997 or Cayman ? hard to believe these cars are only 10K difference in price .. Image Unavailable, Please Login
930 was only a single Turbo. 1996 was the first year of the TT, and I don't believe it has ever been designated "930" internal to Porsche or externally in the marketplace.
I would take the 997. The Cayman does nothing for me in the same way the Boxster does nothing for me. The 930 serial number ended with the 1989 911 Turbo.
Cayman was built as an underperforming car, that was inserted into the lineup as a less expensive niche model. I would think that the 997, will have much better resale value in the end. You may want to compare values of the 996 and Boxster S.
The Cayman is probably faster and better ballanced on a track. It looks pretty cool in the flesh and will get more attention, at least for a while. That said I'd get the 911, just for the proven resale and the performance differances are not that great.Step up to an S, even used. P.S. They had to detune the Cayman to keep it under the 911s performance envelope. Watch what Ruf will do to it.
Can I ask you something? what does "it was built as an underpreforming car mean?" I'm pretty sure you got that from top gear, and it's kinda silly. Let's look at the 911, we have, C2 C4 C2S C4S GT3 GT2 Turbo It would seem anything below GT and turbo cars is built as underpreforming wouldn't it? I guess nobody should buy it. The car was built to fill a niche in the market, just like the C2, C2S, etc. As for me, it it was between a C2 and Cayman, i'd take the cayman and look into getting more power.
I was one of the folks that said Porsche lost their minds when I saw the first photo's of the Cayman because I thought it was fugly. However, over Thanksgiving I spent some time in one at the local dealer (an Arctic Silver PCNA car) and it's gorgeous. I don't need the kid friendly back seats and really prefer mid-engined cars so I'd go the Cayman S route and invest the extra $10K into tires and driving schools.
crap, i meant 993. i knew that too. i'm going to chalk this up to getting <5 hours of sleep last night
I would take the 997 over the cayman - mostly because I know porsche is finacially screwing us with the concept of the "Cayman." Let's see: 1) Get a Boxster. Check. 2) Get rid of the convertible top. Check. 3) CHARGE MORE. Check. In any other realm of the universe a convertible costs MORE. You can argue until you are purple in the face that a Cayman is different than a boxster - it just ain't so. And the best part is that it costs almost the same as a 911. Some one in the porsche marketing department must be laughing their bloody heads off... If you want a cayman, just but a 2000 boxter S for 25,000$, and mod the hell out of it. Should be easy to do with the 60,000$ or so you save. Put in a 996 motor for 10,000$ or so... You will likely be better off... And richer for it...
Bo knows Porsche. Cayman looks nice, but it's parts-bin engineering that rivals the forgotten 968. Get a primo used 993 for $50K and bank the extra $30K. I saw white 997 Carrera S today parked - very tame-looking car.
The Cayman is Awsome. That said buy the 997, Classic lines, better resale, More power, And most of all more cred with the Porsche crowd. Boxster/Cayman is for the average 911 is for the Porsche enthusiast.
Got bad news for you; Never buy a Porsche, Ferrari, Lambo, MB, BMW, Ad infinitum because it costs a whole lot less for them to produce than sell for. Stick to Chevy and Ford.
I would much rather have a Euro car than a US built car. There is a noticeable difference in quality between the two continents. My brother's 99 M3 for example, is MUCH NICER and built better than my Dad's Dodge Intrepid of the same year, with less miles. But as for the question at hand, if it's between a base model 911, like the C2, or a fully loaded Cayman S, I'd get the Cayman. It's sooooo much nicer looking IMHO too...
get a 993 if cash is a concern, its the best looking and the turbo option puts it right up there with todays cars. beyond that a Carrera S X51 would be my choice.
Last I checked the base price (and I've been inside a basically base model, I was quite impressed with it.) for the Cayman is around $60,000... and considering how little extra space there is in the engine compartment of a boxster, would a 996 engine even fit in it?
On Rennlist.com tons of folks have put in 996 motors - 300-330hp in a boxster is wicked fast. There was one guy who put in a 996 turbo motor - or so I heard. Apparantly a 996 transplant runs about 10-13,000$ or so... So, buy a cheap boxster for 18,000$ or so, throw in a 996 motor, and for 35,000$ or so you have a seriously fast car...
Actually, I'm not sure why the standard 997 exists.....and they will probably pull it now that the Coxster is out. Basically, you're paying $10k for 25 hp and back seats.
Here is what will happen next... They will take a 997s, and lop off a lot of options - you know: 1) The radio goes 2) Sound deadening goes 3) Any luxury item goes (nice seats, etc) 4) They will also get rid of the door handles to save 0.3 pounds, and replace it with a strap. Then they put on a stripe, and call it a "Limited edition RS." Now of course, the price goes up 30,000$... If you really want the most exclusive 911, they will also get rid of the alloys and put on hubcaps for you...4000$ more. The rear seat delete will also cost 2000$. And the sunroof delete an additional 3000$. For no additional charge they will remove the spare tire and jack for you...