New to me 981S!
 

I'm flying out to purchase a fellow Rennlister's 981S in a few weeks and drive it back. I'm excited to finally own the car I've been dreaming about, but have a few questions.

1. I was originally looking for either a 981 S or GTS, but this S turned out to be perfectly optioned with the 6-speed/SC/PASM/PSE. I still find myself wondering if I should have held out for the GTS (full leather dash, etc). Can someone confirm that I'm not really missing much and saving myself some cash?

2. The warranty lasts until late 2018. Is it possible to get the car CPO'd at all? Does CPO cover anything that the "regular" warranty doesn't?

3. A silly question, but with the Audio system with Navigation, I can just plug my iphone in and get music and audio control through a USB cable, right?

Thanks guys. I can't wait!

The car looks very well optioned.
PASM or X73 is a must imo. And I prefer the feel and look of 20" rims (you didn't mention wheel size)
I believe post 2014 SC enabled matched downshifts for the MT 981 platform so that's a great option to have unless you are an extraordinarily proficient heel and toer.
The sport exhaust sounds fantastic although Fabspeed makes lightweight great sounding, performance enhancing exhausts should you find a car that lacks the PSE option

So performance wise the car you are considering seems very well equipped containing all of the perfomance options you would get in the GTS with the exception of PTV.

Now what the GTS gives you in addition to 10 extra ponies is a revised front bumper, alcantra. (the full leather dash I wasn't aware of)

These things are very personal but I prefer the GTS front bumper particulary with brighter colors like red or blue.

The full leather dash with deviated stitching on my Spyder is something I would never go without in future Porsches. I think it is gorgeous and really takes the interior to the next level. Then again my friend could care less about about those things and ordered his GT3 with the standard interior. So it's really a personal choice

I would get the sport seats plus. I had the 14w on my last Porsche. (I had the plastic dash too) and the lack of side bolster is less than optimal imo. The 18ws are better.

I believe you will need the infotainment package or some subset of it to get USB. Otherwise just get a Bluetooth to aux adapter to run your phone through the stereo.

So for me, if I was Buying a 981S I would want the following

PASM or X73 and 20" wheels
Full leather or leather and alcantra with deviated stitching
18w Sport seats plus heated and cooled
SC
PSE or aftermarket exhaust
PTV.
Sport steering wheel or multifunction if I was getting infotainment.

Good luck. The 981S or GTS is really an amazing Porsche sports car. It has semi exotic looks and feels like a slightly detuned supercar thats down on HP.

I had a '13 S (Espresso natural leather) and now have a '16 GTS (black full leather). Both great cars. My '13 had 19's and PASM; the GTS has 20" and X73. I like the GTS better there. I'm also a total convert on the 18 way seats - never ordered them but the GTS came with them. Would never go back. So much better than 14s in a sports car to my butt.
MFSW is a must for me, as well as a reversing camera. There is almost zero visibility reversing with the top up and it't the main reason I traded the '13 in after a year.
The 981 is a terrific platform and the 6 speed is one of the best ever. Congrats.

Thanks guys. Here's the car in question:

http://i66.tinypic.com/6i5ts2.png

Very well optioned. Any thoughts on the CPO?

Very nice build. I would get the CPO if you can.

Congratualtions and Nice build! I believe to get it CPO'd it would have to be purchased through a dealer. And usually it adds an extra 3K on ths price.

Regardless, you have a very nice drivers 981.

As for the audio, yes, it all goes through the USB cable.

Congrats, enjoy in good health!

Great build! I second the X73 but it's got PASM and the X73 is not for everyone. PASM definitely more comfortable. The Bose system is decent. You honestly won't regret having that it's good enough to counter the relatively loud interior of the car with the engine right behind your head. You will have a lot of fun with this car. Post pics when you can! And congrats once again!

I looked into buying CPO for my car because the warranty will end in December, but found out that it is not available to a second owner like me. I had the impression that the original owner could buy it before the end of their warranty subject to their inspection process.

Perhaps the current owner could buy it for you and add it to the purchase price. I am assuming that you are doing a private sale.

You could do the sale from your seller to a dealer who would then CPO it and sell it to you. The warranty itself is $2500 last I checked (although that was on a 997) but they may need you to pay for the tech's time as well as any parts or labor for things to bring it up to CPO standards. And then the dealership will expect to make some profit on the deal, maybe $500, maybe more. And some charge "doc fees" on top of that when you actually buy the car.

You'd be better off taking this $4K or whatever it ends up being and saving it for any future repairs.

IMHO, PASM is not needed nor noticeable on the 981, SC is silly and that's all irrelevant because if that's what you want, then who cares what I think about options? On that note - if a GTS is what you really want, then that's what you should buy.

That makes sense re: the CPO.

Out of curiosity, anyone else have thoughts on this well optioned S versus a GTS, especially if I could save a good amount of cash versus a GTS?

I would recommend getting the over rev report and a PPI from an independent shop.

My 2 cents. Good luck.

Harvey
PCA, Chin & PBOC HPDE Instructor
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
2015 981CS - PDK, GT Silver/Black
2008 997.1 C2 - 6 Speed, Meteor Grey/Sand Beige (gone)
2000 986S - 6 Speed, Arctic Silver (gone, but not forgotten)

today i'm going to look at/buy(?) a 13 Boxster S (still under warranty) and confirmed with 3 local dealers you can not take in a used car and get it CPO'd. CPO is only available if the car is bought from the dealer. still considering an extended warranty though.