Winegums

Hello, I'm looking to get into a Cayman GTS soon and I was wondering how the car fairs as a daily driver. So I have a few questions to ask.

1. How is the car around town? Is the low end torque enough for hills and corners without dropping a gear?

2. How is the car on the highway at cruising speeds? NVH?

3. How is the overall size, blind spots, parking, climate control, etc?

I know that everyone has a different view on what is good and isn't about a car but I would still greatly value your words. Thanks.

blacksheepSpyder

sure if you live in the guest house of Robin Masters on the big island of Hawaii....


If you live in Ohio, I would get a vw from car max and drive that to work...

lcrain

Have you driven one? If not, I suggest you drive one. A simple test drive of a gts or s will answer all of the questions you have. Most would find it too small, impractical, or overly harsh. All of these things make it more appealing to me personally. But I am a single male who enjoys a sporty drive as often as possible.

All of these questions depend on your preferences and what you are accustomed to.

prrod

Hi there!
I have had a Cayman GTS manual for 4 months now.
I use it as a daily driver and I love it.
The suspension is not harsh at all.
The siting position with the regular seats is very comfy.
Backing up could use a rearview camera since visibility is marginal.
The engine could use a little more low end torque but is fine.
Above 4200 rpms it really starts singing.
Totally recommend.
Go test drive one and let us know what you think.

Archimedes

I have a Cayman S X73 with PSE and I love daily driving it when I get a chance, but...it is very loud inside (rated one of the top 10 loudest interiors of any car sold) and it is a firm ride. If my commute were really bad roads, I might choose another car. Also, the drone on the freeway is pretty loud unless you're totally off throttle, even with PSE shut off. Not a ton of storage, but the rear hatch makes it a lot easier to use day to day than my Carrera.

whitelightnin

I have been driving a Boxster GTS w/PDK for a year as my daily driver (caveat: am retired, 4000 miles in a year and located in rural W. NC,) and I was constantly looking for excuses to drive it. With PDK, I think it would make a great daily driver even in the city.

Winegums

Thanks for the replies guys, I'm going to test drive one soon. I'm sure I'll get a much better feel for the car once I do that but I wanted to hear a more long term point of view that's all. A test drive sometimes doesn't expose all the quirks of a car that you find after owning it.

The comments on noise alarm me a bit as I find that my E46 M3 is quiet when cruising compared to a lot of cars.

whitelightnin

Winegums,

Notice I changed my annual mileage from 400 to 4000. You would be wise not to consider advice from someone who drives 400 miles per year. It was just a typo.

Phil G.

I put around 400 miles per year on my '04 C4S and sold it with 3300 miles (bought at 1100). My incoming 981S should see at least 500 miles annually. Yeah, whitelightnin, no one listens to me either.

PCarOMFS

I don't think the interior noise is bad at all. The car sounds good like a sports car should. I really don't think the PSE drones either. I came from a C6 ZO6 with Billy Boat Bullet exhaust. If that's a 10 in terms of interior noise and drone, the CGTS with PSE is a 3.

Gravs

Wine gums definitely yes. But I want to drive a sports car every day!

dakargelb

In case it helps, we have a BGTS: it has the standard PASM suspension and i rate the ride quality as near the best I've experienced in any car. This has to be down in no small part to the incredibly stiff chassis of the 981, which means the springs and dampers get to do all of the work - as they should. We have absolutely rubbish roads in the UK and it remains serene and unflustered over a wide range of surface imperfections. Its such an easy car to 'press on' in as it tracks so true that you never worry that some surface or camber change is going to throw you off line at speed.

As for the noise - it is true, the car does have a kind of back-ground drone at motorway speed.. Give one a try to see if it bothers you or not. That said our BMW X3 generates a lot of wind noise at similar speeds and I sooner have the GTS's engine note than that wind-noise any day. Aside from that, it is a very civilised cabin to be in.

It does not take much to make the GTS absolutely bark and snarl as the engine revs lift, plus you get lots of crackles and pops on the overrun. This is fun when you want it, but its not really a very subtle car. It makes my 993 turbo feel very demure and civilised, by contrast.

Visibility out the back is pretty poor and seems even more lousy when you compare it to the all-round view you get in say a 993. However, the reversing camera and parking sensors certainly take away most of the worry about inadvertently nudging something when parking up.

Would I want to run one as daily driver? Not sure. Its a fabulous and very involving sports car and one I can't imagine ever tiring of, but like fine wine, you don't actually want to drink it every day. Sometimes you just need a beer!

Hope this helps :-)

mcomet

Sort of the same as what everyone else is saying.

Car has road noise for sure...tires etc.... not the quietest car. PASM makes things civilized... my wife prefers the feel of the Porsche w/PASM even on my 20" tires compared to my Scion xD. If you don't get PASM get 19" tires to try to help.

Visibility is fine ...forward. And ok back... If you test drive an Alfa 4C or Lamborghini Countach for comparison it's like living in a house of glass comparatively. That said it's probably not as good as other normal cars. I don't have backup sensors or camera and it can be annoying to park.

Driving wise the car is fine for DD. I don't actually DD mine...I was taking it to work 2-3x a week at one point but tapered off to 1x or less. That said I have 20,000 miles on it in a little over 2 years. At cruising or normal driving speeds the car reacts well, steering is fine and should feel comfortable. Then when you want to open it up it will move. You probably will find yourself downshifting on hills.

Like everyone else said... test drive it... and test drive whatever else you might be considering back to back if possible...

Archimedes

Not saying it's bad, I love it. But it is loud and someone who isn't expecting it or used to it, could be surprised by it. When I jump back and forth from this to my Carrera S or my RS5, the difference is significant. Cayman S was #9 on the list of the noisiest car interiors based on testing by AutoBild. Corvette (stock) didn't even crack the top 30.

Dr.Bill

It would be an awesome daily driver. Perhaps a bit soft and cushy, but I'm used to a GT3. Anything more comfortable would bore me to tears.