First Porsche 987.2 Cayman S, 997.1 C2S, 996 C2? - Page 1 - Porsche General - PistonHeads UK

Hi All, after selling all my toys (E92 330i, E21 3 Series) and driving my boring company car (Mazda 3), I am looking to fulfil my childhood dream, owning a Porsche. I am a 90's kid so I quite like the design of the 996 and I don't mind the headlight design. I think I prefer the more modern interior of the 997, but I am wary of the mentioned issues these cars could suffer (IMS, RMS, Bore Scoring etc.) So I thought play it safe and buy a 987.2 Cayman S with the more reliable 9A1 engine. The car would be used as a weekend car, for the odd road trip (just me and the missus), and perhaps some track days. Budget I would say is maximum £25K I test drove a 987.2 non-S last weekend, and I found it very underwhelming unfortunately (Cabin felt very claustrophobic, suspension felt unnecessary stiff, pedal box very narrow, and I thought it wasn't as quick as I would expect it, and a bit intimidating to drive imho). After this disappointment I went and test drove a 996 C2, this was a "cheap" example with 150K miles, but in decent condition, selling for 14K and my god what an amazing driving experience it was, restored my faith in the "Porsche dream". I found a 997.1S that I am tempted to go and see, it’s from a Porsche specialist, that has done a bore scope and claims is all good, has 100K miles, and is selling for around 22K. But honestly I am not very comfortable buying a car that could develop an issue such as IMS, bore score... My question is should I play it safe test drive a 987.2 Cayman S? (They look very similar in number to the 996 C2 I saw in terms of size, weight, power etc, apart from one being mid-engine and the other rear engine). Or should I take a chance with a 997/996? The 911 is more appealing, but I don't need rear seats and I am also drawn to the Cayman just not as much as a 911. (if the Cayman S proves to be a better driving experience/996like compared to the regular Cayman of course) Hopefully I made myself clear, looking forward to see what are your thoughts TIA

I picked up a 987.2 PDK Boxster S last weekend - it's an absolute hoot and a ludicrous amount of car for the money.

An early 996 3.4 is as solid as you'll get. Chances of bore score and IMS failure is much much lower than an early 997. If you enjoyed a high mileage 996 then a sorted one will be perfect for you. They are great cars.

alex075 said: Hi All, after selling all my toys (E92 330i, E21 3 Series) and driving my boring company car (Mazda 3), I am looking to fulfil my childhood dream, owning a Porsche. I am a 90's kid so I quite like the design of the 996 and I don't mind the headlight design. I think I prefer the more modern interior of the 997, but I am wary of the mentioned issues these cars could suffer (IMS, RMS, Bore Scoring etc.) So I thought play it safe and buy a 987.2 Cayman S with the more reliable 9A1 engine. The car would be used as a weekend car, for the odd road trip (just me and the missus), and perhaps some track days. Budget I would say is maximum £25K I test drove a 987.2 non-S last weekend, and I found it very underwhelming unfortunately (Cabin felt very claustrophobic, suspension felt unnecessary stiff, pedal box very narrow, and I thought it wasn't as quick as I would expect it, and a bit intimidating to drive imho). After this disappointment I went and test drove a 996 C2, this was a "cheap" example with 150K miles, but in decent condition, selling for 14K and my god what an amazing driving experience it was, restored my faith in the "Porsche dream". I found a 997.1S that I am tempted to go and see, it’s from a Porsche specialist, that has done a bore scope and claims is all good, has 100K miles, and is selling for around 22K. But honestly I am not very comfortable buying a car that could develop an issue such as IMS, bore score... My question is should I play it safe test drive a 987.2 Cayman S? (They look very similar in number to the 996 C2 I saw in terms of size, weight, power etc, apart from one being mid-engine and the other rear engine). Or should I take a chance with a 997/996? The 911 is more appealing, but I don't need rear seats and I am also drawn to the Cayman just not as much as a 911. (if the Cayman S proves to be a better driving experience/996like compared to the regular Cayman of course) Hopefully I made myself clear, looking forward to see what are your thoughts TIA My first car was a cracking 987.2 Cayman S, a phenomenal amount of car for the money, so much so they've gone up in price (sold for slightly more than I paid after 2 years of ownership). Took it to the Alps and Wales, was just unreal how capable and how much it punched above its weight. No IMS issues as it was the DFI engine, great balance and handling, hydraulic steering, great brakes, fast and fun. Couldn't recommend more.

shalmaneser said: An early 996 3.4 is as solid as you'll get. Chances of bore score and IMS failure is much much lower than an early 997. If you enjoyed a high mileage 996 then a sorted one will be perfect for you. They are great cars. Thanks! Yes I finally bit the bullet and bought myself an early 996, I will be collecting it tomorrow and I am over the moon! The car has quite an interesting story behind it which actually adds to it for me. Its an artic silver, non-sunroof, with hollow turbo twists and hardshell sport seats which is basically my dream spec. Its not 100% cosmetically but the owner has spent some serious time and money on getting it mechanically right. So for me is the perfect useable porsche. Now I need to navigate myself to get it ULEZ excempt as I live in London, so I am already on the certificate of comformity etc. ect. Many thanks to everyone who contributed to this post. I will shares pictures briefly when I collect it tomorrow !

alex075 said: shalmaneser said: An early 996 3.4 is as solid as you'll get. Chances of bore score and IMS failure is much much lower than an early 997. If you enjoyed a high mileage 996 then a sorted one will be perfect for you. They are great cars. Thanks! Yes I finally bit the bullet and bought myself an early 996, I will be collecting it tomorrow and I am over the moon! The car has quite an interesting story behind it which actually adds to it for me. Its an artic silver, non-sunroof, with hollow turbo twists and hardshell sport seats which is basically my dream spec. Its not 100% cosmetically but the owner has spent some serious time and money on getting it mechanically right. So for me is the perfect useable porsche. Now I need to navigate myself to get it ULEZ excempt as I live in London, so I am already on the certificate of comformity etc. ect. Many thanks to everyone who contributed to this post. I will shares pictures briefly when I collect it tomorrow ! Congratulations! You won't regret it. Get yourself over to the early 3.4 thread and post some pics!