GR86, Cayman or Alpine?
Discussion
bennno said:
The only reasons to go for the gr86 is if you need finance + want a 10 year guarantee when you service it at a main dealer.
I had one arrive, my 2.7L Boxster 981 was to be sold, but driving both back to back that was kept and the gr86 sold.
I neglected to add my GR86 was brought by an Alpine owner fed up with a lack of reliability / issues that meant it was repeatedly at the dealer.I had one arrive, my 2.7L Boxster 981 was to be sold, but driving both back to back that was kept and the gr86 sold.
So I’d go with a 981 Cayman or a Boxster if it’s a cash purchase and hi days car, or a gr86 if it’s finance and a single daily car.
Thanks all. I'd be looking for this to be my regular car, whilst saving for a 992. I've had Boxsters (976S and 986S) hence thinking of different options. I think the Alpine may be a bit small for me, but the prospect of two or three years in a GR at sensible cost (covering about 5000 miles per year) is an interesting one whicj I think I'll investigate.
Patrick1964 said:
I’m sure some of you have had the dilemma - around £30k to spend and a once in a lifetime choice of excellent coupes to choose from.
GR86 - pretty much brand new for £30k
Cayman - tons of choice, but ten years old
Alpine - a little more money, but the best residuals?
Which to go for, and why? Just to add to the mix I’m 6ft 3.
1) AlpineGR86 - pretty much brand new for £30k
Cayman - tons of choice, but ten years old
Alpine - a little more money, but the best residuals?
Which to go for, and why? Just to add to the mix I’m 6ft 3.
2) GR86
3) Porsche cayman
the first two won't be as common or as expensive to run as the cayman, even if it costs a bit more to buy one initially
bennno said:
The only reasons to go for the gr86 is if you need finance + want a 10 year guarantee when you service it at a main dealer.
I had one arrive, my 2.7L Boxster 981 was to be sold, but driving both back to back that was kept and the gr86 sold.
The other reason is rear seats. I had one arrive, my 2.7L Boxster 981 was to be sold, but driving both back to back that was kept and the gr86 sold.
Edited by bennno on Monday 20th May 22:02
You can fit small children in the back of the GR86 and even a full size pram in the boot.
FamousPheasant said:
bennno said:
The only reasons to go for the gr86 is if you need finance + want a 10 year guarantee when you service it at a main dealer.
I had one arrive, my 2.7L Boxster 981 was to be sold, but driving both back to back that was kept and the gr86 sold.
The other reason is rear seats. I had one arrive, my 2.7L Boxster 981 was to be sold, but driving both back to back that was kept and the gr86 sold.
Edited by bennno on Monday 20th May 22:02
You can fit small children in the back of the GR86 and even a full size pram in the boot.
Had a similar choice last year and went for a manual 981 2.7 Cayman. Done 12,000 miles in mine over a year, numerous road trips and track days along the way. More info in my reads cars thread here - https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Dad's got an Alpine and its a wonderful car, little too small to be usable for me but its chassis and lack of weight make it a very special prospect.
981's are brilliant cars that combine practicality with sportscar fun, utterly adore mine but will be moving it on soon as I fancy a change.
Dad's got an Alpine and its a wonderful car, little too small to be usable for me but its chassis and lack of weight make it a very special prospect.
981's are brilliant cars that combine practicality with sportscar fun, utterly adore mine but will be moving it on soon as I fancy a change.
Edited by TheOctaneAddict on Tuesday 21st May 10:24
Why would you even consider a GR86 in that company? Porsches, I’ve got one and they’re great, but they’re just too clinical, long geared and unless you go for the halo models, they’re not special - everyone and his his dog has one. Alpine for me from that list, or if you need the 4 seats, a GR Yaris.
Love my GR86. Plenty of mods available too since it's so similar to the GT. The only thing I could see replacing it would be a higher end Porsche but I don't have the budget and on the roads I have fun on, may end up being a frustrating experience. Think the only thing I don't like is how soft the paint is but I've stopped caring and just try to enjoy the car for what it is. Geometry check is a must as lots were out from factory. I've added a front strut brace with brake stopper which was a surprisingly good improvement, given this car is 50% stiffer than the last one. Next will be rear brace, some diff bushes and maybe some lighter wheels. Have better brake pads on order, changed the speakers too. Mine's a keeper.
Edited by KobayashiMaru86 on Tuesday 21st May 13:22
maz8062 said:
Why would you even consider a GR86 in that company? Porsches, I’ve got one and they’re great, but they’re just too clinical, long geared and unless you go for the halo models, they’re not special - everyone and his his dog has one. Alpine for me from that list, or if you need the 4 seats, a GR Yaris.
Why not.10 year warranty
Cheap to run
Fairly solid residuals for the future.
5 star reviews from loads of motoring journalists.
Sometimes it’s not all about the badge.
AndyD360 said:
Owned a GR Yaris beforehand and each of these were on my list of potentials (as was a Supra which isn’t on your list?)
Guess it depends what you’re looking for.
I ruled out the Cayman because of its age, potential costs but mainly because I felt it wasn’t different enough and that it needed the bigger engine variety to make it an enjoyable experience.
I enjoyed the GR86 but perhaps made the mistake of driving on the same roads I enjoyed in the Yaris. It was huge fun but felt you had to drive it (much) harder to make the same progress. No doubt spoilt by the power delivery of the Yaris, Good fun car though.
I ended up buying an Alpine - (blowing any budget I may have had in mind but hey… ??). If you can live with their obvious shortcomings they really are super things to drive. GT or S have plenty of go but probably unnecessary really. 3-4 months in and only seen one other. One thing maybe worth considering is the dealer network won’t be as widespread as the others.
I also went from GRY to Alpine. Small world. Both a delight in their own way.Guess it depends what you’re looking for.
I ruled out the Cayman because of its age, potential costs but mainly because I felt it wasn’t different enough and that it needed the bigger engine variety to make it an enjoyable experience.
I enjoyed the GR86 but perhaps made the mistake of driving on the same roads I enjoyed in the Yaris. It was huge fun but felt you had to drive it (much) harder to make the same progress. No doubt spoilt by the power delivery of the Yaris, Good fun car though.
I ended up buying an Alpine - (blowing any budget I may have had in mind but hey… ??). If you can live with their obvious shortcomings they really are super things to drive. GT or S have plenty of go but probably unnecessary really. 3-4 months in and only seen one other. One thing maybe worth considering is the dealer network won’t be as widespread as the others.
Having test driven an Emira recently I can see the case for the Evora.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CaYGanifXsk
Auto only Alpine probably would not be on the list.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CaYGanifXsk
Auto only Alpine probably would not be on the list.
sturge7878 said:
Andy665 said:
sturge7878 said:
Alpine and residuals do not usually go together ! 
Neither are they renowned for reliability. The French reputation holding true it seems.
The A110 performs poorly for reliability. Models 0-4 years old scored just one star out of five in the latest Which? car survey. A huge 75% of owners reported at least one fault with their A110 in the 12 months covered by the survey, which is more than three times the figure we’d expect for petrol cars of this age. Plus, 65% of cars also had a complete breakdown, which is more than 10 times the figure we’d expect.
Www.which.co.uk
Classic case of "don't believe all that you read".Neither are they renowned for reliability. The French reputation holding true it seems.
The A110 performs poorly for reliability. Models 0-4 years old scored just one star out of five in the latest Which? car survey. A huge 75% of owners reported at least one fault with their A110 in the 12 months covered by the survey, which is more than three times the figure we’d expect for petrol cars of this age. Plus, 65% of cars also had a complete breakdown, which is more than 10 times the figure we’d expect.
Www.which.co.uk
Very small sample size always distorts things. There has been an issue with fuel pumps that was not handled well by Alpine but a recall is now well underway.
Apart from that very are very few issues
Alternatively some first hand forum feedback would also seem to suggest far more issues than “just the fuel pump”…
Alpine owner said:
There are a few issues arising - just search for these items on threads.
Alternator
Fuel pump
Injectors
Batteries
My Alpine has been the least reliable car I’ve owned
Alternator
Fuel pump
Injectors
Batteries
My Alpine has been the least reliable car I’ve owned
I have had zero issues and the numerous owners I talk to regularly have not had any issues either - I will continue to take my chances with my A110
Andy665 said:
sturge7878 said:
Andy665 said:
sturge7878 said:
Alpine and residuals do not usually go together !
Neither are they renowned for reliability. The French reputation holding true it seems.
The A110 performs poorly for reliability. Models 0-4 years old scored just one star out of five in the latest Which? car survey. A huge 75% of owners reported at least one fault with their A110 in the 12 months covered by the survey, which is more than three times the figure we’d expect for petrol cars of this age. Plus, 65% of cars also had a complete breakdown, which is more than 10 times the figure we’d expect.
Www.which.co.uk
Classic case of "don't believe all that you read".Neither are they renowned for reliability. The French reputation holding true it seems.
The A110 performs poorly for reliability. Models 0-4 years old scored just one star out of five in the latest Which? car survey. A huge 75% of owners reported at least one fault with their A110 in the 12 months covered by the survey, which is more than three times the figure we’d expect for petrol cars of this age. Plus, 65% of cars also had a complete breakdown, which is more than 10 times the figure we’d expect.
Www.which.co.uk
Very small sample size always distorts things. There has been an issue with fuel pumps that was not handled well by Alpine but a recall is now well underway.
Apart from that very are very few issues
Alternatively some first hand forum feedback would also seem to suggest far more issues than “just the fuel pump”…
Alpine owner said:
There are a few issues arising - just search for these items on threads.
Alternator
Fuel pump
Injectors
Batteries
My Alpine has been the least reliable car I’ve owned
Alternator
Fuel pump
Injectors
Batteries
My Alpine has been the least reliable car I’ve owned
I have had zero issues and the numerous owners I talk to regularly have not had any issues either - I will continue to take my chances with my A110
None so blind as those who cannot see...
The Cardinal said:
As others have said, £30k is too little at present for an A110. But it would get you into the two others you'd most commonly add to the comparison: the Audi TTS/RS and Toyota Supra. The GT86 isn't really on the same level as these cars, good as it's supposed to be.
Depends what you want. If you just want more straight line punch and some more luxuries, then yes. Both of these will probably be auto too (2.0 supra is auto only), with the GR86 being a much higher level than those two in terms of handling/driver involvement.ITP said:
Depends what you want. If you just want more straight line punch and some more luxuries, then yes. Both of these will probably be auto too (2.0 supra is auto only), with the GR86 being a much higher level than those two in terms of handling/driver involvement.
The GR86 is a nice drive but it's f*****g gutless. I waited ages to get to the top of the list on those and when I got my chance to test drive with a view to order it was a huge disappointment. Admittedly I had stepped into one out of a GR Yaris, so it was always going to be a bit slower, but it wouldn't pull the skin off a rice pudding, as my old man used to say. The straight six Supra I tried was just a boat to drive.sturge7878 said:
"One" owner experience not an issue. Survey result from well respected national consumer publication obviously flawed.
None so blind as those who cannot see...
Yes- flawedNone so blind as those who cannot see...
None so naive as those who take all they read at face value
Edited by Andy665 on Tuesday 21st May 18:38
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