In the asymmetric Diels-Alder reaction of acrylates with cyclopentadiene catalyzed by a series of chiral titanium complexes derived from 2,2'-biaryldiols 1-3, ee's of the endo-adducts depend on the torsional angles of the ligands and are maximal when 1,1'-bi-2-naphthol 1 or 6,6'-hexylenedioxy-2,2'-biphenyldiol 2 e is used. Copyright (C) 1996 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd