Posted: Sun Mar 26, 2017 9:28 am Post subject: Is a Cayman R worth the £15k+ premium over a Cayman S?
As the title suggests really!
Love my 987.2 S but also love the idea of an LSD, bucket seats, bit more power, etc - has anyone gone from one to the other or driven both?
Toyed with the idea of selling body parts for a GT3 but realistically it's unachievable and a 981 GTS is out of reach £££.
If you had £40-£45k to spend on a decent porker (toy, not daily) what would you buy?
Thoughts welcome! _________________ Sold 986 Boxster
Sold 986 Boxster S
Sold 996 C4S
Sold 986 Boxster S
Sold 987 Boxster S
987.2 Cayman S / 205 1.9 GTi
Disco Estoril
Joined: 13 May 2008 Posts: 3836 Location: Hertfordshire
The engine differences are minor (and indeed, the R engine is also fitted to the run out Cayman black edition so not unique either plus tuning options for the S motor are out there). The suspension changes (or indeed something better) and LSD can be retrofitted for much, much less than the cost to switch cars and even the £4k per chair to put factory folding buckets in will not make the gap especially close (though you could always just put fixed Recaros in for a quarter of the money).
The only argument left is depreciation. The R isn't really depreciating much at the moment, but on the other hand : the S isn't exactly in free fall either...
If you like the idea of an R, can find one to your desired spec and have funds available then by all means indulge - it is an excellent car and I can't imagine you regretting it. If however the decision has to survive a cost-benefit analysis then I reckon that a few selected upgrades to what you have is going to be better value.
At £45k I'd probably be looking for a 997.2 S personally though. Or a 987.2 S plus upgrades and bank the change. Or a 996.1 with a Hartech rebuild and a full suspension upgrade and bank the change. I like the R a lot, but it isn't that high on my list of where I would put my money simply because the S is too good and the price difference to the R too wide. _________________ Colin
Black 997 GT3 3.8 CS - Acquired for the 2012 season and beyond
Black 996 GT3 Mk2 - Gone, but will never be forgotten
phil84afc Silverstone
Joined: 24 Feb 2010 Posts: 126 Location: Fleet
Posted: Sun Mar 26, 2017 3:53 pm Post subject:
Once again Colin, really helpful response, thank you _________________ Sold 986 Boxster
Sold 986 Boxster S
Sold 996 C4S
Sold 986 Boxster S
Sold 987 Boxster S
987.2 Cayman S / 205 1.9 GTi
El Rapido Newbie
Joined: 07 Apr 2013 Posts: 4
Posted: Fri Mar 31, 2017 9:49 am Post subject:
I would say yes it is worth it as that is not a massive amount of coin extra, and you are definitely getting a better drivers car, but I'm biased as I've owned a Cayman R for a few years now. For me it has been a great weekend toy, easy to drive on all roads, as well as trackday warrior on numerous trips to the Ring and Spa. So far, minimal or no depreciation, so I can see the £15k gap to the S only increasing further with time.
Criticism may be that it's too clinical. I think it could do with a bit more attitude, a bit more character perhaps. But it is very accomplished, it does everything well. Driving feel and enjoyment is right up there. With the carbon buckets and alcantara wheel, interior is a very nice place to be.
Probably has many incremental small improvements over the S, rather than any real standout changes, so on the surface I can see the argument for not bothering to upgrade to an R. But the sum of those improvements go a long way to making it an overall excellent package. Definitely worth a test drive (proper test drive on some open roads) at least to make an informed decision.
For the money yes you could go for some different pork, perhaps down the modified route or old skool, but as a standard package off the shelf and seemingly holding its value well, the CR is a good option.
Boxsey Watkins Glen
Joined: 28 Jan 2007 Posts: 2227 Location: Part of the NorthWest Crew
When deciding what to buy I was in the same boat. My head said that the S was the sensible buy at about £30K. The S black edition a compromise at about £35K. And the R a heart buy at £40K+.
In the end the heart won and over a year on I have no regrets at all. The R is just that little bit more focused and feels more special than a standard Cayman (987 or 981). It's the best value Porsche you can buy at the moment IMO. _________________ Steve
Posted: Fri Apr 21, 2017 1:34 pm Post subject: Re: Is a Cayman R worth the £15k+ premium over a Cayman S?
phil84afc wrote:
As the title suggests really!
Love my 987.2 S but also love the idea of an LSD, bucket seats, bit more power, etc - has anyone gone from one to the other or driven both?
Toyed with the idea of selling body parts for a GT3 but realistically it's unachievable and a 981 GTS is out of reach £££.
If you had £40-£45k to spend on a decent porker (toy, not daily) what would you buy?
Thoughts welcome!
Are you clear that it's a Cayman that you're after?
as that price range puts you into decent 911 (not GT) territory _________________ Get a Porsche Car Insurance Quote
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just sayin...
