Milehigh981

That is one good looking ride! Agate is a great color IMO.
Enjoy!

erik_plus8

Thank you! I'm just now on my way out in the garage to get rid of some stuff and make room for it. Will get it home on Friday next week. Outside, it's snowing and -7 degC... It will be some looong weeks until I can take it out for the first time...

Eggy41

Nope and come to think it I have PCCB's as well, spec is something like ...

Manual
Carbon Buckets
X73

(They were my must have's)

Rhodium (not first choice colour but hey ho)
Full Leather (agate grey, didn't want it initially but now I like it
PCCB (wouldn't have specced them new but wheels stay nice and clean !)
PDLS
DAB (worth it over here if you listen to the radio)
PCM (hmm, better than previous systems I gather but not so good as others and a lot of money for what you get, but they all do that don't they)
Sound Plus
PTV (again wouldn't pay for that new given the choice)
Turbo Alloys (standard alloys would have been fine by me)

I did think of buying new but slots seemed hard to come by and this came up. I call it my analogue car, not to everyone's taste but I like it. It's a June 2014 car, had 7.5k miles on it, I picked it up 1 October

Eggy41

whereas I am just out to the garage to get on the turbo and do some bike training ... got to make sure I can get into those seats

erik_plus8

Thanks for info about the seats. That's also a very beautiful car. Rhodium Silver was #2 on my list and the Turbo Wheels matches that color very nicely

Eggy41

Thanks, I think my colour preferences were Sapphire,Atlas (although stg 1,500 for that feels like a bit of a cheek),Agate but I think they look great in a lot of colours. But then it's all about the driving, looking forward to getting some of that done.

I've found getting the driving position right difficult, I think the fixed back of the seats are partly to blame and my (lack of of) height but the seats are comfortable for me. X73 can be jiggly on my suburban roads which are in a bit of a mess these days but fine on a road in half decent condition.

I've wanted a Cayman for ages, had a 968 club sport in my youth, had a looked at 987.2's for a lot less money but got sucked in by the 981, I think they're lovely looking (the GT4 looks a little more aggressive which I think also suits the shape), interior is far nicer than the 987 but either way underrated cars that deserve a lot wider audience. My wife gave me the push to go and do it, which was nice (by which I mean encouraged me, not left me!)

Happy not to be following the herd into a 911

erik_plus8

Hehe - my first P-car was a 2008 997.1 C2S. Bought it used 2010 with 10000km on the clock. Wonderful car, had a lot of character. Both drivetrain- and handling wise. I loved the former, not 100% sure about the latter. Sure, I can understand the lure of a rear engined car and for some years it was definitely my preference. But then in 2014 I test drove a friends newly delivered Boxster GTS. Over those ~60km somehow everything just fell into place, the balance, the predictability, the controllability - I instantly loved it

My friends car was a PDK. On the same test drive I also decided that it was the best automatic I've driven, but it is still very clearly an automatic... Some time later I test drove an MT Boxster GTS and I proved my self right This in turn meant my used car search became harder. In Sweden and Germany where I serched for cars, the ratio between PDK / MT cars (used and new, dealer spec:ed) was 95% / 5% and the very few MT cars that actually showed up always lacked either the X73 or the PTV, both of which were a must for me.

So, it's been a long journey and I really look forward to continue it as soon as conditions permit.

spyderphile

This is one of the reasons why MT is going through a slow death! PDK (and other DCTs from various manufacturers) is so good that MT has become irrelevant except for very hardcore hold-outs. If PDK doesn't shove the final nail, CO2 and other regs will. And, after cleaned up, your car looks the part! Like the color.

Egg41:
Congratulations! Car looks great. Agree on X73; it's mandatory.

erik_plus8

Hehe, happy to consider myself a "very hardcore hold-out"

SWMBO calls me a dinosaur, which I'm also proud of.

Although I think it's not only that the PDK/DCT boxes are good which is causing the slow death of the MT. It's also clever and very deliberate marketing from for instance Porsche. All in the name of fulfilling CO2 legislations.

I think almost 100% of dealer specced cars ("cars on the lot") were PDKs in Germany. The few MTs were from private sellers (fellow hardcore hold-outs ) I contacted a few of those dealers about free allocations, explained why I wasn't interested in their lot car (because of the PDK) and wanted to order a new, then most of them said: "But you must have a PDK - it's a fantastic gearbox". I corrected them and said: "yes, it's a fantastic AUTOMATIC gearbox"...

I am 47, been working my whole career in automotive (mostly powertrain) development and motorsports, and I've been hobby-competing in karting and motocross. I have a decent idea of what I am looking for in a combustion engine product and it p***es me off when the SA tries to tell me what "I must have"

At the dealer here in Sweden who in the end found an allocation for me, the SA said when I started describing my spec: "OK, I want a Cayman, GTS, MT, X73, etc," he just: "Wow, this will be a great car..."

Eggy41

I'd guess 10% maybe slightly higher over here are manuals and your right it does make it difficult to find something hence the compromises elsewhere .. and then they build the GT4 with manual only and demand is strong (although over here that might have something to do with Porsche GB "managing " the supply side) you'd hope they get the message that people want a more analogue car ... But again as our US friend says, emission controls and the 4 cyl turbo .. not for me thanks, buy an Audi TT if that's what you want !

On the subject of the GT4 I keep meaning to look at the respective power to weight ratios, our analogue cars might save a bit of weight against a GT4 with PASM and sofas, might not be much in it
Plus my racing weight is 65 kgs, could gain 20 kgs there on a lot of people, lithium battery ..... Who needs a GT4

Patrick3000

Very nice build, just curious why X73 over PASM

NBTBRV8

Here is Australia 62 Cayman GTS' had been delivered as of last month, only 5 of those were manual. Mine will be the 6th most likely.

Eggy41

For me it was a case of keeping it analogue plus the aesthetic of the slightly lower ride height and I believe there's a small weight saving. It's a Chapman car

Quite funny how so many GT4 owners refer to the enjoyment of the manual gearbox and yet so few spec them on "normal" Caymans, as Eric says maybe it's led by the sales assistants pushing PDK ?

erik_plus8

Basically what Eggy said above. First GTS I drove was a PDK PASM Boxster. As I said loved the handling, balance etc. Still I was surprised how "soft" in relative terms the suspension was (in PASM Normal). In PASM Sport it became strangely stiff in the ride, without really adding (or losing) control. Anyway, didn't think much of it until I looked up another BGTS, this time with MT - to prove myself right regarding the gearbox. Instantly, I decided that MT is the way to go (for me). Then I started playing a little with Sport and Sport Plus buttons. Didn't feel any difference in the ride/handling going back and forth which surprised me based on my previous drive in the PDK BGTS, and it actually took me a while also to realize there was no PASM button => the car had X73. Didn't know that when I got in. And I really liked they way it behaved on the roads I drove. So another must in the option list (albeit at no cost...) Then the slightly lower stance over the wheels adds nicely to the whole package. The perception of an "analogue" car is very accurate, I think

erik_plus8

Yes, I'm also surprised, the GT4 sells like hot cakes waaay above MSRP, in no small part because of the MT-only approach, And then on GTS and I assume also S the MT/PDK ratio goes south. I'm convinced, from my contacts with German dealers, it's OEM push rather than market pull that creates this and someone even said: "You know, it will not be easy for you to sell this one later on, without the PDK"... We'll see... Hopefully I won't know the answer until the wheels have fallen off this one...