Cayman GT4 buying advice

[w44neg]

Sorry if this is the sort of thing that's asked on a regular basis, but I'm weighing up a few cars at the moment, and one is the GT4. There seem to be quite a few about right now, starting from £75k (10k miles) at Porsche Dealers. This seems reasonable to me giving they have dropped a little in the past year or so, but I also see the lower end of the market tending to feature the electric, rather than 918-style seats.

I'm not likely to take the car to the track, so are there any pros and cons to each type of seat, and any extra benefits to the Clubsport package for non-track usage? I'd imagine comfort is pretty different, but there aren't too many GT4's near me to go and try out. I always find heated seats a great thing, but then, they perhaps don't suit a GT4, and I really want a bit of crazy at the weekend, rather than anything "normal".

A lot of reviews harp on about the long gearing, with 112mph in 3rd gear etc. In the real world, is the long gearing an "issue", or quite the opposite?

Colour-wise I'm really liking GT Silver and Sapphire blue, but there don't seem to be too many of these.

Finally, is there anything else to know about the GT4 such as common faults/complaints/pros/cons etc? I know there's a new car rumoured but I doubt my letter of intent to the Porsche dealership I've bought from in the past will get me anywhere... I don't buy 10 cars a year and have only bought used previously.

[w44neg]

Really helpful, thanks! I’ll try to find some cars with the different seat options :-)

[w44neg]

These replies are really helpful. Bose seems to be quite rare, but I had it in my 981S (sold last week) and really found it to be a great sounding system, once set up correctly.

I think the first hurdle is deciding on the seats. After that, I can hone in on the rest of the options I guess.

Just watched an Arvo review on the Spyder. Looks lovely but reminds me too much in looks of my Boxster; a stunning car but I just want something a little different, which the GT4 offers aesthetically.

[w44neg]

Hmmmmm that’s interesting lol. What do people think of that colour in general? I didn’t like it at first, but it’s growing on me now I’ve seen it on several cars.

[w44neg]

stichill99 said:

Agreed, Don't touch that horrible colour with a bargepole!

I was actually quite liking it until I went to put some underwear on this morning. I genuinely came across a pair of Calvin Klein boxers in an identical colour :-D :-D Kind of put me off lol

[w44neg]

Dan911 said:

Interesting thread.

Finding myself looking at the Cayman GT4’s. (I’d need to sell my 996.1 GT3 CS first mind you)

I see there are 3 types of seats for the GT4. 918 Bucket - Standard heated buckets (same as Cayman R?) - 18 way comfort seats.

Spec wise I guess is a personal thing, IMO I’d have to have leather dash, 981 buckets, cruise, xenons, the light grey wheels, climate and sound pack plus or BOSE

Colour; 1) dark grey, 2) guards red, 3) sapphire blue 4) white

This car looks a good spec,
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Let me know what you think when you get a road test, like you it would be a weekend toy and Europe road trip car.

Good luck in the quest.

Dan

That's possibly around the corner from me. Interesting spec too.

I called Wilmslow Porsche today. They have a Guards Red one and I called asking to test drive it... sorry sir but you can't do that unless we've worked out some figures, as it's SoR.

[w44neg]

tonto1 said:

That's because it wasn't an option in the GT4.

Only 'Sound Package Plus', (£396 option) which really isn't anything to get excited about. Def' a step up from the standard spec sound wise (not saying much). The PCM inc' Nav (£2141 option) is def nicer and gives you the extra USB's, nicer screen and NAV etc. DAB was another £324 on top of that.

If i was buying a used GT4, only real essentials for me would be:
- Carbon buckets, as they just look fantastic and I actually find them very comfortable.
- Leather interior, looks much nicer than basic interior
- PCM
- CS (it's a GT car).

Nice to haves, but not deal breakers:
- PCCB. Car massively over braked, but they do look good.
- PDLS
- 64L Tank
- Alcantara sunvisors, as standard ones look very cheap and plasticky

Ah what a shame about the BOSE. I know it probably adds weight and there’s the exhaust note to listen to, but it’s such a great system.

Excuse my ignorance but what’s “CS”?

[w44neg]

Yes makes sense, it's just that's the only car within a decent range, and I generally try a few cars before generally going back to the first one :-)

[w44neg]

Really helpful advice. I'm going to keep an eye out for "the one" and see what comes along

[w44neg]

Absolutely typically I can’t make that date. I’m a member of PCGB as well. Would have been ideal.

[w44neg]

Mad Scientist said:

I'm near Wilmslow too, should you want a poke about.

Thanks, would be great to take you up on that some time. I'm the other side of Manchester so not far to get to you at all.

[w44neg]

UPDATE:

Drove a 911 GTS (991.1) back to back with a Cayman GT4 today. Not a huge test drive but a great salesman who was very easy going and let me test drive before even asking about figures etc.

The 911 was boring. Didn’t do anything for me; just a normal car that felt quite fast.

The GT4 on the other hand instantly felt like loads of fun. Annoyingly, the car is the same one that was for sale privately 7 miles away from me until last week! So of course now I’d be paying quite a bit more with a retail rather than private price. The garage must have got to it before I did :-(

The car had non-folding buckets, and they felt fine, although this was only a short run, and combined with the heavy clutch, I do wonder if it could activate my sciatic nerve a little bit (old issue that only shows itself in certain cars a few hours in to a journey).

I’ve therefore stepped back a bit for now; I’ll possib even wait until the new one comes along and the older models all get traded in. #livesinhope!!

Edited by w44neg on Thursday 25th October 17:47

[w44neg]

It was Porsche Sheffield. They're currently undergoing a massive renovation so they're working out of portacabins at the moment!

[w44neg]

TDT said:

Just got back from having my wheels/tyres rotated before Oulton Park on Wednesday..... man, the car is epic.
With my new setup and the monoballed front end... so much feel... even at low speed.
A joy to drive.

What’s the new setup and “monoballed”?

[w44neg]

TDT said:

Check out this thread… https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

Got you, thanks