987.2 Suspension maintenance (100K miles)

I picked up my 987.2 Cayman with about 70K miles as a daily driver. The car has a salvage title from an earlier accident that did not touch the suspension or mounting points . (Nothing looks moved from factory) From what I can tell it was also a daily driver for the original owner. I am guessing it had normal maintenance, not at Porsche dealers. I am not sure if it is because I am now more used to the car, or normal wear, but the car does not seem as "tight" as it was. So my question is, at 100K miles (assuming no suspension work other than alignments), is it worth; 1) Going through the suspension looking for signs of wear and replacing as needed? (If so what should I be looking for?) 2) Doing a once and done (Arms, Bushings, Mounts, etc.) refurb? 3) Drive and wait till something is noticeable. (Or get an alignment and see what the shop says)? Are there common wear parts that are just easier to replace than diagnose? Are engine and transmission mounts common replacement parts, since they also affect the car's stability? And as I shop, what are the differences between factory rubber bushings and poly bushings? (Performance, Ride, Durability, etc.)

I have similar questions about my 987.2 Cayman with 90K miles, so I'm interested to see what people think. My local mechanic told me it was okay, but it seems like a 15-year old car on original mounts and suspension is due for some work.

1. Yes, I tend to at least visually check everything I can when ever I'm doing something on my car (I do all my own mainenance though so nobody else can tell me if something is wrong anyway). You can look for signs of one of your struts leaking, split or cracked rubber in any of the suspension, splits in the rubber boots that protect your ball joints and CV's. With a wheel in the air, you shouldn't be able to feel any play if you grab it at 3 and 9 oclock and try wiggling it (same with 6 and 12 oclock). One of the trans mounts on my Boxster leaked so I could see that needed replacing, not sure if there is any other signs of that needing replacement due to "tiredness". the front motor mount can also split and is more difficult to replace (had to do that on my Boxster as well) 2. If you have the budget and inclination....sure. 3. An alignment is probably a good idea anyway if it hasn't been done during your ownership, and they will likely tell you "something" needs doing anyway...they are a business after all... Yes, its not uncommon for the engine and trans mounts to need replacing (see above) but that will also depend on the earlier life of the car and how/where it gets driven. Poly bushes generally will be stiffer than factory rubber (especially old factory rubber) but the level of increased NVH acceptable to you will be a totally personal thing. Best I can suggest would be to meet some local owners and try and go for a ride in their cars. Whatever you do, keep on driving

I will have the car on the lift for a few things in the coming weeks, (WP. PDK Fluid, Some body trim) I will be checking everything I can see, just looking for hints. Probably go with rubber for the compliance (wife already pushes back from long drives due to road noise) Looking at the parts pricing and the cost of a good alignment, I might just do the full kit.

Replacing most of the main suspension components can be a bit costly. But it will also transform the car. The immediacy and responsiveness of the car is night and day with a nice set of coilovers and other new hardware. Of course, if you replace hardware you will need an alignment. But an alignment on its own will not make a car feel “tighter”. It

Not looking at shocks unless the original are leaking. Might do a mile spring update as they are not too pricy and would not mind dropping the car about an inch. I don't want to go too much lower as it is a street car and I have a gravel drive to my shop.

All I can say is do it all if you are nearing 100K. I did every single component except the rear toe links. EVERYTHING. including R springs and Koni Sport shocks. Kept OEM sway bars. The car feels as new. It is nimble, taught, athletic feeling instead of good but a little sloppy. The ride is firm but fine on Virginia roads. The ability to back off the rebound damping makes day to day ride great. We have some brick and cobblestone roads and that is NO fun but anywhere else is fine. If you have concrete slab like I40 in Tennessee you wont enjoy this. Car is magic. Source shocks from Carnewal , suspension refresh from Spyder performance UK, misc bits from FCPeuro , Springs new from a guy on PCA marketplace. Probably all in around $2600 in parts. Two weekends of work and a great alignment. Good to go for another 100K.

Sounds like I might be shopping for R springs , or aftermarket equivalent.

They are a great balance I think. Randy Pobst really pushed me to get them....with this video... I would definitely match them with good shocks. Not sure if old standard chocks would match well.

Ric_in_RVA, I'm interested in your experience with Spyder Performance. I'm high mileage too and thinking of doing a full refresh. Are their parts similar to Elephant Racing or FCP Euro? Was there any indication of the supplier or where they were made?

With that milage your forward engine mount is probably shot (mine was). I replaced all suspension components except trailing and leading arm to chassis bushings to make a tight track car. At 104 K miles none of the replaced components "looked" particularly worn, but as others have said replacement will bring it back tight.

How hard is it to do the engine mount?

IT is a PIA - without a lift even more so, but not too bad. I drained coolant and disconnected the two hoses that surround the mount. One bolt is only accessible thru the cabin. I think there are several good videos out there

Is is obvious when bad? Torn, etc., or does it just get soft?

I could feel the engine rock under acceleration. I installed aftermarket orange inserts.

Put it in second. Cruise about 50. Jump on the gas hard then off hard. If it’s real bad it will clunk. If it’s a little bad you will feel the engine wind up and shift its position at the transition on and off the power. Smooths out the shifts since it doesn’t flit around as much. Put one of the poly bushings into the rubber one to slightly stiffen it. No downside as far as I can tell.

Its a PDK , so guessing I need to c hose 3rd gear and get on and off the gas not quite hard enough to get a unintended downshift. From reading a few posts and reviews. it sound like at 100K I might as well do it when I do the water pump (already on the schedule) Also seems the "Poly" upgrade have a lot fo complaints about too much noise and vibration for daily drivers and they are more for track cars. Probably pushing the suspension work off till early next year so I have time to shop for parts. Still looking for recommendations for 1" lowering springs (OEM and other brands) (and maybe shocks)

Since I've mentioned Spyder performance they are having a Halloween sale. 17% off. Use code SPOOKY17 at checkout. Link to 987.2 suspension stuff here. Suspension - Spyder Performance No interest, just a happy customer.

Thanks. They were high on my list, and this blows it away (and no tax)