U turn if you want to, Slippy's not for turning .....
Discussion
or is he ? ? ?
Best uncork something or get the kettle on ......
Porsche, like any good quality narcotic, is highly addictive, and try as I might to quit the habit, I can't. I am an addict.
Unfortunately unlike the enticing deals offered by your local purveyor of recreational pharmaceuticals, few, if any, first Porsche hits are free (though looking at current aircooled prices, my first 964 RS bought for £23k 15 years ago was as good as...)
Faced with raising the funds for a house build 18 months ago, my Mk1 996 GT3 along with my 964 RS had to be sold. Last summer, whilst full of excitement at the thought of the impending house build, was my first sans "toy" for many, many years. And by last autumn I was all too aware that 2017 would most likely be no different.
As the nights drew in, more time was spent looking through the PH classifieds and Autotrader, along with the usual purveyors of quality Pork to the gentry. The more I looked, the more it became clear that getting back into any iteration of GT3 or indeed a decent spec (LHD, manual, preferably without sunroof, 2WD) 993 or 964 was going to be a tall financial order. Much scouting on mobile.de only confirmed my worst thoughts, I was out of the game with little or nothing in the way of chips to get back in.....
Faced with another summer sans "toy", I started looking at Gen 1 987 3.4 Caymans. Plenty of cars on the market, but nice examples (lowish miles, strong colours, manual, decent coloured interiors and decent spec) weren't exactly thick on the ground, and those that ticked my boxes were worrying close to the asking prices of leggyer Gen 2 3.4 Caymans.
All too aware of the engine issues that can afflict the Gen 1 cars, and knowing that funds would be tight over the coming 12-18 months, it made more sense to spend an extra £4-5k and buy a Gen 2 car with their less troublesome powerplants.
At this point budget creep entered the equation ...... Sure a nice sensible (40K) miles Gen 2 car with some decent options could be had for £26k (though when I was looking in late Nov/Dec there were few, if any Gen 2 cars in strong colours) but furthermore I knew I'd want to tweak whatever Gen 2 car I bought, and thus the cost of seats/seat trimming, wheels/tyres, suspension kits, brakes, exhaust etc etc, soon elevated the cost to a price point perilously close to that of the fabled Cayman R.......
Now the stalwarts on here will know I've expressed my views on the lightweight Cayman R in less than glowing terms based on a week long roadtest back in 2011.
Having purchased a Gen 1 997 GT3 off Swindon OPC, it required several issues be addressed (a testament to Swindon's fine used car preparation standards. Not) Somewhat miffed at having to hand back the GT3, I demanded an example of the much lauded Cayman R as recompense (please note this is not my usual modus operandi, I'm normally very laid back and sanguine about what loan cars I'm given, unlike the average PH Porsche owner it would seem...)
Upon dropping the GT3 off at Swindon and chatting with the hugely professional service advisors (yeh right ...) not to mention demonstrating the issues with the car to their Master Technician, who clearly thought I'd arrived the previous day on one of these :
I was given the keys to an as new (less than 500 miles) GT ? Silver Cayman R. Having read the rave reviews, i was looking forward to the week ahead, though all too aware that filling the GT3's shoes was going to be a tall order for the lightweight Cayman.
The journey home up the M5 was tedious, and didn't really play to the car's strengths. All in all the Comfort seats were uninspiring, the engine lacklustre (note the mileage) the gearbox/shift like that of any other mass produced modern car, the exhaust note irritating (Sports exhaust fitted), and the final ignominy ? The brake pedal turned to mush after 3-4 miles of Slippy "abuse" on the twisty roads leading back to chez Slippy.
When I exited the cockpit the brakes were wafting smoke in manner reminiscent of someone enjoying a Havana cigar within the confines of the wheelarch ......
The Cayman sat on the drive forlornly for the next few days, my plans for an all out assault on the roads of N.Wales and the Evo Triangle dashed.
I did however take the car down to Fearnsport at Silverstone, which meant using the wonderful B4525 (aka The Welsh road) between Middleton Cheney and the A43 at Syresham, and here I noted the car's rather impressive balance and composure, not to mention it's undoubted pace ....
Finally the call from Swindon OPC arrived. with the good news the GT3 was ready for collection. The Cayman returned to it's home, not disgraced, but not the object of desire I'd hoped/wanted it to be. My summation was aired on here some three years later in response to something inflammatory the then wet behind the ears Porsche newcomer ORD had said on a thread in General Gassing
Apologies, the wonderful PH architecture won't allow me to format this quote in italics or bold
Quote starts here :
"When my Slate grey Gen 1 GT3 went back to Swindon OPC for some warranty work, I requested a Cayman R as a loan car. Swindon were very accommodating and I found myself with the keys to an almost new GT Silver Cayman R for the next five days.
Having read all the glowing road tests of the recently launched car, I couldn’t wait to get behind the wheel.[/b]
Alas, I’m afraid it turned out to be rather a damp squib. If the 964 RS sounds like old tin cans (not sure what you’re referring to specifically ?) the Cayman R sounded like any other car on the road (but hey, at least by pressing a button you could make it sound “sporty”). And what a sporty noise it was. Not. Instead you got a slightly louder and more convoluted/synthesised version of the “basic” non-sport noise.
A word in your shell-like, get someone to take you out in a de-catted 964 RS, (preferably one fitted with a Cup pipe fitted) then you’ll know what “sporty” sounds like. But failing that, I’ll take you out for a spin in my Manthey modified GT3.
“But what if I don’t want the sporty noise all the time ?” you say. Simple, don’t tread on the loud pedal so heavily.
So my summation is thus :
Steering ? Lifeless, lacking in weight, feedback and to a lesser degree, feel (not helped by the Bridgestone tyres I suspect).
Brakes ? Rather lacking in feel, pathetically small and looked lost behind the rather lovely 19” lightweight wheels.
Engine ? Dull, lacking in any real character, top end verve and a decent soundtrack.
Internal door pulls ? A joke (see my original post below requoted for posterity) :
"Pull on the inner door latch release pulls (formed from doubled up loops of seat belt material) feel the way they release the door latches so mechanically (then try the pastiche of the same idea on the Cayman R and feel how, as a sop to the RS, they've tried to incorporate the same idea into a door trim that wasn't designed for it (neither was the release mechanism) and feel how utterly sh*te it feels in it's action when compared to the original. It's what happens when the marketing men decree what goes into a car, rather than letting an engineer decide"
Interior ? Bland and generally lacking any sense of occasion.
The drive ? Very accomplished (but wait for it), dull. I had the car five days, but having driven it from Swindon back oop North, it sat forlornly on the drive for the duration, as I couldn’t muster sufficient enthusiasm to take it on a proper cross country hoon across N.Wales. How sad is that ?
Conclusion ? Just not special enough, too amorphous and too anodyne for my taste.
Overly harsh ? Maybe. But anyone that's driven an air-cooled RS or a water-cooled GT car (well certainly the 996 iterations) will be all too aware that the Cayman, irrespective of how efficient it is at getting from A to B, has little in the way of character, limited tactility, and from my perspective is about as engaging as night down the pub with Simon Cowell.....
And ends here ^
Almost as damning as 911R's summation of his Mk2 996 GT3
Evening David, how's your blood pressure ? 
Anyway, back on track, fast forward to early January 2017 and I find myself at Cameron Sports Cars looking at a rather fine example of Meteor grey Cayman R, manual, Spyder wheels, carbon fibre buckets, quickshift, sports exhaust (iirc).
The drive is illuminating, the weather whilst typically cold for early January finds me road testing the car under an azure blue sky with the sun making an all too welcome appearance. the quickshift makes the gearbox a tad too baulky when cold, but once warmed through it's pretty much perfect. The sports exhaust is a bit meh still. But the car's intrinsic balance and composure on the roads North of Cmoose's front door, showed just what a capable package the Cayman is. I was rather smitten, but having owned a Gen 1 997 GT3 in Meteor (and it is a wonderful colour) I craved something stronger for the Cayman.
Whilst there were plenty of cars on the market (the yellow ex PGB press car with no A/C gave me many a sleepless night) none were the correct spec nor colour. So I kept coming back to the Guards red example at RPM in Knaresborough. Shocking photographed (sorry Nick et all) it didn't look good, but it ticked all the boxes : sensible mileage ie not collector status low, Spyder wheels, manual, carbon buckets, a classic Porsche colour and "sensibly" priced.
After several days procrastination, I figured I'd nothing to lose by driving up to Knaresborough and checking the car out, so headed up there to meet Nick and the team at RPM. Upon my arrival the Cayman sat outside looking a thousand times more impressive in the flesh than it had in the advert photos. And truth be known, I knew I'd be buying it before I walked over the threshold and introduced myself to Nick ! !
The testdrive was uneventful, the glorious weather I'd experienced only three days previously in the Cotswolds was but a distant memory, and replaced by Yorkshires finest persistent drizzle (or as I prefer to call it, pizzle) however whilst the weather was miserable, the Cayman really shone. No quickshift, no sports exhaust, and an engine that felt far more willing than the Meteor grey car at Cameron (or the Swindon loan car), and rolling on Michelin Pilot Sports rather than the ubiquitous Bridgestones, it made for a fun and entertaining driving experience.
Suffice to say a deal was struck and I headed home a very happy bunny indeed. Events on the property front meant the car stayed at RPM from early January until I picked it up some 5 weeks ago. The journey home left me with a healthy dose of buyers remorse (not uncommon for me) the seats whilst wonderful, are set too high, this triggered my usual back problems, and added to the drive home being 95% motorway miles, I arrived back tired, irritable, achey and generally wishing I'd not bought the bloody thing... ! ! !
Twenty four hours later I ventured out in the car feeling refreshed, less achey and more open minded. Driven on some local twisties my enthusiasm was quickly rekindled
A couple of small faults have presented themselves, both noted whilst having a geo set up at Fearnsport (thankyou to Matty and Matt) Firstly the outer third of the anulus of the inner face of the front discs has the obligatory deep corrosion and the stunning lightweight Spyder wheels look to have been cleaned with a Brillo pad and subsequently polished with a bottle of Colour Magic or similar. The good gents at RPM (who were excellent to deal with and made for one of the most painless buying experiences I've experienced, along with 911Box from whom I bought my first 996 Mk1 GT3 off) have been made aware and will no doubt step up to the plate to make both matters good as per their previous undertaking to do so.
The geo adjustment was required as the car displayed some handling deficiencies under duress a couple of weeks ago (the "duress" was by way of a spririted Saturday morning drive with a 430 Scuderia, a 991 GTS PDK, a 3.9 450hp engined Mk1 996 GT3 and a Gen 1 997 GT3).
The deficencies manifest themselves in a willingness to turn into righthanders with some alacrity, but then oversteer when getting back on the throttle, and a distinct refusal to turn into lefthanders, but provide copious amounts of traction once back on the throttle ..... It made for some "interesting" moments when the rain came down I can tell you ! !
The lads at Fearnsport wound all the front camber they could on (aluminium doors but no GT3 split coffin arms or adjustable top mounts, what were the bean-counters thinking ?) and set the front toe parallel, the rear toe was set to toe in a smidge and the camber equalised. The end result ? The drive back along the Welsh road was "brisk" and resulted in something akin to this :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJx-4SlItH0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9wZbXhqzM4
Suffice to say the car now handles like a go kart and has grip aplenty in both left and right handers
Struggling with the uncomfortable seating position, I elected to order a set of these from the States :
http://www.tarett.com/items/996-997-991-products/9...
Not cheap with the carriage (never mind what the robbing bar stewards from HMRC had off me) the lads at Fearnsport fitted them at the same time as doing the geo. They are an improvement, but I suspect I'll end up being utterly selfish and removing the sliders and bolting the seat in a fixed, lower position to a floor mounted adaptor. That should drop it another 10-15mm (making for a total of about 25mm). It should then be perfect.
The brakes always stop it, even under serious duress, but confidence inspiring they ain't, The pedal is mushy and the travel excessive.
The standard gearshift does exactly what it says on the tin, no complaints, it's fast enough and precise enough.
The engine in this car is a peach, waaaay stronger than the two other cars I've driven, it revs wonderfully freely and sounds superb even with the standard non-Sports exhaust.
A friend bought a stunning albeit low mileage Cayman R last year or the year before (can't remember) and as an ex-Mk 1 GT3 Clubsport owner said he thought the Cayman was slower when it came to overtaking when compared with the Mk1 GT3. I'd disagree with that and would say there's little in it up to 90-100mph (especially if you wring the Cayman's neck to redline), though I suspect the GT3 may edge it above 100mph.
The suspension is deeply impressive (all the moreso bearing in mind the 19" wheels) and whilst the spring and damper rates are excellent and well chosen, I have some reservations about the dampers (or specifically their quality) as whilst out for that Saturday morning drive, they were found wanting over some of the really fast cresty stuff (I won't divulge the speeds for obvious reasons...) though this slight waywardness may have been down to the less than perfect geometry settings pre adjustment. However the fact that the Cayman wasn't found wanting in such exalted company speaks volumes for it's overall abilities. Though it has to be said that extracting it's performance isn't especially difficult when compared to a 996 GT3...
I bought the car because I wanted something that was a bit special, relatively (In Cayman terms) rare and sought after, and it needed to have decent residuals. The latter as I suspected its tenure may be short lived, not because it's a bad car in any way, merely that as several of you (specifically Cmoose) have said, a Gen 2 S could be fettled to make something better, for a quite a lot less money. However ....
Even in the five short weeks I've been driving the car, it's got under my skin and proven itself to be very accomplished and fun. And there's the rub, it's actually such a good all round package (allied to what look to be decent residuals for the "correct" spec cars) that my plans to use it as a benchmark for a future Gen 2 S "project" have been somewhat thwarted Thus if finances will allow, it's tenure may well be extended
And the obligatory pictures :
[url=https://postimg.cc/sBYZ55Jk]
[url=https://postimg.cc/Thwp3zZM]
[/url}
P.S Still hate the internal door pulls mind
Edit to add images.
Best uncork something or get the kettle on ......
Porsche, like any good quality narcotic, is highly addictive, and try as I might to quit the habit, I can't. I am an addict.
Unfortunately unlike the enticing deals offered by your local purveyor of recreational pharmaceuticals, few, if any, first Porsche hits are free (though looking at current aircooled prices, my first 964 RS bought for £23k 15 years ago was as good as...)
Faced with raising the funds for a house build 18 months ago, my Mk1 996 GT3 along with my 964 RS had to be sold. Last summer, whilst full of excitement at the thought of the impending house build, was my first sans "toy" for many, many years. And by last autumn I was all too aware that 2017 would most likely be no different.
As the nights drew in, more time was spent looking through the PH classifieds and Autotrader, along with the usual purveyors of quality Pork to the gentry. The more I looked, the more it became clear that getting back into any iteration of GT3 or indeed a decent spec (LHD, manual, preferably without sunroof, 2WD) 993 or 964 was going to be a tall financial order. Much scouting on mobile.de only confirmed my worst thoughts, I was out of the game with little or nothing in the way of chips to get back in.....
Faced with another summer sans "toy", I started looking at Gen 1 987 3.4 Caymans. Plenty of cars on the market, but nice examples (lowish miles, strong colours, manual, decent coloured interiors and decent spec) weren't exactly thick on the ground, and those that ticked my boxes were worrying close to the asking prices of leggyer Gen 2 3.4 Caymans.
All too aware of the engine issues that can afflict the Gen 1 cars, and knowing that funds would be tight over the coming 12-18 months, it made more sense to spend an extra £4-5k and buy a Gen 2 car with their less troublesome powerplants.
At this point budget creep entered the equation ...... Sure a nice sensible (40K) miles Gen 2 car with some decent options could be had for £26k (though when I was looking in late Nov/Dec there were few, if any Gen 2 cars in strong colours) but furthermore I knew I'd want to tweak whatever Gen 2 car I bought, and thus the cost of seats/seat trimming, wheels/tyres, suspension kits, brakes, exhaust etc etc, soon elevated the cost to a price point perilously close to that of the fabled Cayman R.......
Now the stalwarts on here will know I've expressed my views on the lightweight Cayman R in less than glowing terms based on a week long roadtest back in 2011.
Having purchased a Gen 1 997 GT3 off Swindon OPC, it required several issues be addressed (a testament to Swindon's fine used car preparation standards. Not) Somewhat miffed at having to hand back the GT3, I demanded an example of the much lauded Cayman R as recompense (please note this is not my usual modus operandi, I'm normally very laid back and sanguine about what loan cars I'm given, unlike the average PH Porsche owner it would seem...)
Upon dropping the GT3 off at Swindon and chatting with the hugely professional service advisors (yeh right ...) not to mention demonstrating the issues with the car to their Master Technician, who clearly thought I'd arrived the previous day on one of these :
I was given the keys to an as new (less than 500 miles) GT ? Silver Cayman R. Having read the rave reviews, i was looking forward to the week ahead, though all too aware that filling the GT3's shoes was going to be a tall order for the lightweight Cayman.
The journey home up the M5 was tedious, and didn't really play to the car's strengths. All in all the Comfort seats were uninspiring, the engine lacklustre (note the mileage) the gearbox/shift like that of any other mass produced modern car, the exhaust note irritating (Sports exhaust fitted), and the final ignominy ? The brake pedal turned to mush after 3-4 miles of Slippy "abuse" on the twisty roads leading back to chez Slippy.
When I exited the cockpit the brakes were wafting smoke in manner reminiscent of someone enjoying a Havana cigar within the confines of the wheelarch ......
The Cayman sat on the drive forlornly for the next few days, my plans for an all out assault on the roads of N.Wales and the Evo Triangle dashed.
I did however take the car down to Fearnsport at Silverstone, which meant using the wonderful B4525 (aka The Welsh road) between Middleton Cheney and the A43 at Syresham, and here I noted the car's rather impressive balance and composure, not to mention it's undoubted pace ....
Finally the call from Swindon OPC arrived. with the good news the GT3 was ready for collection. The Cayman returned to it's home, not disgraced, but not the object of desire I'd hoped/wanted it to be. My summation was aired on here some three years later in response to something inflammatory the then wet behind the ears Porsche newcomer ORD had said on a thread in General Gassing
Apologies, the wonderful PH architecture won't allow me to format this quote in italics or bold
Quote starts here :
"When my Slate grey Gen 1 GT3 went back to Swindon OPC for some warranty work, I requested a Cayman R as a loan car. Swindon were very accommodating and I found myself with the keys to an almost new GT Silver Cayman R for the next five days.
Having read all the glowing road tests of the recently launched car, I couldn’t wait to get behind the wheel.[/b]
Alas, I’m afraid it turned out to be rather a damp squib. If the 964 RS sounds like old tin cans (not sure what you’re referring to specifically ?) the Cayman R sounded like any other car on the road (but hey, at least by pressing a button you could make it sound “sporty”). And what a sporty noise it was. Not. Instead you got a slightly louder and more convoluted/synthesised version of the “basic” non-sport noise.
A word in your shell-like, get someone to take you out in a de-catted 964 RS, (preferably one fitted with a Cup pipe fitted) then you’ll know what “sporty” sounds like. But failing that, I’ll take you out for a spin in my Manthey modified GT3.
“But what if I don’t want the sporty noise all the time ?” you say. Simple, don’t tread on the loud pedal so heavily.
So my summation is thus :
Steering ? Lifeless, lacking in weight, feedback and to a lesser degree, feel (not helped by the Bridgestone tyres I suspect).
Brakes ? Rather lacking in feel, pathetically small and looked lost behind the rather lovely 19” lightweight wheels.
Engine ? Dull, lacking in any real character, top end verve and a decent soundtrack.
Internal door pulls ? A joke (see my original post below requoted for posterity) :
"Pull on the inner door latch release pulls (formed from doubled up loops of seat belt material) feel the way they release the door latches so mechanically (then try the pastiche of the same idea on the Cayman R and feel how, as a sop to the RS, they've tried to incorporate the same idea into a door trim that wasn't designed for it (neither was the release mechanism) and feel how utterly sh*te it feels in it's action when compared to the original. It's what happens when the marketing men decree what goes into a car, rather than letting an engineer decide"
Interior ? Bland and generally lacking any sense of occasion.
The drive ? Very accomplished (but wait for it), dull. I had the car five days, but having driven it from Swindon back oop North, it sat forlornly on the drive for the duration, as I couldn’t muster sufficient enthusiasm to take it on a proper cross country hoon across N.Wales. How sad is that ?
Conclusion ? Just not special enough, too amorphous and too anodyne for my taste.
Overly harsh ? Maybe. But anyone that's driven an air-cooled RS or a water-cooled GT car (well certainly the 996 iterations) will be all too aware that the Cayman, irrespective of how efficient it is at getting from A to B, has little in the way of character, limited tactility, and from my perspective is about as engaging as night down the pub with Simon Cowell.....
And ends here ^
Almost as damning as 911R's summation of his Mk2 996 GT3
Evening David, how's your blood pressure ? Anyway, back on track, fast forward to early January 2017 and I find myself at Cameron Sports Cars looking at a rather fine example of Meteor grey Cayman R, manual, Spyder wheels, carbon fibre buckets, quickshift, sports exhaust (iirc).
The drive is illuminating, the weather whilst typically cold for early January finds me road testing the car under an azure blue sky with the sun making an all too welcome appearance. the quickshift makes the gearbox a tad too baulky when cold, but once warmed through it's pretty much perfect. The sports exhaust is a bit meh still. But the car's intrinsic balance and composure on the roads North of Cmoose's front door, showed just what a capable package the Cayman is. I was rather smitten, but having owned a Gen 1 997 GT3 in Meteor (and it is a wonderful colour) I craved something stronger for the Cayman.
Whilst there were plenty of cars on the market (the yellow ex PGB press car with no A/C gave me many a sleepless night) none were the correct spec nor colour. So I kept coming back to the Guards red example at RPM in Knaresborough. Shocking photographed (sorry Nick et all) it didn't look good, but it ticked all the boxes : sensible mileage ie not collector status low, Spyder wheels, manual, carbon buckets, a classic Porsche colour and "sensibly" priced.
After several days procrastination, I figured I'd nothing to lose by driving up to Knaresborough and checking the car out, so headed up there to meet Nick and the team at RPM. Upon my arrival the Cayman sat outside looking a thousand times more impressive in the flesh than it had in the advert photos. And truth be known, I knew I'd be buying it before I walked over the threshold and introduced myself to Nick ! !
The testdrive was uneventful, the glorious weather I'd experienced only three days previously in the Cotswolds was but a distant memory, and replaced by Yorkshires finest persistent drizzle (or as I prefer to call it, pizzle) however whilst the weather was miserable, the Cayman really shone. No quickshift, no sports exhaust, and an engine that felt far more willing than the Meteor grey car at Cameron (or the Swindon loan car), and rolling on Michelin Pilot Sports rather than the ubiquitous Bridgestones, it made for a fun and entertaining driving experience.
Suffice to say a deal was struck and I headed home a very happy bunny indeed. Events on the property front meant the car stayed at RPM from early January until I picked it up some 5 weeks ago. The journey home left me with a healthy dose of buyers remorse (not uncommon for me) the seats whilst wonderful, are set too high, this triggered my usual back problems, and added to the drive home being 95% motorway miles, I arrived back tired, irritable, achey and generally wishing I'd not bought the bloody thing... ! ! !
Twenty four hours later I ventured out in the car feeling refreshed, less achey and more open minded. Driven on some local twisties my enthusiasm was quickly rekindled
A couple of small faults have presented themselves, both noted whilst having a geo set up at Fearnsport (thankyou to Matty and Matt)
Firstly the outer third of the anulus of the inner face of the front discs has the obligatory deep corrosion and the stunning lightweight Spyder wheels look to have been cleaned with a Brillo pad and subsequently polished with a bottle of Colour Magic or similar. The good gents at RPM (who were excellent to deal with and made for one of the most painless buying experiences I've experienced, along with 911Box from whom I bought my first 996 Mk1 GT3 off) have been made aware and will no doubt step up to the plate to make both matters good as per their previous undertaking to do so.The geo adjustment was required as the car displayed some handling deficiencies under duress a couple of weeks ago (the "duress" was by way of a spririted Saturday morning drive with a 430 Scuderia, a 991 GTS PDK, a 3.9 450hp engined Mk1 996 GT3 and a Gen 1 997 GT3).
The deficencies manifest themselves in a willingness to turn into righthanders with some alacrity, but then oversteer when getting back on the throttle, and a distinct refusal to turn into lefthanders, but provide copious amounts of traction once back on the throttle ..... It made for some "interesting" moments when the rain came down I can tell you ! !
The lads at Fearnsport wound all the front camber they could on (aluminium doors but no GT3 split coffin arms or adjustable top mounts, what were the bean-counters thinking ?) and set the front toe parallel, the rear toe was set to toe in a smidge and the camber equalised. The end result ? The drive back along the Welsh road was "brisk" and resulted in something akin to this :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJx-4SlItH0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9wZbXhqzM4
Suffice to say the car now handles like a go kart and has grip aplenty in both left and right handers
Struggling with the uncomfortable seating position, I elected to order a set of these from the States :
http://www.tarett.com/items/996-997-991-products/9...
Not cheap with the carriage (never mind what the robbing bar stewards from HMRC had off me) the lads at Fearnsport fitted them at the same time as doing the geo. They are an improvement, but I suspect I'll end up being utterly selfish and removing the sliders and bolting the seat in a fixed, lower position to a floor mounted adaptor. That should drop it another 10-15mm (making for a total of about 25mm). It should then be perfect.
The brakes always stop it, even under serious duress, but confidence inspiring they ain't, The pedal is mushy and the travel excessive.
The standard gearshift does exactly what it says on the tin, no complaints, it's fast enough and precise enough.
The engine in this car is a peach, waaaay stronger than the two other cars I've driven, it revs wonderfully freely and sounds superb even with the standard non-Sports exhaust.
A friend bought a stunning albeit low mileage Cayman R last year or the year before (can't remember) and as an ex-Mk 1 GT3 Clubsport owner said he thought the Cayman was slower when it came to overtaking when compared with the Mk1 GT3. I'd disagree with that and would say there's little in it up to 90-100mph (especially if you wring the Cayman's neck to redline), though I suspect the GT3 may edge it above 100mph.
The suspension is deeply impressive (all the moreso bearing in mind the 19" wheels) and whilst the spring and damper rates are excellent and well chosen, I have some reservations about the dampers (or specifically their quality) as whilst out for that Saturday morning drive, they were found wanting over some of the really fast cresty stuff (I won't divulge the speeds for obvious reasons...) though this slight waywardness may have been down to the less than perfect geometry settings pre adjustment. However the fact that the Cayman wasn't found wanting in such exalted company speaks volumes for it's overall abilities. Though it has to be said that extracting it's performance isn't especially difficult when compared to a 996 GT3...
I bought the car because I wanted something that was a bit special, relatively (In Cayman terms) rare and sought after, and it needed to have decent residuals. The latter as I suspected its tenure may be short lived, not because it's a bad car in any way, merely that as several of you (specifically Cmoose) have said, a Gen 2 S could be fettled to make something better, for a quite a lot less money. However ....
Even in the five short weeks I've been driving the car, it's got under my skin and proven itself to be very accomplished and fun. And there's the rub, it's actually such a good all round package (allied to what look to be decent residuals for the "correct" spec cars) that my plans to use it as a benchmark for a future Gen 2 S "project" have been somewhat thwarted Thus if finances will allow, it's tenure may well be extended
And the obligatory pictures :
[url=https://postimg.cc/sBYZ55Jk]
[url=https://postimg.cc/Thwp3zZM]
[/url}P.S Still hate the internal door pulls mind
Edit to add images.
Edited by Slippydiff on Wednesday 16th September 08:26
isaldiri said:
Slippydiff, are you actually saying that demon/991R was right all along....?
https://youtu.be/Oz8RjPAD2Jk
Porsche911R said:
Looks great in red, and is that a recovered steering wheel again looks great.
The R is a nice thing, yes it has a few down sides, but so does EVERY car, it's plenty fast enough for sure and as the OP has said, below 100mph not a lot in it vs GT3's, it does puff abit over 100mph if you are used to an extra 100bhp, but in the UK for fun it's enough BHP for sure.
A geo is a must have, and even maybe 7mm spacers up front, or go the whole hog and fit adjustable LCA as even on a stock geo on full camber I wear my outers still. My Spyder runs -2 up front and I get good wear and no need for spacers either as you gain more track by default. One may have to put a smaller spacer in the rear, I did to balance it back up a bit, it was a bit too much rear action with 28mm extra front track and no rear spacers, so I added 5mm each side on the back which feels better on the limit.
The shift is great once warm as noted, it is a 997 part after all for the short shift.
Brakes , and that's a rub :-) do over heat, the best way forward imo with out changing calipers and ££££ is upsizing disks to 340MM gyro units, Gyro supply the spacers for the calipers, some srf,, RS29 and the 997 GT3 lower air ducts. I would do that before any GT3 MC change as once you do,you may not think you need less pedal travel. And every one knows my MC issues, less travel is not a good thing for me on the limit, Threshold braking is far easier (what ever the moose says) with more travel, it's simple maths !
So geo fixed
brakes fixed sort of !
Tyres is a more tricky one, I hate all Nspec as they are very dated but the PS2 is the best of the lot, I loved the super sports I ran on my first R and have fitted PS4S on my 2nd R, I do in fact like the older supersports more !! the side walls are stiffer on the PS4S or feel stiffer so the ride comfort is reduced and the steering has less weight. I really did like the Super sports. I will drop pressures 1 psi on the PS4S and see how I get on.
The passive set up on the R makes it, but ofcourse it can be bettered, and Ohlins now have road and track for the cars so an option, but I quite like the jiggle on the R passives, it keeps speeds down and makes the car more alive, if you fix that you will just drive faster and for me that's not my aim, fun sub 80mph is key with these new speeding laws. (this really is a kick in the balls for GT3's as you just have to go faster by 20/30 mph imho)
I am happy Slippy has tried an R many 964 track warriors have and so have many a GT3 owner , most not by choice 1/2 the time as people cashed in on GT3 and the like found the R by default, 964 owners found a straight swap possible from a once £15k car ! , it is the poor mans Porker after all, but you have to live with that knowing you are having more fun.
I look forward to more reviews and to see what Slippy will do brake wise, the best option is to fit the 996 GT3 mk 2 caliper (this is the same calipers as fitted to the PCCB Cayman R and they also make a bespoke MC inbetween the R and the GT3 one to match, this will allow the 6 pots and 350mm disks.
My Spyder feels amazing with this set up but it is a tad more than the 340mm Gyro disk upsize.
Have fun I say, it really is a fun little car (little is a major plus point again, it does feel smaller even after driving the GT4)
PS the lucky bugger also got xenons, and while still not Audi like, they are night and day ;-) over the standard s
t !!! but so rare to see on an R.
My understanding is the change to Mk2 996 GT3 six pots, requires the 997 S or PCCB 987 front uprights ? Though there's a company in the States that does adaptors to convert the standard 987 front upright spacing to the slightly wider bolt spacing of the 996 six pot calipers. The R is a nice thing, yes it has a few down sides, but so does EVERY car, it's plenty fast enough for sure and as the OP has said, below 100mph not a lot in it vs GT3's, it does puff abit over 100mph if you are used to an extra 100bhp, but in the UK for fun it's enough BHP for sure.
A geo is a must have, and even maybe 7mm spacers up front, or go the whole hog and fit adjustable LCA as even on a stock geo on full camber I wear my outers still. My Spyder runs -2 up front and I get good wear and no need for spacers either as you gain more track by default. One may have to put a smaller spacer in the rear, I did to balance it back up a bit, it was a bit too much rear action with 28mm extra front track and no rear spacers, so I added 5mm each side on the back which feels better on the limit.
The shift is great once warm as noted, it is a 997 part after all for the short shift.
Brakes , and that's a rub :-) do over heat, the best way forward imo with out changing calipers and ££££ is upsizing disks to 340MM gyro units, Gyro supply the spacers for the calipers, some srf,, RS29 and the 997 GT3 lower air ducts. I would do that before any GT3 MC change as once you do,you may not think you need less pedal travel. And every one knows my MC issues, less travel is not a good thing for me on the limit, Threshold braking is far easier (what ever the moose says) with more travel, it's simple maths !
So geo fixed
brakes fixed sort of !
Tyres is a more tricky one, I hate all Nspec as they are very dated but the PS2 is the best of the lot, I loved the super sports I ran on my first R and have fitted PS4S on my 2nd R, I do in fact like the older supersports more !! the side walls are stiffer on the PS4S or feel stiffer so the ride comfort is reduced and the steering has less weight. I really did like the Super sports. I will drop pressures 1 psi on the PS4S and see how I get on.
The passive set up on the R makes it, but ofcourse it can be bettered, and Ohlins now have road and track for the cars so an option, but I quite like the jiggle on the R passives, it keeps speeds down and makes the car more alive, if you fix that you will just drive faster and for me that's not my aim, fun sub 80mph is key with these new speeding laws. (this really is a kick in the balls for GT3's as you just have to go faster by 20/30 mph imho)
I am happy Slippy has tried an R many 964 track warriors have and so have many a GT3 owner , most not by choice 1/2 the time as people cashed in on GT3 and the like found the R by default, 964 owners found a straight swap possible from a once £15k car ! , it is the poor mans Porker after all, but you have to live with that knowing you are having more fun.
I look forward to more reviews and to see what Slippy will do brake wise, the best option is to fit the 996 GT3 mk 2 caliper (this is the same calipers as fitted to the PCCB Cayman R and they also make a bespoke MC inbetween the R and the GT3 one to match, this will allow the 6 pots and 350mm disks.
My Spyder feels amazing with this set up but it is a tad more than the 340mm Gyro disk upsize.
Have fun I say, it really is a fun little car (little is a major plus point again, it does feel smaller even after driving the GT4)
PS the lucky bugger also got xenons, and while still not Audi like, they are night and day ;-) over the standard s
t !!! but so rare to see on an R.The six pots are now hugely expensive (and to make matters worse I sold a pair of "as new" refurbished items for £1100 this time last year.....)
No doubt the rears would need upgrading to retain some kind of decent front to rear balance too. I'm pretty sure the standard four pots on larger diameter discs with decent pads and fluid will be more than up to the job. And as you know, the car doesn't require such heavy braking as the GT3 to get weight transfer onto the front anyway .....
In all honesty I've researched the available increased disc size availablity, and think I have plan that'll utilise the standard calipers and work out cheaper than the Giro disc conversion whilst utilising floating items too.
Looking like I'll go with PFC 08 or 11 pads, they seem to be getting good reviews on Rennlist. RS29's are excellent, but a bit like PS2's, they're an old compound now, and do have their shortcomings, not least of all their cost....
Steering wheel recovered
(minus dab of oppo red stripe) as when I bought it, it was the usual matted mass of sweat infused alcantara 
ras62 said:
a.k.a Shameless slippydiff.
First Boxey, now Slippy. It's disturbing news. I've just been out to the garage to tell old 964 and I think she's wet herself....either that or I've got another oil leak;)
First Boxey, now Slippy. It's disturbing news. I've just been out to the garage to tell old 964 and I think she's wet herself....either that or I've got another oil leak;)
Hi ras, hope you're well ? Wish we'd spoken at Oulton
Much as I'd love to be back in a 964 (the Rubystone car at JZM has given me plenty of sleepless nights) they just don't make sense at my current price point, when you can have something 25+ years younger that's far, far quicker and hopefully waaaay cheaper to run. No oil leaks, no tired suspension, no corrosion issues, the list is endless (unfortunately).Old age is creeping up on me and my priorities are changing, less time and money spent on cars, more on looking to the future financially. I doubt I'll ever do the RS aircooled thing again, they're just so difficult to justify at their current price levels. Lots of very fond memories though, so not all bad ! !
SignalGruen said:
Great write up. I was sorely tempted by the one at Cameron last year, was the perfect spec for me but decided to persist with the 964 instead. They are lovely things to drive but for me have similar, albeit minor, drawbacks as the 996 GT3 namely seating too high and light steering. I still have one eye on the classifieds for a GT3 or Cayman R so may end up with one in the end.
Good to hear from you ! ! The seating position is a mystery, Porsche normally get this stuff spot on (though i have to say i find the Mk1 996 GT3 buckets pretty much the perfect seat and driving position) the stunning folding carbon buckets in the Cayman are just "wrong". But when we stripped the seat out at Fearnsport, you could see the base of the seat pan protrudes beneath the lowest part of the side mounts, so the base itself is clearly very thick compared with a Pole Position/SPG shell type seat.As I mentioned in my initial post, I think the runners will have to go to lower the seat a further 10-15mm. It'll make for a more solid installation and allow the seat height to be much closer to optimal. My guess is it will also align the driver's rollcentre with that of the car's better too.
The steering weight isn't the issue I thought it would be, we human beings are nothing if not adaptable, you very rapidly attune to the differing steering weight (as I did in my M3 CSL) it rapidly becomes a non-issue. Though with some stickier rubber, and trick suspension components, I suspect you'd be able to make it as weighty and feelsome as you want.
Edited by Slippydiff on Friday 12th May 10:36
TheRocket said:
Nice write up and a lovely car, I recently bought a Gen 2 'S' and I am in the process of upgrading to a fast road/occasional track day spec, so have so far done the GT3 MC and braided lines, I'm a fan of it for the feel but appreciate it offers nothing more in terms of overall performance. I've gone for 997 GT3 front brake air scoops and for the rear will adapt a set of 997 Turbo rear scoops to try and aid cooling, not sure what to do on fluid yet but have bought some EBC yellow stuff pads but so far no one seems to rate them so we will see..
I'm generally very impressed with the Chassis, it has great poise and balance but is a bit floaty at high speeds, also aesthetically I think the car needs to be lower so Centre Gravity will fit Ohlins R+T suspension on my car next month and set up accordingly. Whilst I'm on my way to Spa next week to watch the Classic I will pop into Carnewal to have the exhaust modified to give it a bit more voice.
Engine mods I am not so sure about, I don't like the hesitant flat spots around 3k but in all honesty for the road I think the performance is about right, it's quick enough for now, for track I guess I will want more...
Sports seats are comfy for me, Bose and PCM3 are nice to have, I did a quick 330 mile round trip last Sunday night, mostly motorway and it was as relaxing as any other car apart from tyre noise, the last 30 mins cross country was a lot of fun and I doubt I would have enjoyed myself more in any of my previous 'all rounder' sports cars.
My 'S' with the above all done should stand me in at about £28k incl. purchase price (58,000 mile 2009 manual) ok it's not an 'R' but it should be 95 pct of one by the time it's done I hope. Like you another GT3 is just a pipe dream for a while but actually this will do just fine for now.
EBC pads seem to work for some and not for others. Not sure if it's a bedding thing or useage and temperature. I'm generally very impressed with the Chassis, it has great poise and balance but is a bit floaty at high speeds, also aesthetically I think the car needs to be lower so Centre Gravity will fit Ohlins R+T suspension on my car next month and set up accordingly. Whilst I'm on my way to Spa next week to watch the Classic I will pop into Carnewal to have the exhaust modified to give it a bit more voice.
Engine mods I am not so sure about, I don't like the hesitant flat spots around 3k but in all honesty for the road I think the performance is about right, it's quick enough for now, for track I guess I will want more...
Sports seats are comfy for me, Bose and PCM3 are nice to have, I did a quick 330 mile round trip last Sunday night, mostly motorway and it was as relaxing as any other car apart from tyre noise, the last 30 mins cross country was a lot of fun and I doubt I would have enjoyed myself more in any of my previous 'all rounder' sports cars.
My 'S' with the above all done should stand me in at about £28k incl. purchase price (58,000 mile 2009 manual) ok it's not an 'R' but it should be 95 pct of one by the time it's done I hope. Like you another GT3 is just a pipe dream for a while but actually this will do just fine for now.
I've experimented with Ferodo, Brembo and other stuff over the years, and always find myself back at the Pagid catalogue. They're good but expensive. The PFC 08 and 11's aren't cheap, but they're still a big chunk cheaper than RS29's and 19's.
Where are you based ? I ask as the Ohlins R&T option is high on my list and I'd like to witness how they perform on the 987 chassis.
Pretty sure the brakes will be properly sortable utilising the standard calipers, GT3 M/C, decent fluid and larger floating discs, and I'll probably need braided lines to replace the existing hardlines between the caliper and strut/upright.
boxsey said:
Glad you're enjoying it H
I've now got used to the brakes. Or should I say I've got over how they felt less solid than my (upgraded) 964 ones. For me (like Ian R and Andy Fagan) I like the firmer pedal that the GT3 m/c provides. I actually now think that because the R brakes are less brutal, I'm using them both less and smoother....last week at Oulton Park I managed laps that are now 4 seconds less than the best I ever achieved in the 964. Much of that time being made up on corner entry.
Regards
Mr Nosey
Dear Mr Nosey ....I've now got used to the brakes. Or should I say I've got over how they felt less solid than my (upgraded) 964 ones. For me (like Ian R and Andy Fagan) I like the firmer pedal that the GT3 m/c provides. I actually now think that because the R brakes are less brutal, I'm using them both less and smoother....last week at Oulton Park I managed laps that are now 4 seconds less than the best I ever achieved in the 964. Much of that time being made up on corner entry.
Regards
Mr Nosey
Hi Steve, hope you're well ? As I've rapidly come to realise, the handling dynamics and balance are VERY different to any 911 I've driven. Put bluntly there's far less reliance on the brakes.
Having looked at the Cayman's brake specs, it's probably just as well ! !
A 1992 964 RS had 260hp weighed what ? 1230kg ? yet had 330mm x 32mm (iirc) front discs along with 299mm X 28/30mm rear discs.
The Cayman meanwhile has 318 X 28mm front discs and 70hp more ! !
So either the RS was well over braked (very likely) or the Cayman is somewhat underbraked (equally likely) ...
But furthermore, when you compare the front pad surface area it's approx only 2/3 that of the pads in the Mk 1 996 GT3/Turbo front calipers.
It'd be nice to use the MK 1 996 GT3/Turbo/997 S 4 pot front calipers with their bigger pad area, as they're not expensive and available second hand, but the securing bolt spacing is the same as the 996/PCCB 6 pots. So no joy there.
Phooey said:
WTF!! This thread has genuinely bought a tear to me eye
Hopefully joy rather than pain TheRocket said:
I'm in North Essex, car should have the Ohlins on it by end June I hope, I will probably try and tie in picking it up from Centre Gravity with a trip to North Wales straight after as I'll be half way there, if any of that helps or is convenient you are welcome to try it.
Sounds great, and having lived in N.Wales between 2003-9 I can show you the best of the roads up there I'm less than an hour from CG and if preferred have excellent roads for testing the Ohlins less than 45 mins from my front door...
ras62 said:
The car looks very nice in gaurds Henry. It will be interesting to hear your views as the miles grow.
The brakes are a bit of an oddball and tbh its hard to believe that with 318mm diameter discs there is a lack of braking power and a poor pedal. That is until I looked at the piston sizes which really are surprisingly small at 40/36 front 28/30 rear. For comparison that is identical to the sizes used on the standard 964 with 298mm discs, and a lot less powerfull than were fitted to the 964RS 40/36 Front and 34/30 rear.
I'll update as the relationship matures The brakes are a bit of an oddball and tbh its hard to believe that with 318mm diameter discs there is a lack of braking power and a poor pedal. That is until I looked at the piston sizes which really are surprisingly small at 40/36 front 28/30 rear. For comparison that is identical to the sizes used on the standard 964 with 298mm discs, and a lot less powerfull than were fitted to the 964RS 40/36 Front and 34/30 rear.
The brakes are a strange one, clearly the GT3 master cylinder improves things, but one wonders about the servo and more specifically what the booster ratio is from foot pressure to line pressure.
Many years ago two gentleman (Richard Lloyd (now deceased) and Brian Ricketts (sadly now too deceased having Googled him) formed GTi Engineering at Silverstone. If you wanted you Mk1 Golf GTi tweaked (they did a 2.0 RLR engine conversion that produced 150hp) this was where you headed.
Brian and Richard went their separate ways and Brian set up BR Motorsport in Leamington Spa. One of the first things he developed was a servo upgrade for the Mk1 GTi. Those of you that have driven or owned a Mk1 Gti will know how parlous the brakes were on them ! An explanation is given here :
http://www.retrorims.co.uk/vw-blog/vw-brakes
Brian found a servo that would fit the existing (and hopeless) crossover linkage but provided far more servo assistance for the same pedal pressure. One wonders if Porsche got the 987 Cayman/Boxster servo calculations a bit wrong. I seem to recall reading on Planet 9 or Rennlist that the GT3 master cylinder swap is highly regarded across the pond, so it's safe to assume the "problem" afflicts both left and right hand drive cars.
Jamie Summers said:
Another option to cure the braking issue is the Brembo GT kit. This comes with everything you need. 355mm discs on floating bells, new calipers and braided lines. No need for different uprights. I'm running this on my very heavily modded Gen1 Cayman S (3.7l w.370bhp - the Autofarm development Cayman "RS") together with 996 GT3 rear discs and calipers. The rears needed a special hub spacer to be made in order to correct the offset on the discs. I suspect this is overkill, but as it was done by a previous owner of the car I have no point of comparison.
This is teamed up with the 997 GT3 MC and RS29s and the car will stand on its nose all day long on track, with tyre grip becoming the limiting factor.
Not sure how the costs stand up versus other options mentioned, but it's completely "plug and play".
The Brembo kits are very good, but they're over £3k ...... hence why there's a good market for increased diameter discs which retain the standard calipers and the GT3 master cylinder mod . This is teamed up with the 997 GT3 MC and RS29s and the car will stand on its nose all day long on track, with tyre grip becoming the limiting factor.
Not sure how the costs stand up versus other options mentioned, but it's completely "plug and play".
Porsche911R said:
the only other little item is a engine mount bung from function 1st, the car just feels a bit more direct when you plug the holes in the oem one, some oem ones don't have the holes though,so Porsche must have changed the design at some point in production.
Can also help gear change.
great little mod though, again I have it on my Spyder.
they also have a newish gear change kit which looks great, but I have not tried that.
"cheap plastic bushings and pivot connections utilized in the shifter assembly. Because these bushings require loose tolerances and free play to not bind, they generate sloppy shifter feel. Moreover, their plastic and rubber construction flexes excessively which causes spongy gear engagement, especially on cars that have accumulated wear and tear over the years.
The SHIFT-RIGHT Solution replaces these plastic bushings with ball bearings, eliminating the flex and excess play that normally plagues the stock setup. As a result, shifter feel is sharpened and gears engage with certainty."
The Yanks produce some clever, well thought out and executed parts for european cars that are sensibly priced, the engine and transmission mount inserts fall into that category.Can also help gear change.
great little mod though, again I have it on my Spyder.
they also have a newish gear change kit which looks great, but I have not tried that.
"cheap plastic bushings and pivot connections utilized in the shifter assembly. Because these bushings require loose tolerances and free play to not bind, they generate sloppy shifter feel. Moreover, their plastic and rubber construction flexes excessively which causes spongy gear engagement, especially on cars that have accumulated wear and tear over the years.
The SHIFT-RIGHT Solution replaces these plastic bushings with ball bearings, eliminating the flex and excess play that normally plagues the stock setup. As a result, shifter feel is sharpened and gears engage with certainty."
The kit to upgrade the shift assembly ? well that would belong in here imo :
Did Jeremy try the 997 GT3 RS metal bushed shift assembly or a kit like the one linked to ? I've tried a car with the RS shifter and thought it was spot on.
There's another alternative that I've banged on about for ages, it's fiercesomely expensive, but superb....
md4776 said:
Lovely looking car. I just bought the black gen 1 2.7 from RPM specialists that's still showing on the website. Great guys to deal with.
My first Porsche, first decent car ever really.
Apologies, I missed this. Congratulations ! ! I hope you enjoy it (and Porsche ownership in general) My first Porsche, first decent car ever really.
EGTE said:
Nice car, Slippy.
You are of course dead to us 911 zombies :-)
That's a given You are of course dead to us 911 zombies :-)
What do they say ? You can please some of the people all of the time, and you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can't please the 911 owners on PH AND the Cayman R owners on PH .......
Desert Dragon said:
He'll soon be telling us they driver better than 911s
5 hrs in the seat (lowering brackets have done the trick, no back ache now) around the Cotswolds this afternoon/evening (just got in) It's good, it's bloody good. It really has no right being so quick for what it cost.
Phooey said:
He'll soon be buying a 987 Spyder and GT4 too
No he won't .... GT4 too easy (I suspect) Spyder ? Too girly ........ 
R with big brakes, TTX's and some other tweeks
about all you'll need for UK roads .....Edit to add images
[
Edited by Slippydiff on Saturday 13th May 22:59
Redarress said:
There will be a new 6 pot aftermarket caliper rotor and pad kit coming to the market soon. If you let me have the hole centres you require I will see if we can make the caliper design suit
Hi, sounds good, here you go :997 (non S), 987 Boxster/Cayman use a 130mm front caliper spacing.
997S/997 Turbo, 996 GT3 Mk 1/Mk2, Turbo/GT2 all use a 142mm caliper spacing. Hence why the adaptors for the 987 130mm uprights to accept the 6 pot caliper with 142mm spacing isn't a straightforward (or indeed nice solution from an engineering perspective) .......
Edited by Slippydiff on Saturday 13th May 22:36
woollyjoe said:
thought it's worth mentioning that Alcantara cleans up as new. wonder material in that regard.
Interesting. I cleaned the alcantara wheel on my M3 CSL and initially the results looked good, however it quickly matted up and looked/felt horrible again.Truth be known I wear a pair of thin old thermal gloves when I drive the Cayman, firstly because I'm not that keen on the feel of what I find to be an overly hard/alcantara wheel rim, but also 'cos I don't want the freshly covered wheel to go manky.
Klippie said:
Very nice, and a classic Porsche colour is the cream on top...a question for you though would you chop it in for a GT4 at some point.
Thank you If I were a track day addict, I'd say yes, I'd probably look to get into a GT4 at some point in the future. I mean who could resist one when they look this good :
but whilst they look good, they're a bit OTT for the road (looks wise) and plenty on here have commented they're a bit too accomplished as a fast road car.
At the thick end of £90k you're into Gen 1 997 GT3 territory, and I think they're probably a more entertaining drive (though I still think too accomplished as a road car) better value for money, and a better long term investment.
But as David says, one of the major benefits of the 987 Cayman is its size, it's tiny ! ! And whilst not as slim hipped as a 964/993, it makes a welcome change to drive something that genuinely feels (and is) so compact.
I also tend to agree with his comments regarding the standard ride quality, that being it's good, but it's no magic carpet ride over bumpier roads.
That's good in that it conveys a genuine sense of speed to keep you in check, but it can get a bit too lairy when really pushing on over less than billiard table smooth roads.
The Cayman ticks a large amount of boxes for me currently (the majority in fact) but ultimately I'd want to upgrade it, and if/when that bug bites, I'll most likely sell it and buy a Gen 2 S and mod that instead.
But I can see the R staying in the fold for another 12-18 months yet
I'm reaching a point in my life whereby I'd like to buy a car and keep it. Forever.
Previously I'd have said that would've been one of the numerous GT3's, 964RS's, GT2's I've owned, but as values continue to rise, I'd prefer to start with something that's not stupidly expensive, and thus something I'll not be (or become) precious about.
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