Time for a slow 981 search

[John V]

I think everyone is a fan of it. My hope is there will be some for sale in a few years with reasonable miles on them so I can actually afford one

[FC]

Originally Posted by John V

I think everyone is a fan of it. My hope is there will be some for sale in a few years with reasonable miles on them so I can actually afford one

Exactly.

[Jeff_DML]

Originally Posted by John V

I think everyone is a fan of it. My hope is there will be some for sale in a few years with reasonable miles on them so I can actually afford one

the video was saying if you buy a new one don't expect to lose much value so buy and hold

[John V]

Too much money for me.

[JST]

Originally Posted by JST

Drove the white one at CarMax. Extra power and torque is noticeable, though not earth shaking.

Sport seats are incredible, I love them so much. So annoyed more people didn’t order these.

Clutch seemed heavier for whatever reason.

19” wheels are just not as good as 18s on this car.

The car had a few flaws despite the low mileage. Only one key, the interior mirror is going black and will need to be replaced, and there was some sort of “dynamic cornering lamp” fault showing on the service indicator.

Plastic stone guards in front of the rear wheels is yellowed and v obvious on a white car.

Tires are date coded 2015, so those will need to be replaced before too long.

Top was in nice shape. Some minor bubbling in the instrument binnacle, I assume from the sun.

It’s a nice car with some minor needs, and the 9A1 engine is nice. But it’s hard not to come away thinking my car is nicer overall, even with double the miles.

Hm, more temptation (or the same temptation). Meteor grey 2011, no sport seats but otherwise nicely spec'd, with what are in my opinion the nicest wheels.

https://www.carmax.com/car/19976100

Prod Month: 2011-02-01
VIN: WP0CB2A81BS730241
Price: $67,750.00
Exterior: Meteor Grey Metallic
Interior: Black Standard Leather
Warranty Start: May 30, 2011

BASE Boxster S
342 Multi-stage Heating System
419 19" Carrera S II Wheel
446 Set of Wheel Centers with Full-color Porsche Crest
480 Manual transmission
551 Wind Deflector Mounted on Roll-over Bar
619 Bluetooth Interface for Mobile Phone
810 Floor Mats in Interior Color
844 Three-Spoke Multi-Function Steering Wheel
9Q Meteor Grey Metallic
AN Black Standard Leather
P15 Electrically adjustable seats
P4W Infotainment Package with BOSE®

[equ]

That's a really nice spec; very similar to the '11 Cayman S that I had (red). Power seats, same, nice, light 19" wheels, no PASM...

The 18's do ride better in the 987 platform as do the 19's on the 981 platform. Sidewalls help.

The 987.2 have their advantages, but if you're going through the trouble to replace, wouldn't you want a 981? Also what are they asking for this car?

[JST]

35. Honestly, I prefer the 987 to the 981; the only reason I’d want a 981 is because they’re newer and have more time left on the clock. Plus a 981 would be another 10k, easily.

[equ]

Originally Posted by JST

35. Honestly, I prefer the 987 to the 981; the only reason I’d want a 981 is because they’re newer and have more time left on the clock. Plus a 981 would be another 10k, easily.

All true. As I keep repeating, the 987 has better steering feel, better gearing, simpler interior and to my mind a superior handbrake.

Another very slight advantage is that the 987 platform has some attractive 18" wheels. The 981 platform 19's are all ugly, pushing buyers to the prettier 20's with /35 sidewalls (though this particular 987 suffers from that as well).

The 981 has fancier, perhaps comfier interior, but the tech doesn't do much on a porsche, for me. 987.2 already has some niceties in those with Nav.

The 981 does have a slightly grippier chassis, wider feeling and with a much better brake pedal. The engines are supposedly a bit better, they sound better stock. The 987.2 was on the quiet side. But the engine improvements (on the S) are somewhat neutered by the taller gearing. The base 987.2 engine is a keeper, higher torque than the 981 base and also no direct injection.

My gripes in order of annoyance:
1. Gearing
2. Handbrake
3. How could my 91k car (in 2013 prices) not have a rearview camera?
4. Wish it had heated steering

Otherwise perfect. It's clear that porsche put more of its effort on PDK than getting the 6-speed right, or perhaps they were trying to hit Euro consumption/emissions targets, so hit two birds with one lazy stone by adding an inch of diameter without changing a thing on the driveline.

[robg]

You guys might enjoy this comparison test of all 3 cayman gens. One of the guys actually owns a 981 GTS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxikL9CxBiM

[JST]

Originally Posted by robg

You guys might enjoy this comparison test of all 3 cayman gens. One of the guys actually owns a 981 GTS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxikL9CxBiM

Thanks, that's a cool vid. Too bad they didn't have the GTS 4.0.