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Aside from saving unsprung weight and no brake dust, what other benefits over standard setup? The pedal feel seems actually better, from what I read. As others have pointed out, replacement cost of the rotors is much higher. In the past, they used to have a problem of rotors cracking (albeit mostly in track conditions). In street driving, can one actually feel the suspension response from reduced unsprung weight?
Yes... all of the above... I don’t track my Spyder so PCCBs are perfect for my needs.
The only specific reference to a natural leather offering in the 987 Spyder brochure is for Carrera Red. Cocoa is designated a "special color," but not a natural leather, and Sand Beige is listed simply as a standard color with no mention of it being a natural leather.
Similarly, this page from Porsche's press release for the 987 Spyder also just references Carrera Red as the sole natural leather offering:
It could well be that Sand Beige and Cocoa werenatural leather offerings in the 987 and the above sources simply failed to mention that. Worth double-checking perhaps. I've never owned a 987 Spyder and hardly hold myself out as an expert on the interior options offered on that car. Heck, I didn't even know until a couple of days ago that these cars came standard with cupholder delete!
As far as the natural leather option in the 987 being "similar if not greater than" the Spyder Classic Interior Package offered in the 981, that's perhaps a debate for another day, but I would argue that the natural leather option in the 987 was simply a leather upgrade, whereas the Spyder Classic Interior Package was an all-inclusive, unique, two-tone interior combination package featuring a mixture of colors, fabrics and materials. The fact that Porsche took a page or two out of the 981 Spyder brochure to specifically highlight the Spyder Classic Interior Package indicates that Porsche intended it as something a little unique and, perhaps, "bespoke."
I was more in reference to design visual... but you are correct, the 981 Spyder “package” included more as a whole. IMHO, porsche took the best of the 987.2 interior and made it into a single package. Where with the 987.2 you could do more customization... in more colors.
It wasn’t simply a leather upgrade... just as the 981, other trim items were colored to match... and had a two tone color visual with black Alcantara.
For my own learnings, other than the natural leather and GT silver trim, how is the 981 different?
In my eyes they were the same, but offered in more colors for the 987.2 thus my if not greater comment. But i was incorrect stating that all three were natural leather.
It will be interesting to see if the Spyder
Classic Interior Package, as we know it,
is offered on the 982. It wasn't on the
987 and for all we know it may be an
interior option unique to the 981...
When you then also factor in that
Porsche used its top-of-the-line Natural grade leather in
the Spyder Classic interior -- which
is always more expensive than
Porsche's standard leather offerings
-- well, that just made the package
even more appealing (and even more
of a bargain).
Originally Posted by 63A 981510
The 987.2 was actually offered in
the full leather package in Natural
Leather which was similar if not
better than the Classic Spyder
Package. It was available in Sand
Beige, Brown and Red Leather.
981 was paired down to Red and
only available with GT silver trim,
where the 987.2 you still got the
exterior paint trim. Both had the
black Alcantara accents. I would
assume we will get a similar
package with the 982 Spyder.
As Suicide Jockey has mentioned,
and Donovan now agrees, the only
'Natural Grade' leather in the 987
Spyder was 'Carrera Red'. That was
what I custom ordered for my MY2012
987 Spyder. I also ordered a deviated
color on the carpet ('Black') & additional
'Alcantara' bits which created the closest
thing you will probably see to what later
Porsche specifically designed for the 981
Spyder & called the 'Spyder Classic Interior
Package'!
***
Of course, the interior of the 987 Spyder did not
have the option of two tone leather interiors, such
as 'Agate Grey/Amber Orange' or the 'Black/Garnet
Red', the latter which was designated by Porsche as
the 'Spyder Classic Interior Package' in the 981 Spyder:
***
Originally Posted by Suicide Jockey
As far as the natural leather option in the 987
being "similar if not greater than" the
Spyder Classic Interior Package offered in the
981, that's perhaps a debate for another day,
but I would argue that the natural leather
option in the 987 was simply a leather upgrade,
whereas the Spyder Classic Interior Package
was an all-inclusive, unique, two-tone interior
combination package featuring a mixture of
colors, fabrics and materials.
There is a reason for that package in the
981 Spyder. It took a lot of pressure on
PAG from customers wanting that two-tone
option back in the 987 model (myself among
many), plus lawsuits that hit PAG with 'glare'
from light color dashes, that finally made
Porsche offer its 'Spyder Classic Interior
Package' on the 981 Spyder, as well as its
other two-tone leather interiors in the 991
& regular 981 models.
The pressure was such that when PAG allowed
deviating dash colors in early 991 period (before
they offered a coordinated color trim in their
own two-tone leather packages), customers
& dealers were doing desperate experiments
in design such as these:
But many customers & dealers put a lot of pressure
on PAG to give us this two-tone choice. And a few
of us custom ordered our 987 Spyders to create a
look that was to closely resembled the later much
acclaimed 'Spyder Classic Interior Package' via
creative ordering & what is now called 'CXX' via
'Exclusive Manufaktur'. In the end re: the 987
Spyder, we could not get Porsche to do the dash
& top of the door panels in 'Black' leather, nor the
underdash in Alcantara.
But many of us got pretty damn close to the
future 'Classic' Spyder look in our 987 spyders!
********************************
Originally Posted by Marine Blue
Donovan do you recall if the black full leather
was a different grade than the standard black
on the 987.2?
No, I do not believe that 'Black' full leather in
the 981 Spyder was a different higher grade
than the standard 'Black' on the 987.2 Spyder
(if that was your question). Nor do I believe
that the 'Black' leather portion of the 'Spyder
Classic Interior Package' is the higher 'Natural
Grade' leather. I believe that only the 'Garnet
Red' portion of the package was higher 'Natural
Grade' leather!
Eduardo... I knew and glad you chimed in.
I agree with everything you stated... one thing though. My first 987.2 Spyder with Black Full Leather... I did notice that the leather was different... you could see the imperfections in the grain... Aniline Leather vs. Pigment dye? I know for sure that my 981 Spyder Full Leather is different... as you see no imperfections. The 718 Leather is even lesser grade as the pigment is a thicker and more vinyl appearance.
Eduardo, thanks for all the info which has prompted several questions/observations below.
Originally Posted by Z356
As Suicide Jockey has mentioned,
and Donovan now agrees, the only
'Natural Grade' leather in the 987
Spyder was 'Carrera Red'. That was
what I custom ordered for my MY2012
987 Spyder. I also ordered a deviated
color on the carpet ('Black') & additional
'Alcantara' bits which created the closest
thing you will probably see to what later
Porsche specifically designed for the 981
Spyder & called the 'Spyder Classic Interior
Package'!
I've always viewed the 981 Spyder Classic Interior Package as an outright steal and one of the few instances where Porsche actually left money on the table, as we all know Porsche seldom underprices ANYTHING! Your post drives home just what a compelling buy the Spyder Classic option really was since from your car's window sticker it appears:
To get natural leather in the 987 you had to spend $5,165 for Carrera Red natural leather option. To get natural leather in the 981 you only had to spend $2,580 for the Spyder Classic interior option.
To get alcantara door panel inserts in the 987 you had to spend $655 for the "Add'l Alcantara Inter. Pkg.", whereas the alcantara door panels were included as part of the Spyder Classic package at no additional cost.
To get deviated black carpets in the 987 you had to spec that as a stand-alone option at a cost of $710, whereas, again, deviated black carpets were part of the Spyder Classic Package at no additional cost.
Thus, if my analysis is correct, to replicate the $2,580 Spyder Classic package in the 987 one had to spend roughly $6,530. Ouch!
This makes the Spyder Classic package even more of a bargain than I previously thought.
And when you note that the Spyder Classic package included GT silver trim across the length of the door panel nicely separating the Garnet red upper from the black alcantara lower, you have yet another win for the Spyder Classic interior.
Originally Posted by Z356
There is a reason for that package in the
981 Spyder. It took a lot of pressure on
PAG from customers wanting that two-tone option back in the 987 model (myself among many), plus lawsuits that hit PAG with 'glare' from light color dashes, that finally made Porsche offer its 'Spyder Classic Interior Package' on the 981 Spyder, as well as its other two-tone leather interiors in the 991 & regular 981 models.
Wow! I had never heard this before and had no idea the Spyder Classic package on the 981 grew out of customer demand for such a two-tone package on the 987. I guess those of us 981 owners with Spyder Classic owe a debt of gratitude to those of you past/present 987 Spyder owners who pressed Porsche for such an interior package. Belated thanks!
Originally Posted by Z356
But many customers & dealers put a lot of pressure
on PAG to give us this two-tone choice. And a few of us custom ordered our 987 Spyders to create a look that was to closely resembled the later much
acclaimed 'Spyder Classic Interior Package' via creative ordering & what is now called 'CXX' via 'Exclusive Manufaktur'.
Creative ordering is right! I can see from your windor sticker the extent to which you tried to piece together something that approaches the Spyder Classic interior.
Some questions about some of the options on your car as they appear on your window sticker:
1. "Customization Package DZE" for $1,295 -- what did this option get you? I've never seen this before.
2. "Add'l Alcanterra Inter. Pkg." for $655 -- I'm assuming that's how you got the alcantara door inserts, but was that the only additional alcanterra bits you got with this package, or did it come with more?
3. You opted for the "Gear Leather trim in leather," but if you hadn't, would the gear leather and shift boot have been in alcanterra as part of the "Add'l Alcanterra Inter. Pkg."?
Originally Posted by Z356
In the end re: the 987 Spyder, we could not get Porsche to do the dash & top of the door panels in 'Black' leather, nor the underdash in Alcantara.
Well, you certainly get an "A" for effort! LOL
Originally Posted by Z356
But many of us got pretty damn close to the
future 'Classic' Spyder look in our 987 spyders!
Really lovely! Forgetting about the natural leather options on both Spyders for a minute, let me say that I love the 987 interior which has really aged well IMO and has taken on a deservedly "cool" factor as years have passed. I hope the 981's interior follows in the 987's enviable footsteps in that regard.
For my own learnings, other than the natural leather and GT silver trim, how is the 981 different?
The differences to me seem quite stark, but maybe we're missing each other.
If you ordered the Carrera Red natural leather interior on the 987 you got red leather (and carpets) throughout the entire interior. That's it. Period. End of story.
If you ordered the Spyder Classic natural leather interior on the 981 you got:
Garnet Red seat bolsters, upper dash and upper door panels
Black/alcantara seat inserts, lower dash, lower door panels, steering wheel, shift boot and shift gate.
GT Silver trim extending across the dash and running the full length of each door panel
Deviated carpet in black
To me, it just seems obvious you got a helluva lot more with the 981 Spyder Classic package, thus it just struck me as odd when you said you thought the natural leather option on the 987 was "better" than the natural leather option on the 981. However you define "better," it's hard to argue IMO that the 987 natural leather option exceeds the Spyder Classic package when the former is hugely more expensive and gives you less in return.
I'm not saying you couldn't spec the 987 with other separate and additional options on top of the Carrera Red natural leather option to add alcantara, deviated carpets, aluminum trim, etc., but all of those things would cost extra, as Eduardo's post above so indicates (see his window sticker).
Not sure I can explain it any simpler than that and I'm not trying to compare 987 vs. 981 interiors in general or say the 981 interior is better -- I'm just comparing the natural leather options that were available on both cars and what came along with those options when you spec'd them.
Sorry... I wasn’t clear. I was in reference compared to the 981 Spyder Full Leather vs. 981 Spyder Classic.
The difference is color and Natural Leather which make a huge impact.
It it is nice that Porsche did a interior package specific to the Spyder... and then some. I almost ordered it. I had one personal design thing I couldn’t get over... I didn’t like how the coloring around the roll bar and flap doors is with red/black. Did a weird shape and wasn’t a clean line. Just a personal beef... nothing more.
If we are talking bargains... the 981 contrast stitching was added, which was a huge expense prior to! As you had to CXX each and everything piece you wanted contrast stitch... talk about expensive.z
Nick there's no doubt the Spyder Classic Interior was a bargain, to replicate it separately would have cost twice as much.
The 987 had way to many color limitations, at least to the Porsche layman like myself. I spent countless hours on the website debating options but I never did discover deviating carpet options which I see was a possibility on the earlier 987.2 cars if you had the right connections.
It it is nice that Porsche did a interior package specific to the Spyder... I almost ordered it.
So glad you didn't (!!!) because I personally think you nailed your build and the black interior with the deviated stitching looks so great with your exterior color.
Having seen many pics of your car, I can't even imagine it with Spyder Classic. Just wouldn't seem right! LOL
I spent countless hours on the website debating options but I never did discover deviating carpet options which I see was a possibility on the earlier 987.2 cars if you had the right connections.
We do the best we can with the info we have at the time!
As you can probably surmise, I get off on all the intricacies of Porsche's option offerings, thus my love of Eduardo's posts and, for instance, some of the 911R threads where guys did some pretty amazing things with CXX options flowing aplenty. Can't wait to see what some of the GT3 guys end up doing.
We're all smarter and more knowledgeable now thanks to all the information many have shared here. If we are fortunate enough to order a new Porsche again, think how much better educated we will be!
Having said that, I couldn't be more happy with my car and I know you are thrilled with yours, as well you should be.
11-03-2017, 03:18 AM
