Rafteur

Hello all!
My history: i had a boxster 981 PDK. wanted to "move up", but somehow, each time I tried an 911, I was left cold. I have been looking into purchasing a cayman R or a Cayman T both manual and importing it where I live, but the associated costs make this option costly.
However, today I received confirmation from Porsche dealership that I can still order a 718, from base to GTS.
I am looking for a porsche that I can enjoy a long time and hopefully will become a classic. nothing overly specced (will keep it as base as possible) but a car that could become part of my garage until I can no longer drive. it will be manual. not looking into massive power nor necessarily screaming engine. it has to be special enough though to retain that interest for me over the years. hence the T or R initially considered. a driver's car, commuting as well when I fancy and the occasional trip.
order has to be placed by the end of March. waiting time 12 months from order. Good chance of allocation.
​​​​​​My question is simple: what would you advise? go R or T or specc a Base close to a T or go for the GTS? and why?
Cheers!
Rafteur

madmilk

GTS 4.0 manual is the obvious answer here

TXshaggy

I moved this over to the general 718 Forum for a wider audience.

There is no T or R model trim available as far as I know.

Base, S, Style, and GTS are the available trims.

Good luck!

Rafteur

Thanks TX Shaggy!
Maybe my initial post was not clear: as I was already considering R or T used, should I just stick with that and ignore the opportunity f getting a newer car or would the 718 GTS trump that choice as the future classic/special car and thus go for that?
Cheers!

TXshaggy

If your budget allows, the GTS 4.0 is the one to get

Bespoke 718 4.0L motor is great, chassis PCM as well.

I had a 987.2 Spyder—similar to Cayman R…get the new GTS!

Xxyion

I place my vote for the GTS. I myself have also placed an order for one, but the thing that i like about the GTS is that its a Flat 6 NA engine and we just dont get many cars that have good NA engines anymore. Personally i feel the GTS is the most special out of the lineup below the GT4RS especially in manual.

rasetsu

If you are looking for a "forever" car and you aren't constrained by some sub-$100K budget, just go with the GTS if there are still any allocations available. If you are incredibly disciplined and can tick just the performance options on a base that you would get standard on a GTS, you are already at $75K. Is the 4.0 NA flat 6 worth the $20K difference? I would emphatically say yes. And I own a 718 S. But I bought it CPO.
Manual 987 Rs are starting to straddle into that zone of being too valuable to be driven regularly unless you find a higher mileage one as they are already approaching classic territory. Manual Ts are not easy to find. It's possible there were fewer manual Ts made than 987 Rs. And the hard reality of it is that the turbo four cylinders will take decades more than the 6 cylinders to achieve respectful recognition as a "classic" regardless of how much quicker they are and even then, they will never be on the same level. The 944 is historical evidence of this.

EMpunker

You've got a lot of options to choose from! It depends what your budget is and how important ordering your own spec is to you.

I would probably try to find a nice slightly used 718 T to import, or the 987 R.

If you must order a new one, then I'd recommend a 2.5 S - you can still get all of the performance options without stepping up to the 4.0 GTS, and the turbo 2.5 is excellent.

aeschen

Most special driver's car of the lot to me would be 4.0 GTS no vanity options, 6mt, flamboyant color choice, and LW sports buckets. The seats will really differentiate the car as time passes. Lots of GT4s and beyond will have them but pretty rare in gts trim.

All personal preference though, my GTS has poverty sports seats and 2.5T and we get along just fine. Given another 35k to spend Id have gone with the above however.

Rafteur

Dear all,
Thanks to all your feedbacks! All good advice here. I was invited to test a cayman and boxster gts this week-end.
Will see whether I really connect with the car. i don't want to buy the gts only because I can. I'll take it from there.
I checked the importing costs today and it would cost me between 6 to 10K USD on top of the car. that puts the R or T in the territory of a lowest spec GTS. so GTS would be the logical choice. Hoping it can be the heart's choice as well...

SoCal-NSX

If you can afford the GTS it is a no brainer, but 99.9% of the population would never be able to even drive a 718 base to its limits....it is a heck of a car and will save you about $30-40K over the GTS

BoxKing

You might want to get comfortable with all the above as an option. You won’t be guaranteed the model of your choice just bc you place an order deposit on said model. Example: GTS deposit put down, but they never get another allocation, or you might be X number on their list, resulting in you not getting the call for your preferred model . Now if you walk out of the dealership with a commission number on the model of your choice, thats a locked in order.

Rafteur

coming back with an update...
I tried the 718 GTS 4.0 boxster and thought it was nice. But did not leave the showroom overwhelmed, mostly because I got to drive a 981 spyder a few days prior. I got to understand why everyone is raving about the 981 flat 6, although I don't recall my base boxster made the same haul. I focused on the 718 spyder, but wonder if the 981's engine music isn't more enthralling
Anyway, came out of there with narrowed down options: Look for a 718 or 981 spyder, or cayman R. On the latter I found a peridot green one, but it is a PDK and has over 100K km. seems a bit high on the mileage. what do you guys think? any mileage from whch I should not consider it.
The one I am considering, 1 is in black, bucket seats and manua and 44K KMl, another sofa seat and manual and 30K Km. planning a trip home to see them. I am also expanding my search for the 981 spyder and 718 spyder hoping to find the right one against my budget... the idea being to be a keeper...
The hunt continues... feel free to share your insight/advice. it will be much appreciated!

TXshaggy

Good luck on your search.

The 982 Spyder's "music" is hampered by the Gas Particulate Filters and the design of the rear aero. The rear aero design required a "saddle" design rear box, so little to no bank-bank mixing which changes the tenor. Volume and tenor is easily fixed through a variety of aftermarket.

Other than sound there are significant technical differences between the 981/982 Spyders. The 982 Spyder is a full GT effort and mirrors the 982 GT4.