Potential cayman r purchase - moving from vantage

[celticstevie]

Hi

I currently have a vantage 4.7 v8 and after 21 months now fed up just feels too lardy. Sounds great and looks great but not what I am used to.

My previous cars in reverse order have been

Vanatage v8 - like having Miss world with syphillis. Poor paint and temperamental
evora - loved the car but an ongoing knee problem meant getting in and out was very difficult. Amazing drive but clunky gear box
997turbo - very very fast. Bought from an opc with 2 year warranty. Worst Porsche I owned for reliability
Box 987 - totally reliable
996c4s - favourite car as first 911
Box 986 - 2.5 great wee car as was young at the time
Lotus Elise - first sports car like a go kart

Current dilemma
I now only do about 3000 pleasure miles a year as have an x5 for family use and a focus st mk2 (inheritance from my dad) for everyday use.

I don't do track days and driving would be back road blasts in scotland and runs up the west coast
I loved the driving feel of the lotus. I know the cr is not the quickest but from what I can garner this might be the compromise I need to get for the driving feel I would like and the handling in twisties. I'm not the quickest anyway and in the runs I go with mates we have some very very fast cars but everyone arrives for lunch within a few minutes.

Thoughts on pros / cons of a cr as don't want to spend and get fed up soon.

[Fizzbomb]

celticstevie said:

Hi

I currently have a vantage 4.7 v8 and after 21 months now fed up just feels too lardy. Sounds great and looks great but not what I am used to.

My previous cars in reverse order have been

Vanatage v8 - like having Miss world with syphillis. Poor paint and temperamental
evora - loved the car but an ongoing knee problem meant getting in and out was very difficult. Amazing drive but clunky gear box
997turbo - very very fast. Bought from an opc with 2 year warranty. Worst Porsche I owned for reliability
Box 987 - totally reliable
996c4s - favourite car as first 911
Box 986 - 2.5 great wee car as was young at the time
Lotus Elise - first sports car like a go kart

Current dilemma
I now only do about 3000 pleasure miles a year as have an x5 for family use and a focus st mk2 (inheritance from my dad) for everyday use.

I don't do track days and driving would be back road blasts in scotland and runs up the west coast
I loved the driving feel of the lotus. I know the cr is not the quickest but from what I can garner this might be the compromise I need to get for the driving feel I would like and the handling in twisties. I'm not the quickest anyway and in the runs I go with mates we have some very very fast cars but everyone arrives for lunch within a few minutes.

Thoughts on pros / cons of a cr as don't want to spend and get fed up soon.

I had 6 Cayman Rs, spec is very important, carbon bucket seats, sport chrono package and sport exhaust are a must.

[Porsche911R]

I have had 2 Cayman R's great car the best steering feel in the modern world imo ;-)
Owned 85 cars sold the R missed it bought another.

Fast enough it's a 10 seconds 100mph car, safe money.

rare to find with all the driver focused options, pm me, I might sell mine as I have a new GT3 due and too many cars atm.
It has the big 6 options.

[boxsey]

Perfect car for hooning and road trips. More than enough performance for having fun on the road at sensible speeds. Like your Evora the bucket seats can be awkward to get out of in tight spaces but fine if you can fully open the door and use the hand on sill and push up technique to get out. Never get bored of driving mine.

[Porsche911R]

boxsey said:

Perfect car for hooning and road trips. More than enough performance for having fun on the road at sensible speeds. Like your Evora the bucket seats can be awkward to get out of in tight spaces but fine if you can fully open the door and use the hand on sill and push up technique to get out. Never get bored of driving mine.

I find as the R has NO door pockets the buckets are only a little hassle to get out of, the GT4 due to door pockets is very hard to get out, the R feels very easy due to the extra room you have.
It's these little things you notice when you own a few cars and it took me a few weeks to work out why I was having so many issues with the GT4 over my R.

[boxsey]

Porsche911R said:

I find as the R has NO door pockets the buckets are only a little hassle to get out of, the GT4 due to door pockets is very hard to get out, the R feels very easy due to the extra room you have.
It's these little things you notice when you own a few cars and it took me a few weeks to work out why I was having so many issues with the GT4 over my R.

When you get a little bit older like me all buckets get a bit difficult to get out of!

[celticstevie]

Thanks for the replies..

must haves for me are manual and pse, would like the buckets but may struggle to get in and out! I have a knee issue from a dislocation playing rugby and struggled to get in / out a gt3 bucket seat.

It was climbing in the Evora that I found a struggle hence im ruling out an Exige V6.

Do these cars feel quick enough?

[Porsche911R]

celticstevie said:

Thanks for the replies..

must haves for me are manual and pse, would like the buckets but may struggle to get in and out! I have a knee issue from a dislocation playing rugby and struggled to get in / out a gt3 bucket seat.

It was climbing in the Evora that I found a struggle hence im ruling out an Exige V6.

Do these cars feel quick enough?

yep def quick enough, you cannot WOT for long and I over take 40 cars a day no issue lol

worth a look ;-) as it bea the 911 RS

https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/motoring/cayman...

steering feel is key for me also coming from Lotus and Nobles

"Editor-at-large Steve Sutcliffe described the winning Cayman R’s steering as “about as sweet as it gets,” "


in 2012 the winner is invited back it still came 2nd a year on beating the Exige V6 and posting a faster lap time.

Edited by Porsche911R on Wednesday 13th September 12:31

[WCZ]

I'd go for one with the light battery and no a/c

[Porsche911R]

WCZ said:

I'd go for one with the light battery and no a/c

as it's a 6 year old car any battery will be nackered and that battery was £2k lol

better off with a new style battery.

[kev.RS]

This sounds perfect for you

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

Lightweight battery would be around £1k but can save over 20kgs!

[Porsche911R]

kev.RS said:

This sounds perfect for you

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

Lightweight battery would be around £1k but can save over 20kgs!

PSE is not correct, or it's been painted as PSE is silver, standard is black, but it does have the button, no Sports Chrono, or sports button, no Short shift.

also no nice to have items, BOSE, and cup holders. both nice if you want to use it over it being a week end only car.

Also check for heavy use as it has cup 2's on it.
Issue for me is it's black and that's the worse seller.

really poor advert as the R does not have PTV and what is an ASK sound pack ? I hate these copy and paste adverts with little to no care.

Edited by Porsche911R on Wednesday 13th September 15:09

[DJMC]

Like you, my Aston experience was perhaps the worst ownership experience in 40 years.

Wet feet, £1,000 a month costs (incl. depreciation), poor handling. British built rubbish.

You should find the R a revelation. I'm in a base 981 now, but with the engine screaming it puts way more smiles on the miles.

[boxsey]

celticstevie said:

Thanks for the replies..

must haves for me are manual and pse, would like the buckets but may struggle to get in and out! I have a knee issue from a dislocation playing rugby and struggled to get in / out a gt3 bucket seat.

It was climbing in the Evora that I found a struggle hence im ruling out an Exige V6.

Do these cars feel quick enough?

Despite the small inconvenience (for some of us with dodgy backs) of getting out of the bucket seats, I would not have an R without them. They are part of the essence of the car and provide the feedback to your bum that a comfort seat cannot match. You should try the seats before you make up your mind as they may not be as bad as your lotus experience (nb. I note that you say climbing into the Evora...I've never had an issue with climbing in my R). To me an R with comfort seats makes it more like an S in which case an S (which is still a great car) would be better value.

[Jim1556]

Just out of interest, does anyone know the diameter of the front discs? Obviously the PCCB calipers (and discs) are bigger, so the better option (once steels fitted along with a GT3 master cylinder)...

[kev.RS]

318mm front and 299mm rear

[Jim1556]

kev.RS said:

318mm front and 299mm rear

Thanks Kev! Wow, that's small! No wonder they look like milk bottle tops under the 19s!

I need a car with ceramic calipers then, when I get round to actually looking for one that is...

[Porsche911R]

Jim1556 said:

Thanks Kev! Wow, that's small! No wonder they look like milk bottle tops under the 19s!

I need a car with ceramic calipers then, when I get round to actually looking for one that is...

There are better options, take a look at touring car set ups.
No need for a GT3 master cylinder, my 350mm 6 pots don't even use one that big.

Fix the issue don't mask it :-) if your pedal is going to the floor one does not move more fluid one has to look at why the pedal is getting longer and it's down to heat.

[FocusRS3]

OP- firstly good start by asking on here, there is a wealth of owners and experience to guide you into the right car IMO.

JZM had a very nice CR with all the right bits and TBF to them the car will be top notch as they will not take in a mule and ruin their reputation.
That car seemingly has either been sold or at least is no longer on the website. Maybe a call to Russ at JZM to see if its still for sale would be an idea and also for some advice when looking for a CR.

I agree that buckets are essential. I have PSE, Buckets and short shift on my 987 Boxster Spyder and they really make the car IMO so on a CR I'd say they were a definite must if possible.

I don't have sports chrono on my Spyder but it wasn't a deal breaker for me as the condition of the car together with a recent major service, a 2.5k recent spend and 22 months Porsche warranty gave me enough peace of mind.

I very much considered the CR but was coming from a GT4 so fancied the Spyder as something a little different but i think the CR is a smart move for you given your requirements.

Best advice is do your homework and continue to ask around on here.

I think these cars are one of the Porsche sweet spots but not many realise it yet so now is a good time to buy. Good luck

[celticstevie]

Thanks all for help so far.

Re buckets I would really like them but.......I have a hoon partner who is my uncle. Long story. He's my dads brother and has prostate cancer with a few challenges. My dad died of the same thing unfortunately.

Hopefully he is gonna be around for a few years but will struggle to get in buckets so the normal seats will not be a deal killer. He used to have the fast cars / bikes etc but cannot now.

Time to start looking around, the Aston has to go