Advice on buying a Cayman (S)

[MartynHa]

Hi,

I've just moved out of town in to the lovely countryside and have realised that I need a car. My GF and I have agreed to get a Porsche and we're looking at the 2009+ Cayman (S) with a budget of around £25,000. I've looked at a few buying guides, but don't know how well they relate to real life - is there one that anyone else has used and found good, or ones that are bad? I've never owned (nor driven) a Porsche and wanted to ask people in the know if there's any advice you can give for someone in my situation.

Also if anyone knows of any great looking cars available for that price then I'd love to know about it.

Thanks,
M

[stevod]

Try an OPC. Get a drive to see what you think of it, rather than what others think of it. You could hire a drive at the Silverstone Experience Centre if you want a better idea of what they're really capable of (although it would be a current model), as you won't get that on a short test drive. As you're in the lovely countryside I'd also suggest sampling a Boxster.

S

[mr pg]

OPC being Official Porsche Centre in case you weren't sure.

[MartynHa]

mr pg said:

OPC being Official Porsche Centre in case you weren't sure.

Ha - thanks! I was just googling that!

@stevod - a track day certainly sounds good - worried that I wouldn't be driving the actual car I was going to buy, are the differences between a current and a 2010 car big enough to worry about in this context?

[stevod]

Well I've never really had the feel for a car that's very different to my usual drive until I've done 50 miles in it and settled in somewhat. Not really in a dealer test drive, although obviously I can tell if I hate it or not. And in a demo of a used car they'll be wanting to put as few miles on it as possible, I'd have thought.

I just thought of the Experience Centre as a way of getting an idea of what the cars are like, if you've not driven them before - it depends what you're used to. And what they're like when pushed, and what they're capable of, in an interesting environment and with an instructor. The Experience Centre is actually a pretty good name for it - don't compare it to a track day. It's aimed at a different kind of thing. Well it's aimed at selling cars of course, but it's essentially driving technique and safety orientated.

I had my first drive of a Porsche at the PEC as I thought I wouldn't know from a quick test drive whether it's 100% the car for me or not. That was a Cayman and I was hooked.

I then moved out to the countryside, and when I went for it I ended up ticking the folding roof option.

Chances are you're not going to regret it though - they're wonderful things.

S

Edited by stevod on Wednesday 9th October 12:52

[DJWuk]

If you really want to see what a Cayman is capable of, get yourself down to Thruxton for one of these

http://www.thruxtonracing.co.uk/experiences/thrill...

Ideally you want one of their instructors to take you round for a couple of laps to show you what it is really capable of. I've done this twice as part of a corporate day package and always come away with utter respect for these cars

Personally I would want to buy the car from an OPC , just so have 2 years warranty to cover any potential bore scoring problems.

Anyway, great cars. Do it !

Dave

[gsewell]

DJWuk said:

If you really want to see what a Cayman is capable of, get yourself down to Thruxton for one of these

http://www.thruxtonracing.co.uk/experiences/thrill...

£89 for 4 laps (9.3 miles) seems damned expensive!

[Junior Bianno]

How it drives is irrelevant. Just make sure it's got heated seats!

[mollytherocker]

Junior Bianno said:

How it drives is irrelevant. Just make sure it's got heated seats!

.....with yellow stitching.

[Carbon Based]

MartynHa said:

are the differences between a current and a 2010 car big enough to worry about in this context?

We started with a Porsche Experience at Silverstone a year or so ago, with only the slightest hint of an idea that we might buy one. It was meant to just be a bit of a jolly on a track...

Drove a 987 Cayman S and a 911 (991 I think) back to back fell for the whole Porsche thing. And the instruction is worth every penny. Plus the low friction area, ice hill/kick plate are just there to put a massive grin on your face, under the pretence of learning about car handling

Came away discussing whether it would be viable to do exactly what you are planning: a nice recent'ish one at about that sort of money.

Then the 981 was released.

We got invited to the launch night at our local OPC, took a couple of test drives and were blown away by the improvement. The shape, interior and general feel are massively improved. Sure, some of this is subjective but it really is a great way to cover a lot of miles. We agreed on quite a few options, put down a deposit, and for the first time, bought a car new not s/h!

Specific differences between the 2010 car and the current 981, other than aesthetics?

Handbrake is now electric. You'll notice, but really, does the handbrake influence the choice of car that much?
Steering, also now electric. I'll be controversial here, and say that while it is different to the previous model, based on an hour or so around the track, there is a bigger difference in handling and feel between the Cayman and the 911 than between the two Cayman variants.
Whichever one you get, PDK is amazing but may not be to everyone's taste - you should try it though.

So get a few drives in, compare the different models and have fun. But beware of budget creep if you like the newer ones!