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First look for a Cayman S, newbie help needed

996turboseeker

Well-known member
Joined
21 Apr 2014
Messages
48
Have had to shelve 911 turbo plans due to lack of funds and couldn't believe the price of Cayman S's on auto trader. So what to look out for? Whereas I got really well researched on 996s and 997s for a while I've never looked at the Cayman S as a serious purchase but I love the look of them. So assuming up to 2010 (manual) models simply based on budget, what do folks suggest as starting points in terms of gen 1 vs 2, engine size and non negotiable extras etc e.g. sports chrono etc? Whereas the 911 turbos I was looking at were always fully loaded with extras the Caymans seriously vary. I'm interested in something fun to chuck around of a weekend that isn't going to cost me a fortune to keep going and hopefully is somewhere near the bottom of its depreciation curve. Any help very welcome, thank you! Neil
 
3.4 gen 1 can have engine issues, 2.7 safer option or buy 2009 on gen 2 3.4 with dfi engine[/i]
 
Hi,
You are right in the whole option minefield of options upon options....
I don't have an issue with Gen1, life's a bit of a gamble :dont know:
I have just brought a S Sport Edition (Amber Alert! On this forum).
These were pretty much fully loaded from the factory, with lots of nice options which make it a great weekend toy. I got out of my 996C4 and have to say that the Cayman feels like a great fit.
Have a look a Marty Wild's thread on here as well. He has written a really great and detailed running report. I found it very useful.
I know it's not a 911, but not wanting to sound too controversial, it's a lot more fun 8)
 
Wow, thanks a lot, Chief. Praise indeed!

I found out the majority of my info from here, did trawl through a few hours of threads on PH. Mostly people slagging each other off under the veil of discussing the engine issues.

Google Baz at Hartech (the gods of Porsche rebuilds) if you want to really envelope yourself in engine fear and paranoia. That's not in anyway a slant on Baz, the man seriously knows his onions. He's replied personally to questions I have made and has more experience than pretty much anyone.

It's just that it's up to you how much you want to worry yourself about engine issues on the homework front.

As for the cars, they are bl00dy awesome. I've driven some tasty 911s in my time. Get a lot of love from people, especially at petrol stations. Incredible how fast these things corner straight out of the box.

Having lived with the car for a while now, got to say that PASM, PSE and Sports Chrono are a must. But I guess I've been spoilt on my precious.
 
There is no denying the cayman is a very nice well balanced car , and many would say the mid engine makes for a better drive than the 911 this is of course open to debate lol well on here debate, on PH a good bitch fight . I think if you have no need for rear seats, enjoy driving and are not hung up on having a 911 then they are a great choice.
As with all these cars the best are always going to be at the top of your budget. and the budget is the only thing we can stretch in these cars if your over 6ft :floor:
Good luck keep us posted on progress .

PS there is a rumour in the Porsche world that Porsche may bring out a mid engined 911 in the future, now that is praise for the mid engine if they do.
I am not sure what direction Porsche are taking for the future as the new 911 is more a big GT than a sports car the cayman is fitting into that hole at present with the new cars but its restricted with 2 seats so will we see a 4 seat cayman as the next 911 and the current 991 will become a 2 dr panamera GT car :dont know: :dont know: :?:
 
Really the only Cayman that is a worry re engine reliability is the .1 3.4. I own one but I would personally recommend that they are avoided. There are so many other options.

Either take a 2.7 or spend a bit more on a gen 2.

Options wise, I would insist on extended leather to doors and dash as the standard plastic doors and dash make the whole car feel cheap. Other than that, I would favour Xenons as they actually make a difference in driving but I wouldn't be a stickler for any other option (other than a manual box). The rest is just trinkets of relatively little importance.
 
There's a very niccely specked gen 2 at Dove house. Aqua blue with LSD, PSE low miles. I'd be having a look at that if I were after a Cayman. Nice gen 2 S cars that are manual do t seem to come up too often.
 
Pothole is not wrong about extended leather, when I got to looking I soon realised that was a must. Plastic fantastic is not right in a 50k motor.

P.s. mine didn't have Litronics (HID) I was scared the first time I drove it at night. Whacked some after market jobbies in for 80 squid and they are very very good indeed.
 

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