because I really like to feel the difference in power.
It’s not the most usable feature in narrow streets of Fitzroy with speed bumps, but every time I head out to the Yarra Valley to do my flying lessons I really feel like releasing the leash on the car and it really gets to stretch its legs. It feels natural for it to want to zoom out to a windy road to take me to a flying lesson.
For me the 718 is a surprising car. You don’t expect the amount of storage, you don’t expect to hear such a throaty note from the engine from such a beautiful car. Its bark is as big as its bite.
The responsiveness of the car, the sportiness of it and the noise of the note of the engine, but then there are also a whole lot of practical things that I really love like, when I first started driving the 718 the weather was getting colder and I just love the heated steering wheel. It’s one of those features that makes the car more comfortable and nicer to be in when I have to jump in the car early in the morning. I love the auto function on syncing the air-conditioner. It’s nice to be able to control the drivers and passengers sides separately or use the auto sync. I also love the storage capacity of it. The fact that you have the storage in the bonnet, which is huge. And I can say from experience you can fit many boxes of croissants in it, because I have delivered orders in my Cayman from time to time. But also the bonus of the boot storage, which is also my main source of storage, I keep a picnic blanket in there, I store my yoga mat, if I go to the beach I put a beach bag in back, so the storage is excellent.
What’s your favourite design feature on the 718 Cayman?
My favourite design feature of the 718, that’s easy, I love the rear wing curve that runs over the wheel arch. I think it’s really unique and beautiful to the 718, especially when you are cutting around town for me it’s that particular curve that really delineates it from the 911. If I see that line I know I’m looking at a 718 and it makes me smile.
Why is technology and innovation such an important feature in your 718?
One of the features that I really love about the Cayman is Apple Carplay. I use that a lot to stay in touch with people while I’m driving. I don’t have a lot of free time to do things like respond to calls and text messages, so I find my time in the car is a great opportunity to catch up with people. I also like to listen to a bit of music in the car, but equally, I don’t mind turning off the stereo from time to time and just listen to the notes of the engine.
Do you have a favourite road?
One of my favourite roads to take the 718 on is a little backroad that is a sneaky little way to get to Lilydale Airport. One of the pilots told me about it. Every time I was just taking the highway, but since finding out about this road it has exponentially increased the enjoyment of getting to my flying lessons.
What is something we could always expect to see in the glove box of your 718?
You will always find my sunglasses, you never know, Melbourne weather can change quickly. It’s also a fashion factor. Another thing you will always find in my Cayman, perhaps not in the glove box and this is opposed to the beautiful speed and precision, is a yoga mat. Just to keep fit and healthy I do yoga at least twice a week and so I keep a mat in the boot in case I want to drop in and do a class, it always means that I can.
In 2021 Porsche has been in Australia for 70 years. Knowing and growing up with the brand, what do you look forward to seeing in the next 70 years?
I think in the next 70 years I expect to see continued progression of the engineering and the brand. Listening to what people want and need from their car and really understanding their customers. I think one of Porsches’ strength is truly understanding owners. One of the things that I really love about Porsche is understanding their female customers. I have experienced that first hand. I think if more women start looking at driving Porsches I know Porsche will listen to them in what they want out of performance, responsiveness, storage, parkability, connectivity. I think Porsche will continue to develop their cars in the direction that their customers want while still having a really strong focus on perfection, engineering, drivability and performance.
I really think that the Cayman is an incredible car for a woman who wants a car with performance. It’s strong and has performance, it’s a really sexy car. But it has feminine aspects to it too.
Sum up the 718 Cayman.
For me the 718 is a surprising car. You don’t expect the amount of storage, you don’t expect to hear such a throaty note from the engine from such a beautiful car. Its bark is as big as its bite.
