In the market for a 981. What options?
 

I’m in the market to buy a 981 boxster s and wanted to hear some opinions on must have options.

the PSE is definitely on top of my list, curious to know what options other 981 owners can’t live without.

I have PSE on my 2014 Boxster S and never listen to the radio so if you get an S you should be covered. The 14 way seats are not as comfortable as the 18 way seats in our CTT but they are alright.

I sought and bought a '13 S 6MT with the steering wheel controls, but they're about like hens teeth. Only addition I play with adding is a backup camera. I compensate by backing into parking spots that I see ahead of time, then no worry about pulling out.

Good thoughts above.

I loved my 2014 981 CS. Sold it for the 991.2.

I would say very important / useful

- Sports Chrono (esp with 6MT, for the Rev Matching)
- Backup Camera (15 or later?)

and somewhat important / useful

- Nav
- Rear Wiper (Cayman)
- Bose

and less than useful

- White Dials
- Carbon Fibre Steering Wheel

I think PSE is a matter of personal taste.

I have a 2013 Porsche 981BS;

My must have options would be;

PSE
6 Speed Manual
Sport Design Steering Wheel
Park Assist Front And Rear
PCM Sat Nav
Sport Chrono Package Inc Dynamic Transmission Mounts (Sports PLUS button) - works well the PSE.
FVD ECU Tune

Nice to Have Options;

Cruise Control
Full Leather Interior
Heated Seats
Electric Folding Door Mirrors
Crest Embossed Headrests
BOSE Surround Sound System
Blue Tooth Phone Module
18 Way Sports Seats
GTS Rear Lights Fitted

Not Desirable

PDK ;-)

Personally i think the colour is also an important and personal choice and more important than the options listed above. I do like the Cayman 981GTS in Carmine Red.


Good Luck specing your car.

Seats...make sure you like the seats. there are several kinds and they fit people differently. Base seats we don't like...the 4 way sports we ended up with (and the power sports too) to our frames, are far more comfy after longer rides. A 5 minute test drive may not show this...

If you enjoy long top down seasons, then heated and cooled seats are a top option as well.

- b

Exercise the top to make sure it does not stall on the way down. There is a switch assembly in the top that can fail, causing the top to stop prematurely. Generally, pulling the console switch a second time will finish lowering the top. Repair kit is $85 per side, but the top has to be removed from the car and labor is $1200+ for that.

Exercise the top at least 10 times as the fault can be intermittent.

V6

I have the top down alot and wish that mine had the cooled seats.

Thanks for all the tips and suggestions! This is a helpful start. Now to do more research into the individual options :)

I would love to see these options in person, but there’s no used inventory within 300 miles from me, so i’d likely be flying into a different state to pick up a car.

I run with the top down most of the time and have the cooled seats. It helps some, but not a whole lot. The back still gets sweaty. It probably helps when it is not too hot, but when it is extremely hot, nothing is going to help.

In order:
PDK
Sport Chrono
Sport Design steering wheel
PASM
Power Sport Seats w/ Heating & Ventilation
Premium Pkg w/PCM-Bose
20" Wheels

Not worth the $:
Enhanced navigation system
Various cosmetic doo-dads (colored seat belts, painted parts, etc)
PSE (You're not a teenager any more.... get over it)

Prioritize options that can't be retrofitted vs ones that can.

Choice of Trans

Sport Chrono a must either way

I would disagree with much of this. Must haves are PSE, PASM or X73, and sport design wheel. Don't need much more than that! Sport Chrono is arguably more important on a PDK car but not a must have for either (unless you really like the clock). The nav is outdated already, I'd skip. Bose isn't great (especially with a top down in a boxster, but you won't care with PSE). Rear wiper isn't a big deal. Backup camera is nice but can live without. For a convertible, seat heaters are important. There are a few seat options, but having the 2 way sport seats in my previous 981 Cayman S, I can say that even those are great. Have 18 ways now and very happy with those as well.

Having purchased a 981 with the only option being center caps painted and PDK I would say I wish I had a PSE of all things.

Parking sensors would have been a nice addition as well :)

Checking out a 2013 S with 34k miles with an 85k msrp.

pse, pasm, sport chrono, premium package, extended leather, ptv, 20” carrera s wheels, bose, navi and much more. Listed for 42.5k.

can anyone chime in what this car is worth? Or better yet, would anyone be able to share what they paid for their car? I’m finding it difficult to find data online to determine a fair market value.

fwiw, after taking in account of the suggestions above, my “nice to have” options are pse, pasm and the sound system. Sport design steering wheel definitely looks cool too.

I’m coming from a Lotus, where there was bare aluminum exposed and no carpeting, so I have a feeling even a base Boxster with no options will be luxurious to me.