Boxster Spyder

[Timbo_Mint]

JeffC said:

I think you need not be concerned , Values are likely to stay strong as there was not a lot of them built and historically low volume built cars hold high residuals , there was much fewer Spyders than Gt4s sold and as all that have said that have driven them they are a pretty special car, In the current market at current price I personally think they are great value, anyone buying one at list got the bargain of the century , I actually think that Porsche could have tagged an extra £20k onto the price tag of the GT4 and Spyder and they would have still sold them in high numbers.

Personally if you want one just buy one drive it and enjoy it and worry later, life is far too short to worry about loosing a few quid ! they may in the short term drop in value , they may rise but you are never going to get burnt badly . End of the day its all about timing and you will only address that when you actually sell , I would guess end of this year they may drop a couple grand but we will see that come back next spring, 2 or 3 years time you could be well up who knows, they are cars not investments , I use mine whenever I can and my mindset is it will be worth what the market dictates when I come to part with it , there is no price on smiles.

+1

I owned a 987 Spyder before my current 981. They are slightly different cars. I think of the 981 as a more 'grown up' car.

[Timbo_Mint]

Beaver said:

Sadly it looks like I will have to let mine go now, as I'm going to need 4 seats.
Or 3 more accurately.

I knew there would be an acceptable solution....

http://www.pistonheads.com/news/ph-britishcars/mcl...

[Beaver]

Timbo_Mint said:

I knew there would be an acceptable solution....

http://www.pistonheads.com/news/ph-britishcars/mcl...

Now that's a great idea!

[Porsche911R]

Akajak said:

interesting; I've had both and imo the 987 has the better steering feel but is beaten in all other respects, both great cars

this will go on for ever more as can be seen on both camps and the love for each.

I cannot even think where the 981 beats the 987 car bar being able to go above 124 mph with the roof up.
one could say it's just a 981 GTS with a detuned 3.8 and a crap roof ! great car though as they all are :-)

people just like what they like and the GTS is a great car in it's own right, prob better than either Spyder for 99% of people !

As a drivers car steering feel is key for my weekend car, the 987.2 car has any new car licked and by a long way, and driving, feed back and interaction is all key with the older Spyder which makes it a joy to pilot, ex Lotus owners would know what I mean and I dare say it would hate the 981 and take the 987.2 car every time. ex merc owners would hate the 987 and take the 981.

chalk and cheese these cars bar both have st roofs lol, although you can get into the boot and take the roof off the car in the 987.2, the 981 is just like a 1970 MGB item and quite ugly, is still noisy and voids the car of boot access which is a daft design !

Edited by Porsche911R on Wednesday 20th July 12:32

[spareparts]

When you start to drive fast and push the car towards limits, it is the chassis that matters - not just the steering. And the 981 chassis is miles ahead of the 987.

[Timbo_Mint]

spareparts said:

When you start to drive fast and push the car towards limits, it is the chassis that matters - not just the steering. And the 981 chassis is miles ahead of the 987.

Wow! Fighting talk... Ding Ding! Round one

[Porsche911R]

It's the chassis which makes the new cars feel dull as they can take way more power and are no fun at slower speeds !

Better chassis are a bad point imo. goto Silverstone classic and watch some racing on 30+ year old cars. it's a lot more fun I can tell you.

Or go drive a E30 BMW or some thing and have a laugh drifting out the round about and no PTV or ABS ! £8k will get you a minter and a smile on your face.

New cars are pretty dull, people just have gone a bit Hyper (mental) because there is a gear stick in some new cars FFS !!!
PTV is the ruin of the new cars if EPS had not already ruin them !

Edited by Porsche911R on Wednesday 20th July 17:40

[kilarney]

I probably define the spyder demographic. I have swapped my 997 GTS manual (which was for keeps) for a spyder with negligible miles. It was a difficult decision but I already realise its the right one for me. Will i miss the GTS oh yes having optimised the DSC PASM module over 6 months I can tell you its even more incredible.

In simple terms the spy makes me smile more and thats it. Very different drives as GTS is grown up and a fantastic every day drive the spy more of a high days and holidays machine which is how I use it. If you have owned a lotus it isnt hardcore. All this talk about steering feel is over egged as Im a many times Lotus owner and to all intents one normalises to the steering feel which is plenty good enough.

I believe the spy may drop a little further on values but low numbers and all the superlatives which I wont repeat will win through plus the 718 factor mean its going to be desirable well into the future.

I wouldnt want a GT4 anymore than I wanted a GT3 when buying the GTS, lets just say it comes with age and giving up the track scene.

As folk are fixated on flipping and depreciation it cost me £8k over its invoiced cost.

[JeffC]

No modern car will drive like something old skool, but having owned some old skool cars over the last few years they are not all they are cracked up to be and living with them daily is far from ideal, my old Honda CRX would run rings round my Spyder on a track, it has no PAS no drivers aids whatsoever, its awesome when driving it flat out but that is it , on the road its horrendous, the Gt4 / Spyder might have a lot of electronic guff on it and most of it is to make it feel "able" and improve the drive for the average Joe who is no Stirling Moss feel like a driver, which to be fair most of these cars are bought by and this will be Porsches target market, I personally dont think that Porsche did a bad job, my Spyder is a marked improvement over the 981 S I had previously, I find when moving on at a decent pace the car to feels pretty good and it surprises me how well it holds on in the corners . I have owned Caterhams for coming up 15 years and I personally don't feel let down when I drive my car . its certainly no track car and but it was never meant to be, to be quite frank Im not actually sure what its supposed to be as its not a quick road car either and its compromised heavily as a daily driver , but I must admit I love the car whatever it is supposed to be !

[RSVP911]

JeffC said:

No modern car will drive like something old skool, but having owned some old skool cars over the last few years they are not all they are cracked up to be and living with them daily is far from ideal, my old Honda CRX would run rings round my Spyder on a track, it has no PAS no drivers aids whatsoever, its awesome when driving it flat out but that is it , on the road its horrendous, the Gt4 / Spyder might have a lot of electronic guff on it and most of it is to make it feel "able" and improve the drive for the average Joe who is no Stirling Moss feel like a driver, which to be fair most of these cars are bought by and this will be Porsches target market, I personally dont think that Porsche did a bad job, my Spyder is a marked improvement over the 981 S I had previously, I find when moving on at a decent pace the car to feels pretty good and it surprises me how well it holds on in the corners . I have owned Caterhams for coming up 15 years and I personally don't feel let down when I drive my car . its certainly no track car and but it was never meant to be, to be quite frank Im not actually sure what its supposed to be as its not a quick road car either and its compromised heavily as a daily driver , but I must admit I love the car whatever it is supposed to be !

Hi Jeff , interesting stuff - my only comment would be IMHO , it makes a great DD

[RSVP911]

kilarney said:

I probably define the spyder demographic. I have swapped my 997 GTS manual (which was for keeps) for a spyder with negligible miles. It was a difficult decision but I already realise its the right one for me. Will i miss the GTS oh yes having optimised the DSC PASM module over 6 months I can tell you its even more incredible.

In simple terms the spy makes me smile more and thats it. Very different drives as GTS is grown up and a fantastic every day drive the spy more of a high days and holidays machine which is how I use it. If you have owned a lotus it isnt hardcore. All this talk about steering feel is over egged as Im a many times Lotus owner and to all intents one normalises to the steering feel which is plenty good enough.

I believe the spy may drop a little further on values but low numbers and all the superlatives which I wont repeat will win through plus the 718 factor mean its going to be desirable well into the future.

I wouldnt want a GT4 anymore than I wanted a GT3 when buying the GTS, lets just say it comes with age and giving up the track scene.

As folk are fixated on flipping and depreciation it cost me £8k over its invoiced cost.

Welcome to the club - you've bought a brilliant car there - any photos to share ?

[Alpinestars]

Timbo_Mint said:

Spent the day being detoured around Leicester(shire) due to tractors, traffic, need to buy mars bar, and any other excuse I could think of....

Love that colour.

[Alpinestars]

Beaver said:

Here's mine from Sunday

And that.

Edited by Alpinestars on Thursday 21st July 06:37

[Alpinestars]

Ravi355 said:

Thanks GT4p

Spareparts my concern is that other than the engine it's still a boxster, albeit a very good one. It's not a Porsche GT division car and doesn't have a Motorsport engine or suspension or racing pedigree so will fall in value. So if the current ask is 20k over list there is a long way for it to fall for it to find its natural place in the pecking order.

The 987 is a really really good drive. They are a bargain as far as driving experience goes.

It's one of the few cars that I've changed my mind on how it drives. My first drive was pretty average, but I had the owner sat in it and it was a gentle drive. I think it's probably one of the best cars I own, and agree with the comments PorscheGT4 (Demon) has made in the past.

Edited by Alpinestars on Thursday 21st July 06:40

[Sandy59]

The 987 is a really really good drive. They are a bargain as far as driving experience goes.

It's one of the few cars that I've changed my mind on how it drives. My first drive was pretty average, but I had the owner sat in it and it was a gentle drive. I think it's probably one of the best cars I own, and agree with the comments PorscheGT4 (Demon) has made in the past.

Edited by Alpinestars on Thursday 21st July 06:40

[/quote]

Having had a 987 and now a 981 Spyder, I would say both are really good drives, I will concede I 'probably' prefer the 987 steering if I'm really honest, but not that much in it.
Other than that I've had a much bigger smile on my face in the 981, it just feels more alive in pretty much every way really, the roof is a non issue for me personally.
I fully understand if others prefer the 987, that's perfectly fine.

As an aside I also have a GT4, and for reasons I can't really understand the 981 Spyder feels more alive than that as well, has done since day 1.

[kilarney]

Sandy59 said:

As an aside I also have a GT4, and for reasons I can't really understand the 981 Spyder feels more alive than that as well, has done since day 1.

I guess your feeling the lower kerb weight of the spyder which is equivalent to a very hefty passenger plus the c of g is lower.

[Fokker]

kilarney said:

I guess your feeling the lower kerb weight of the spyder which is equivalent to a very hefty passenger plus the c of g is lower.

I doubt its to do with the weight and more to do with the skinnier rubber plus the less sticky tyres.
The fun thing about the GT4 is that you can hurl it at a corner at silly speeds and it'll stick stick stick just like a go-kart.

The Spyder will I am sure feel less glued to the road and hence move about more.

[av185]

Fokker said:

The Spyder will I am sure feel less glued to the road and hence move about more.

Very true and in some ways the Spyder feels more communicative. Built with the 911 R ethos.

[Sandy59]

kilarney said:

Sandy59 said:

As an aside I also have a GT4, and for reasons I can't really understand the 981 Spyder feels more alive than that as well, has done since day 1.

I guess your feeling the lower kerb weight of the spyder which is equivalent to a very hefty passenger plus the c of g is lower.

That's probably part of it, it just feels sharper on throttle response and steering for starters, and actually seems to sound better.
Don't get me wrong, I'm just back from Spa/Zolder in the GT4 and it's great on track for sure.

[bcr5784]

kilarney said:

I guess your feeling the lower kerb weight of the spyder which is equivalent to a very hefty passenger plus the c of g is lower.

I suspect it isn't really that unless the Spyder genuinely doesn't have all those features (aircon, audio etc) which are ADD options (and EXCLUDED - reflected in the quoted weight) as opposed to those on the GT4 which are DELETE options (and INCLUDED in the quoted weight) When I last looked, spec for spec the Spyder only lost 11kg (as a result of the roof) - and given the extra weight of the engine, wheels brakes and tyres was probably HEAVIER than the equivalent Boxster. Spec for spec I very much doubt whether there is any significant weight difference between the Spyder and GT4 and any differences in feel are due to other factors.

RE cofg 11kg up top really is down in the noise.

Another Porsche con...

Edited by bcr5784 on Thursday 21st July 20:00