Hello all,
I'd like to say right away that this topic may sound repeated but I've seen others and I'd like up to date opinions on this specific doubt I'm having. If possible.
I'm a absolute
porsche
fan but Ive never owned one. Now I'm about to buy either a
2006 Cayman S
or a 996
911
. Car wise I know they're totally different machines and etc, etc... But I'd be happy with either of them. Although of course the
911
is THE dream.
Anyways, my situation is: I'm in greece now and the options are very few and pricey, I'm going to buy the car and it wont be my daily drive so it would be okay having an older
911
. I found a very good
cayman S
2006 with all maint. Done at
porsche
centers and etc. AND I found a 996 2003 targa which looks very solid and the owner is ok with taking it for a 100point check at
porsche
, but it has 146k km and it looks like it has this km, looks fairly used. What I have in mind is to keep the car for a few years and that is where my biggest concern comes. I think that the
cayman
will lose its value and I'll probably lose too much money just to own it and drive a few km's whereas the
911
wont depreciate that much and I could even sell it for what i bought if i kept it longer. What do you guys think? Also about the
911
having this high KM and being a Targa... could I have some experienced opinions?
Im sorry for the long post but ive been thinking about this and reading for a long time and I seem to change my mind about what to do every day.
Thaanks a lot for your time!
Right. I have owned a 996. I hated it. Several of my friends have them and I hope they don't see this post. I also still own a 2006
CaymanS
. I have owned it from new.
The 996 was such a let down from the 993 I had before it. Oh do I wish I still had the 993. I firmly believe the 996 was a stumble on
Porsche
's behalf.
I must add that a very good friend had a 996 Targa. He said it was a nightmare as he cooked inside the car whenever the sun was out. You're in Greece...?
Concerning the 2006
CaymanS
. This car is FAR better, IMHO, than a 996. Personally it fits me like a glove. I looks infinitely better than a 996. Reliability has been exemplary. It sounds, drives, and I believe will be a better long term purchase than a 996. I believe that the 1st generation
Cayman
will become sought after classics just like late 80s
911s
are today.
On
911
snobbery it certainly exists. If it's not a
911
it's not
Porsche
crap.....forget that crap. A
Porsche
is a
Porsche
. My
Spyder
draws
911
fans like you wouldn't believe. I don't care what other people think.
That's my 2 cents based on actual experience and ownership of Porsches over the last 30 years.
Others may not like my opinion but your's is a somewhat subjective question so....
Best of luck to you in selecting your
Porsche
.
I too would take the
987.1
Cayman
over the 996
911
(except for
996 Turbo
or 996 GT3 which have completely different and much better engines).
Also, you might compare a
987.2
base
Cayman
(2009 - 2012) with the
987.1
Cayman S
. The
987.2
has a much better engine than the
987.1
and the base
987.2
has performance that is nearly as good as the
981
.1 S.
Thanks for the reply guys. So, I am definitely inclined to stick with the
cayman
, but the
911
still comes to my mind. Altough maybe the best option is wait a little more and go for a 997 in a year or so. Terry, I am looking for a
987.2
also but as I mentioned the market here in greece is limited and ridiculous sometimes, since there are few cars and importing is impossible due to super high taxes, they ask the price they want in certain cars. I'm already paying a lot more than I should for the
cayman
, the
911
has a more reasonable price though, that's also where my doubt about losing too much money comes up. Anyways, thanks for the inputs and I'll keep the topic updated.
I think the there main strikes against the 996 are the possibility of sudden
IMS bearing
failure that will completely destroy the
M96 engine
, oil starvation in high-G turns that could also damage the engine and the lower quality / appearance of the interior. If you are OK with the interior, the
IMS
risk can be addressed by upgrading to a higher quality aftermarket
IMS bearing
. If you plan to track the car you might also want to investigate aftermarket oiling-system upgrades.
Given those caveats, and if you otherwise like the car, the 996 might be a perfectly acceptable, fun to drive
Porsche
for a reasonable price. (I'm not a big fan of the Targa configuration used on the 996 but that's a mater of personal choice.)
The
M97 engine
in the
987.1
and 997.1 comes with a much improved
IMS bearing
but is also subject to the same oil starvation issues in high-G turns as the
M96
. All these issues are solved in the 9A1 Engine used in the
987.2
,
997.2
,
981
.1 and 991.1.
