987 advice

[paulguitar]

I am keen on getting a 987 Cayman, but sort of terrified at the same time due to bore score stories etc. This one recently ended up unsold on eBay and the seller now will accept £9,500 for it.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Porsche-Cayman-S-3-4-Rec...


I am aware of the £500 plus annual DVLA tax on this example, aside from that, any thoughts, anyone? It’s located on Golders Green, does anyone know of someone around there who could take a look at the car for a sensible fee?

[Ahbefive]

125k sounda less than ideal.

[paulguitar]

Ahbefive said:

125k sounda less than ideal.

But £9,500. Is it overpriced at that milage, do you think?

[Ahbefive]

To be honest it is cheap but if you end up needing a replacement engine then you could be spending that money again which suddenly makes it bloody expensive.

[DJMC]

You could phone the "Porsche specialist" which did the service, ask some questions, see if they can inspect the bores (or did).

BUT... they may be a "friend" of the current owner and sit on the fence or worse. Plus, it's not just bore scoring at that mileage it's all sorts of parts, engine or elsewhere, which may need replacing.

If you ARE interested, you really need to fork out on a proper engineer's report which could put you off AND cost you dear.

Someone will advise who does the best mobile Porsche reports. I can't recall right now.

[PaulD86]

Even if the car has no issues it is worth remembering that while a cars value will usually drop, its running costs never will. The Cayman is a great car and I love mine but if you go for it then make sure you can deal with the running costs and don't find yourself with a car you can afford to buy but then can't afford to maintain properly. Don't mean to sound patronising, but it is easy to be lured into a bargain sports car and then find the bills crippling.

[Eddie Strohacker]

PaulD86 said:

Even if the car has no issues it is worth remembering that while a cars value will usually drop, its running costs never will. The Cayman is a great car and I love mine but if you go for it then make sure you can deal with the running costs and don't find yourself with a car you can afford to buy but then can't afford to maintain properly. Don't mean to sound patronising, but it is easy to be lured into a bargain sports car and then find the bills crippling.

Owned mine for two years, bought at 38k. Added 20k & so far:

Clutch
Flywheel
Water pump
Water temp sensor *
4 x discs
4 x pads
2 x Coffin arms
2 x Tuning forks
2 x ARB bushes
2 x Strut mounts
2 x Drop links
4 new tyres

All in, it's stood me about 3-4k in repairs & parts & has been significantly less resilient than previous cars. Bills would have been much higher had I not been prepared to do most of that work myself. OTOH it's an experience like no other when it's on song.

• Found out it's a common VAG part & picked one up from Skoda for about half price! Always worth checking that on generic engine bits & bobs.

[Markbarry1977]

I had a 987 3.4s, lovely car but I had the dreaded bore scoring. About a litre of oil to a tank of fuel. I looked at the cost of a rebuild but at 40% of the total car value I decided to trade it in. For a brand new m135i. Lost £10k in depreciation instead.

Did I love the 987 yes. Would of I buy another. Not for all the tea in China and certainly not at that price and mileage. It’s probably going to need a full suspension refresh. Budget £4-5k to do it all properly. If it’s still on it’s first clutch then budget £1k possibly more if the flywheel needs doing. When were the radiators and a/c condensers changed because there a magne for damage and then corrosion. That’s easily £1k.

I would love a 981 gts or even a 718s. Would I buy one nearly new and maintain it properly. Yes. Would I buy a 987 on super high milage (there’s an argument if it hasn’t broken by now then it probably won’t) at the budget (read ragged and not maintained) end of the price bracket. No way. This of course pertains to the 987.1, I believe the 987.2 to be more reliable in the engine department.

All prices assuming you don’t spanner yourself.

Edited by Markbarry1977 on Thursday 12th October 12:23

[paulguitar]

Thanks for the wise advice everyone.

I have given this some thought, and my feeling is to buy a 2.7 instead, as suggested. I know they are not super fast, actually even a bit slower on paper than my current SLK 350, but from what I have read they sound great and go well enough for UK roads in the real world.

Thanks again all.

[ooid]

I think buying any 987/997 without Porsche warranty is a huge risk due to their design flaws(engine), premature wear and expensive parts.

If you have time, knowledge, tools and resources to work on these cars they are absolutely bargain.

[edc]

ooid said:

I think buying any 987/997 without Porsche warranty is a huge risk due to their design flaws(engine), premature wear and expensive parts.

If you have time, knowledge, tools and resources to work on these cars they are absolutely bargain.

987.1 2.7 is pretty solid and pretty cheap in the grand scheme of things and until recently wouldn't have been eligible for a Porsche warranty until they extended the age limit. 987.2 engines are all seemingly quite reliable and high miler early ones are from £11k and unless renewed would also be out of warranty. I'd happily buy either without warranty.

[911-32]

Why not look at a 987 3.2S? As Moose suggested, they are more robust from a bore score POV and you will likely be looking at a lower mileage. I drove c.40k mile examples and ended up buying one at £13k. It feels tight and looks very tidy underneath with the wheels off - not the worn, dirty, corroded nightmare typical of high milers. Some low milers I looked at were not so tidy, so buy on condition. The S gets you bigger brakes, more options (generally) and personally, anything slower than the S would feel like you are struggling to keep up with the hot/warm hatch crowd. These are 1350kg cars...

I also decided that PASM, Satnav and chrono had no value to me, but as the market values them you can buy a lightly optioned car (say 19s and extended leather in a nice colour) for less. I had the dealer change in a low temp thermostat and I am about to drop the oil for Nanotech 5W40. Then I will drive it and feel (touch wood) safe from major borkage. I may yet change suspension pieces but not because of wear, rather because I want more front camber, lower ride height etc.

$0.02

[T1547]

paulguitar said:

Thanks for the wise advice everyone.

I have given this some thought, and my feeling is to buy a 2.7 instead, as suggested. I know they are not super fast, actually even a bit slower on paper than my current SLK 350, but from what I have read they sound great and go well enough for UK roads in the real world.

Thanks again all.

I went for a 2.7 for the same reason and to be honest it is a peach of an engine with enough - and importantly useable - power to have a great time in. Perfect for UK B roads.

[andygo]

I have a 95,000 mile old 3.4s that I have just put up for sale on PH.

Its as sweet as a nut, engine ticks over from cold with no odd noises. I had it checked for bore score by Autofarm today. I have pix and paperwork from them to say its fine. I thought it sensible to have my thoughts confirmed that all is good prior to offering for sale.

Regular oil changes, careful warmups are key I believe. I use Millers Nanotech full synthetic. Its a proper synthetic, not a 'cracked' synthetic.

I might actually keep the car as I suspect with my regime the engine will do at least another 50k. Driving it today brought a wide smile back to my face after 2 months with a brand new Golf R.

Autofarm, Porsche Club GB affiliates, Porsche specialists since 1973, tell me bore score is incredibly rare and overhyped. Who knows, perhaps they only see cared for examples as run of the mill ones get looked at elsewhere and cheaply.

[andygo]

Only reporting what was said to me...

I did have the caveat are the clientele though.

Edited by andygo on Friday 27th October 21:40

[phib]

We are thinking about another boxster so am I right that in terms of reliability the 2.7 and the 3,2 are the most reliable ( i.e. engine issues) if it makes any difference we are looking at a Tip

Obviously know that 3.2 was the early 987's but is there any differences in age re the 2.7 ?

Thanks
Phib

[phib]

Why avoid the tip ? reliability issues ?

[PaulD86]

Overtaking with tip. Mash foot into the carpet. Wait. Wait some more. And a bit longer. Keep waiting. Lower ratio found. There are corpses more responsive than the Tiptronic box. It would be fine, I suspect, in a big barge but in a sports car it's as out of place as a pole dancer at a funeral. And it may have buttons on the wheel to override the auto gear selection but these are a token gesture. My partners 911 2 back had Tiptronic. It ruined the car. The next had PDK and the difference was night and day.