Chumlee

So the story goes like this, been a longtime BMW and Porsche fan, owning both marques for the better part of almost 20 years. On the BMW side, E36 M3, E46, 2K M-coupe, and E90 M3. On the Porsche side, 86 930 Turbo(wish i still had that one)2K 996 aero, 07 997 GT3, and currently 02 996 Turbo. Last September, took a 2 week vacation and toured Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and Northern Italy. Did the Stelvio pass, Frankfurt auto show, Drove the ring in the rain in a race car, and of course, went to the Porsche factory in Leipzig and did the tour and played on track with the latest BASE cayman and various 911s. Now, I am in position and had my mind made up that I was going the M4 route, only to have a change of heart and jump all in on building a GTS. The only hang up for me is WAITING!!! I know its a stupid problem to have but damn, how am I going to make it to December. I have designed the car with performance in mind and can't wait to see the finished product. Anyone else go thru this process? Pros and cons? My build sheet puts it at approximately $85K. Do you guys think this is a reasonable number? Thoughts....

1atom12

Hi Chumlee,
We are in similar boats... I just pre-traded my 14 Cayman base and have to wait until mid-October until my new GTS arrives... 85K is not out of line... My build came in at 92K...

The Pope

What's reasonable for some may not be reasonable for others. There are those who think the $75k base price is ridiculous and then some who order $92k GTS's. Order what you want and don't worry about what others think. Mine tipped the scales at just over $80k with few frills:

1atom12

Here is my build:

mdrobc1213

Wow...that is one reason why I stuck with Cayman S and got mine out the door nicely loaded for a good bit under $80k and slightly above $75k. Great car and has almost every bit of the two builds above other than PTV and PDK. Went with PASM myself. Glad I did though as I've talked to at least a 4 Porsche Client Advisors who have driven the one or two GTS Caymans and Boxster that have been delivered and each one told me that they are not worth the extra price point over a properly build/optioned Boxster/Cayman. Now that was each of their own personal opinon's not that or Porsche but in each case they said they came away disappointed and would have advised their clients to save coin and outfit a Cayman S with the items they wanted. Main point they said was that other than the GTS badge many things can be had on a Cayman/Boxster S at a similar if lower cost point and surprisingly they all said the extra 15hp is not noticeable and doesn't do enough to differentiate the car from the S. You will know it is note a base as the S in either form is a significant enough upgrade from the base that you notice it at once after some time in the car. However with the Boxster/Cayman GTS each said they felt as if they were in an S model with a few different trim pieces. It was not the difference say between the 987 Cayman S and Cayman R that they expected. Maybe if the Cayman/Boxster GT4 is actually made will we see it they said.

Cowhorn

I had a Porsche Client Advisor tell me that the Cayman S wasn't worth the higher price point over the base Cayman. He said that it was just his opinion.

I'm going to get the GTS. Love the different front and rear fascias, all the standard extras, and the increased torque. Also don't care for the round running lights in the front grill on the Cayman and really like the ones on the GTS. Lots of win with the GTS.

mdrobc1213

Yep its basically to each his own opinion wise. Some will see benefit while others won't. God bless America that we can do that!

Only1Buck

Of the GTS builds I have seen posted on Rennlist the majority are going with the Sport Suspension has anyone else noticed this as well?

The Pope

I don't think so. On another forum, where there are many more 981 GTS owners/hopefuls, you notice a good number who are sticking with PASM. I would say there are more than 50% of those.

Dino944

There is no right our wrong in terms of price or options. The beauty of it is ordering the car you want to your specs. We ordered an S last year with PASM, PTV, 20 Carrera S wheels, Sport Chrono, 6spd manual, a 2 tone full leather interior with sport seats plus and a bunch of other goodies. It stickered at $85K and we negotiated it down to $79K. Love the car, got it the way we wanted it and its a blast. Get what you want and don't worry about it.

As for sport suspension, some people insist on the stiffest set up they can get. Where I live the roads aren't perfect and PASM is idea for me. A bit more compliant when on longer trips and when the roads are rough, and in sport/+ it stiffens up substantially. I didn't want to have stiff ride everywhere I go. I also didn't want a 20mm drop from the standard height, a 10mm drop is plenty (in my last car with pasm with a 10mm drop in height I occasionally heard a scraping sound...I can't imagine if I were 20 lower. Maybe if I lived in a place with new roads that were really smooth, but I don't.

Good luck!

500

I think a client advisor is sensitive to the customer and will typically tell them what causes least cognitive dissonance! I am sure they will not say the same things to a GTS customer!

That said, the GTS is brilliant, but then again, I think all the 981s are! IF you want all the extras on a GTS, then it is actually a good deal. The configurator yields 78.5K when I spec all the available extras on the S, that are standard on the GTS (PASM, 2-way sports seats, PDLS, alcantara roof liner etc.). Plus, you still don't have the extra HP and the different body fittings (which look really good to my eye). Of course, if a lot of that stuff are options you would not pick anyway, then it is not such a deal. Really just depends on what you want. When we bought out Cayenne last year, we went with a GTS, although we originally intended to get an S. It just turned out the majority of the options we wanted were part of the GTS, and it just became more attractive.

If I were buying a new Cayman right now, I'd personally go for a lightly optioned base. However, I can easily see why an S or GTS would fit the bill too.

Chumlee

Well guys its done. $90,135.00 white/black, sport suspension, PTV, ceramics, GTS interior, light package, fire extinguisher, and smoking package. Is it me or I have yet to see anyone order ceramics?? I know its an expensive option but it has to be one of the best options money can buy. Am I missing something??

Dino944

Congrats on your order! I'm sure you will enjoy it!

Most people skip the ceramics, largely because of the cost, but also for their cost they seem a bit impractical. I hear of lots of people taking them off for the track, and put standard ones on and maybe change the pads. I also hear concerns about if your get a stone caught between the pad and a rotor it can crack the PCCB rotor and then its $$$$. So if people aren't using them on the track and they are afraid to use them on the streets why bother. Also, the standard set up is pretty damn good.

CAlexio

A lot of very informed conversation going on in the 991 gt3 forum regarding pccb... in the end, lack of brake dust and slight weight savings don't seem to add up to the extra issues which come with these rotors.. Chips during wheel changes cause for replacmeent, wear at track days means new rotors at $25k replacement cost after just a few events... They need to become more durable and cheaper to replace before people treat them as anything more than street bling. Nobody who wants to take their car to the track would mount pccb's.