981 options you wish you had (not) specced and why?
Discussion
My Boxster S was less than £50k on the road so you can tell I didn't get carried away in the options list! 
Do I miss,
- Dual zone a/c? - yes. It's nice.
- Parking sensors? - yes. You can't see the corners of the car.
- Decent stereo? - Oh yes, need my tunes
Do I miss,
- Big wheels? - no
- Sport chrono? - no
- Leather interior? - no
- Fancy seats? - no
- PDK? - no
- PCCB? - no
- PASM? - no
- PTV? - no
- PDQLMRSTVKRAVFHYDNJJ?- no, no, no!
Options i'm missing and wish i did have
1 - DAB Radio - For clearer quality and wider digital station selection.
2 - Front and Rear Park Assist - I only have Rear Park Assist. Front and Rear Park Assist gives the front sensors and a visual aid in the PCM.
Only other nice to have would have been the PDLS Plus which gives automatic full beam function.
GTS comes with PDLS as standard.
1 - DAB Radio - For clearer quality and wider digital station selection.
2 - Front and Rear Park Assist - I only have Rear Park Assist. Front and Rear Park Assist gives the front sensors and a visual aid in the PCM.
Only other nice to have would have been the PDLS Plus which gives automatic full beam function.
GTS comes with PDLS as standard.
These are my options for my Cayman GTS:
Exterior
Automatically dimming interior and exterior mirrors with integrated rain sensor
Electric folding outside mirrors
ParkAssist front and rear
Transmission / Chassis
Porsche Doppelkupplung (PDK)
Sports suspension (20 mm lower)
Porsche Ceramic Composite Brake (PCCB)
Porsche Torque Vectoring (PTV)
Wheels
20-inch Carrera S wheel
Wheels painted in satin platinum
Interior
Sports Bucket Seats
Adaptive cruise control incl Porsche Active Safe (PAS)
Smoking package
2-zone automatic air conditioning
Light design package
GTS interior package - Silver instrument dials
Black leather i.c.w Rhodium Silver alcantara package GTS
Interior Leather SportDesign steering wheel
Audio / Communications
Telephone module
Porsche Communication Management (PCM) incl navigation module with universal audio interface
BOSE® Surround Sound System
Digital radio
Options I wished I had speced:
Heated Seats - Its I cheap option which I should have re added as I had it on the car oringally but done a complete spec change after my Silverstsone day and left it off by mistake.
Door Stills - I think this finishies off the car. However, I couldn't deceide between carbon or stainless at the time. I am currently speaking to the dealer to see if I can add these on after the car has arrived.
Exterior
Automatically dimming interior and exterior mirrors with integrated rain sensor
Electric folding outside mirrors
ParkAssist front and rear
Transmission / Chassis
Porsche Doppelkupplung (PDK)
Sports suspension (20 mm lower)
Porsche Ceramic Composite Brake (PCCB)
Porsche Torque Vectoring (PTV)
Wheels
20-inch Carrera S wheel
Wheels painted in satin platinum
Interior
Sports Bucket Seats
Adaptive cruise control incl Porsche Active Safe (PAS)
Smoking package
2-zone automatic air conditioning
Light design package
GTS interior package - Silver instrument dials
Black leather i.c.w Rhodium Silver alcantara package GTS
Interior Leather SportDesign steering wheel
Audio / Communications
Telephone module
Porsche Communication Management (PCM) incl navigation module with universal audio interface
BOSE® Surround Sound System
Digital radio
Options I wished I had speced:
Heated Seats - Its I cheap option which I should have re added as I had it on the car oringally but done a complete spec change after my Silverstsone day and left it off by mistake.
Door Stills - I think this finishies off the car. However, I couldn't deceide between carbon or stainless at the time. I am currently speaking to the dealer to see if I can add these on after the car has arrived.
rxpandy said:
These are my options for my Cayman GTS:
Exterior
Automatically dimming interior and exterior mirrors with integrated rain sensor
Electric folding outside mirrors
ParkAssist front and rear
Transmission / Chassis
Porsche Doppelkupplung (PDK)
Sports suspension (20 mm lower)
Porsche Ceramic Composite Brake (PCCB)
Porsche Torque Vectoring (PTV)
Wheels
20-inch Carrera S wheel
Wheels painted in satin platinum
Interior
Sports Bucket Seats
Adaptive cruise control incl Porsche Active Safe (PAS)
Smoking package
2-zone automatic air conditioning
Light design package
GTS interior package - Silver instrument dials
Black leather i.c.w Rhodium Silver alcantara package GTS
Interior Leather SportDesign steering wheel
Audio / Communications
Telephone module
Porsche Communication Management (PCM) incl navigation module with universal audio interface
BOSE® Surround Sound System
Digital radio
Options I wished I had speced:
Heated Seats - Its I cheap option which I should have re added as I had it on the car oringally but done a complete spec change after my Silverstsone day and left it off by mistake.
Door Stills - I think this finishies off the car. However, I couldn't deceide between carbon or stainless at the time. I am currently speaking to the dealer to see if I can add these on after the car has arrived.
What colour is yours? (Just for the sake of completeness!)Exterior
Automatically dimming interior and exterior mirrors with integrated rain sensor
Electric folding outside mirrors
ParkAssist front and rear
Transmission / Chassis
Porsche Doppelkupplung (PDK)
Sports suspension (20 mm lower)
Porsche Ceramic Composite Brake (PCCB)
Porsche Torque Vectoring (PTV)
Wheels
20-inch Carrera S wheel
Wheels painted in satin platinum
Interior
Sports Bucket Seats
Adaptive cruise control incl Porsche Active Safe (PAS)
Smoking package
2-zone automatic air conditioning
Light design package
GTS interior package - Silver instrument dials
Black leather i.c.w Rhodium Silver alcantara package GTS
Interior Leather SportDesign steering wheel
Audio / Communications
Telephone module
Porsche Communication Management (PCM) incl navigation module with universal audio interface
BOSE® Surround Sound System
Digital radio
Options I wished I had speced:
Heated Seats - Its I cheap option which I should have re added as I had it on the car oringally but done a complete spec change after my Silverstsone day and left it off by mistake.
Door Stills - I think this finishies off the car. However, I couldn't deceide between carbon or stainless at the time. I am currently speaking to the dealer to see if I can add these on after the car has arrived.
As mentioned above.. I optioned rear parking sensor only which I only found out later that there is no visual aid which you get with front and rear sensor option..
I also think climate control would have been nice now as at the time I didn't think it would be a big problem to adjust manually...
I guess both items are not show stoppers and don't detract from the main reason for buying the car... It drives superb!
I also think climate control would have been nice now as at the time I didn't think it would be a big problem to adjust manually...
I guess both items are not show stoppers and don't detract from the main reason for buying the car... It drives superb!
Has anyone specced (or regretted not) the "Instrument surround in leather" and "Dashboard trim package in leather"? They're about £200 and £750 respectively. The former seems like a good idea potentially if the initial surround is in plastic (is it?) but a waste of money if not, and the latter appears to only add leather in places you can't see while actually driving.
I have visions of an awful plastic dash I had in a 987 Boxster courtesy from a few years ago, made it look really cheap and nasty....
I have visions of an awful plastic dash I had in a 987 Boxster courtesy from a few years ago, made it look really cheap and nasty....
I have leather package on my 981 Cayman S. In my opinion, it really lifts the interior.
Climate control is something I wish I had, the standard set up is not even as good as that fitted to my 9 year old BMW and the controls are fiddly too.
Sound system plus is disappointing, the BOSE in the 991 loan car I had recently was notably better.
Am ok with rear parking sensors only which are helpful but then I rarely need to park in tight spots anyway.
Heated seats are a boon this time of year.
Bluetooth for the phone works well.
PDK is purely personal preference but I do prefer the flappy paddles that come with the sport design steering wheel.
I have 20" satin platinum wheels and standard suspension. The wheels look good and don't show brake dust but I wonder if they are dating already. The suspension is very well set up for driving although the car looks to sit high even on its huge wheels.
Light design package is a cheap option that looks cool. The lights that shine down from the mirrors can be helpful in the dark.
Sports seats plus are better than the standard seats for me but not as good as the multi adjustable memory seats if you can afford them or find a car with them.
Cruise control works well, especially if you have to endure lengthy average speed camera motorway roadworks on a regular basis.
Built in satnav is a "must" for resale, is no doubt obsolete already but integrates well with the other functions and the instrument panel.
I have no complaints about the standard headlights. I don't really miss sports exhaust which I loved on my Spyder - I've been in a GTS with its pops and bangs and didn't feel it added to the driving experience.
I do miss magic wipers - the technology works well on my BMW and constantly adjusting on/intermittent/off seems very d fashioned in an otherwise modern car. The absence of auto dimming mirrors doesn't bother me and at least gives you a fighting chance of spotting police cars behind you at night!
Climate control is something I wish I had, the standard set up is not even as good as that fitted to my 9 year old BMW and the controls are fiddly too.
Sound system plus is disappointing, the BOSE in the 991 loan car I had recently was notably better.
Am ok with rear parking sensors only which are helpful but then I rarely need to park in tight spots anyway.
Heated seats are a boon this time of year.
Bluetooth for the phone works well.
PDK is purely personal preference but I do prefer the flappy paddles that come with the sport design steering wheel.
I have 20" satin platinum wheels and standard suspension. The wheels look good and don't show brake dust but I wonder if they are dating already. The suspension is very well set up for driving although the car looks to sit high even on its huge wheels.
Light design package is a cheap option that looks cool. The lights that shine down from the mirrors can be helpful in the dark.
Sports seats plus are better than the standard seats for me but not as good as the multi adjustable memory seats if you can afford them or find a car with them.
Cruise control works well, especially if you have to endure lengthy average speed camera motorway roadworks on a regular basis.
Built in satnav is a "must" for resale, is no doubt obsolete already but integrates well with the other functions and the instrument panel.
I have no complaints about the standard headlights. I don't really miss sports exhaust which I loved on my Spyder - I've been in a GTS with its pops and bangs and didn't feel it added to the driving experience.
I do miss magic wipers - the technology works well on my BMW and constantly adjusting on/intermittent/off seems very d fashioned in an otherwise modern car. The absence of auto dimming mirrors doesn't bother me and at least gives you a fighting chance of spotting police cars behind you at night!
I've had my Cayman for 10 months & 12000miles...
Full leather interior & light design pack - looks and feels great, I recommend
18 way power seats - totally unnecessary but good feature if you regularly share the car with your other half (I do) and need a memory function that links all settings (seats, audio, climate, mirrors) to your key.
Heated seats - essential IMO
Climate control - essential IMO for the temperature control (the dual aspect is pointless)
Auto wipers and diming mirrors, folding mirrors - essential IMO
20in rims - so-so, look good, poor ride quality, noisy on poor surfaces; I much prefer the ride on my 19in winter tyres.
PDK, sports wheel and paddles - my drive in traffic makes PDK and obvious choice, I rarely use the paddles. I miss having a multi function steering wheel.
PCM, voice control, iPod and telephone module - I use the SAT NAV daily, the phone works well cutting out the background cabin noise when you are talking to people, voice control... a novelty I rarely use. the PCM control regularly freezes my iPod!
Digital radio - never use it, spec'ed it to future proof the car. The few times I've tried it it looses the signal too often.
BOSE - good but not excellent
Front and rear parking sensors - they work well.
I skipped the sport chrono pack & PTV but did order upgrades on the lights (PDLS), suspension (PASM) and steering (cant recall the acromion) . All of which I'm happy with.
Best buy - ACC... works far better that I hoped. I regularly drive through central London and on crowded motorways. It works brilliantly and takes the stress out of the city & motorway traffic ebb & flow.
You probably guessed I was after more of grand tourer and easy to drive city car and I think I've got it (I didn't want a 'track car').
Three silly buys... grey seat belts, stainless steel door treads and filler cap (silver plastic), they have no function other than looking good!
If there's a next time; I'll skip the 20in rims and add the smokers pack (to gain a central cubby hole with lid). I'd also consider covering the steering column cover in leather as its not included in the interior pack and leaves a big lump of plastic in full view.
Full leather interior & light design pack - looks and feels great, I recommend
18 way power seats - totally unnecessary but good feature if you regularly share the car with your other half (I do) and need a memory function that links all settings (seats, audio, climate, mirrors) to your key.
Heated seats - essential IMO
Climate control - essential IMO for the temperature control (the dual aspect is pointless)
Auto wipers and diming mirrors, folding mirrors - essential IMO
20in rims - so-so, look good, poor ride quality, noisy on poor surfaces; I much prefer the ride on my 19in winter tyres.
PDK, sports wheel and paddles - my drive in traffic makes PDK and obvious choice, I rarely use the paddles. I miss having a multi function steering wheel.
PCM, voice control, iPod and telephone module - I use the SAT NAV daily, the phone works well cutting out the background cabin noise when you are talking to people, voice control... a novelty I rarely use. the PCM control regularly freezes my iPod!
Digital radio - never use it, spec'ed it to future proof the car. The few times I've tried it it looses the signal too often.
BOSE - good but not excellent
Front and rear parking sensors - they work well.
I skipped the sport chrono pack & PTV but did order upgrades on the lights (PDLS), suspension (PASM) and steering (cant recall the acromion) . All of which I'm happy with.
Best buy - ACC... works far better that I hoped. I regularly drive through central London and on crowded motorways. It works brilliantly and takes the stress out of the city & motorway traffic ebb & flow.
You probably guessed I was after more of grand tourer and easy to drive city car and I think I've got it (I didn't want a 'track car').
Three silly buys... grey seat belts, stainless steel door treads and filler cap (silver plastic), they have no function other than looking good!
If there's a next time; I'll skip the 20in rims and add the smokers pack (to gain a central cubby hole with lid). I'd also consider covering the steering column cover in leather as its not included in the interior pack and leaves a big lump of plastic in full view.
If you didn't already know, this thread shows how little we have in common about our requirements!
I bought my Cayman S secondhand so it has most of what I want, a few things I'm not fussed about and only one thing I dislike.
Like:
19" wheels - best ride/handling compromise for me.
PASM see above
All round parking sensors - pretty essential
Tel prep - can't believe it's not standard
PCM grossly over priced and doesn't do speed cameras but works well otherwise
Dual Zone Climate - as everyone says...
PDK - it changes gear better and faster than I can, and the gear ratios are more sensible than the manual
Sports wheel - didn't think I'd use this. I drive fully manually about half the time and normally use the stick (you always know where it is), but if I'm in auto I tend to use the paddles for override, especially on motorways
Got but not fussed about:
Bose - overpriced, not great, and a waste when the car is too noisy to appreciate it. You're stuck with spending something if you want PCM - but I would have gone for Sound Package Plus.
Leather package, but
Heated Seats - handy with the leather package
Rear Wash Wipe - would like this if the car was left out and the rear window needed cleaning before setting off, but since the car is under cover it's not really necessary
Grey seat belts - ludicrously over priced
Sports tail pipe - likewise, whats wrong with the standard one?
Would have liked:
PTV - useful in the wet (I won't be tracking the car, I prefer to use something more suitable)
Really don't like
Basalt Black metallic - great if you like washing cars, a pain if you like driving them.
Was trying to avoid (successfully):
Chronosport: Like the idea of the engine mounts, but the rest is gimmicky. Wouldn't use launch control but would be afraid a previous owner frequently had.
20" wheels - spoil the ride a bit and I don't even like the look
SS - too low for me, even PASM is marginal for me.
I bought my Cayman S secondhand so it has most of what I want, a few things I'm not fussed about and only one thing I dislike.
Like:
19" wheels - best ride/handling compromise for me.
PASM see above
All round parking sensors - pretty essential
Tel prep - can't believe it's not standard
PCM grossly over priced and doesn't do speed cameras but works well otherwise
Dual Zone Climate - as everyone says...
PDK - it changes gear better and faster than I can, and the gear ratios are more sensible than the manual
Sports wheel - didn't think I'd use this. I drive fully manually about half the time and normally use the stick (you always know where it is), but if I'm in auto I tend to use the paddles for override, especially on motorways
Got but not fussed about:
Bose - overpriced, not great, and a waste when the car is too noisy to appreciate it. You're stuck with spending something if you want PCM - but I would have gone for Sound Package Plus.
Leather package, but
Heated Seats - handy with the leather package
Rear Wash Wipe - would like this if the car was left out and the rear window needed cleaning before setting off, but since the car is under cover it's not really necessary
Grey seat belts - ludicrously over priced
Sports tail pipe - likewise, whats wrong with the standard one?
Would have liked:
PTV - useful in the wet (I won't be tracking the car, I prefer to use something more suitable)
Really don't like
Basalt Black metallic - great if you like washing cars, a pain if you like driving them.
Was trying to avoid (successfully):
Chronosport: Like the idea of the engine mounts, but the rest is gimmicky. Wouldn't use launch control but would be afraid a previous owner frequently had.
20" wheels - spoil the ride a bit and I don't even like the look
SS - too low for me, even PASM is marginal for me.
Things I like and ordered with the car,
PDK Brilliant and so fast
Auto dim mirrors, very effective and graduate themselves depending on the intensity of the light behind you. Also incorporates the wing mirrors
Cruise control
Heated seats, nice and toasty on a winter blast
19" Cayman 'S' wheels. Comfortable for me and very easy to keep clean.
Things a lot people order but not for me.
PCM and sound upgrade. £2500 plus not worth it, you are never going to see the money back at resale and not neede for my Sunday morning drives
Sports exhaust. Flat 6 at 7600rpm sounds fruity as it is.
One thing that I might have ordered differently, I took the standard Alcantara seats because they grip better and are cool to sit on in the summer. However I sometimes think I would have liked the partial leather in two-tone Agate and Pebble grey
PDK Brilliant and so fast
Auto dim mirrors, very effective and graduate themselves depending on the intensity of the light behind you. Also incorporates the wing mirrors
Cruise control
Heated seats, nice and toasty on a winter blast
19" Cayman 'S' wheels. Comfortable for me and very easy to keep clean.
Things a lot people order but not for me.
PCM and sound upgrade. £2500 plus not worth it, you are never going to see the money back at resale and not neede for my Sunday morning drives
Sports exhaust. Flat 6 at 7600rpm sounds fruity as it is.
One thing that I might have ordered differently, I took the standard Alcantara seats because they grip better and are cool to sit on in the summer. However I sometimes think I would have liked the partial leather in two-tone Agate and Pebble grey
Ozzie Osmond said:
The option I'd really like to have but nobody has yet mentioned is,
There must be someone who likes it - but I've yet to meet them. Perhaps its partly because there are few people around with a 9" limb growing out of their right kneecap.- Delete electronic parking brake. Tick!!
I don't mind the fact that it is electronikerally operated, just the stupid fecking switch position - why ain't it on the centre console, there is plenty of space?
Also, is it in the same position in the GT3, as if so, with buckets and harnesses on, you would never be able to operate it (GT4 possible problem)?
Also, is it in the same position in the GT3, as if so, with buckets and harnesses on, you would never be able to operate it (GT4 possible problem)?
I really, really wish that I'd spec'd the auto wipers - didn't think I'd miss them until it started raining and found that manually adjusting them is a PITA. To this day I don't know why this function isn't STANDARD on a car at this price point.
I sometimes miss the fully adjustable seats that I've had in demo cars (purely for the auto dip side mirror on reverse function), but then because of all the electrical gubbins they don't go low enough for me to feel truly comfortable in the car either so that's why I stuck to the manual (upgraded Sports Plus) seats
Sport Chrono waste of money IMO - makes little sense on a car with a manual box and on the PDK version I drove, made the car utterly mental (and not in a good way). Utterly useless for road driving unless you like being sat on the redline everywhere
I sometimes miss the fully adjustable seats that I've had in demo cars (purely for the auto dip side mirror on reverse function), but then because of all the electrical gubbins they don't go low enough for me to feel truly comfortable in the car either so that's why I stuck to the manual (upgraded Sports Plus) seats
Sport Chrono waste of money IMO - makes little sense on a car with a manual box and on the PDK version I drove, made the car utterly mental (and not in a good way). Utterly useless for road driving unless you like being sat on the redline everywhere
bcr5784 said:
There must be someone who likes it - but I've yet to meet them. Perhaps its partly because there are few people around with a 9" limb growing out of their right kneecap.
I don't get the hate for this, it's just not a problem. Agreed, it should be on the center console but it's not that big a deal where it is, lean forward a bit and press to switch it on. Then just pull away when ready and it auto disengages (manual and PDK versions). In fact in a PDK equipped car, I could see you never really needing to use it except for the biggest inclines (and even then the auto hold would kick in I would have thought)Gassing Station | Boxster/Cayman | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff