prm1177

Other than the new vs used arguements, are there any opinions from those who have or do own both? A new Cayman and an '01 Carrera are around the same price.

mooty

i have cayman S and had 02 carerra (3.6L).
if you are talking about cayman, then the comparison is harder.
if you are talking about cayman S, then cayman S is all over 01 carerra (3.4L)
about same hp, slightly lighter, more agile. you have a full warranty.
you will suffer more on dep'n if you care.

Dr. Car

Huh. I was just weighing this, as I don't have my own Porsche yet (borrowed cars go faster). I looked at prices of a lot of cars and would expect to pay about $45K for a nice '02 with the 320hp 3.6. Even dealers in my area are asking $55K for some CPO '02+ Carreras, so a motivated dealer would take $50K, maybe less. Some privately owned cars have 100K warranty, and CPOs come with that benefit. So I'm not swayed that warranty is a reason to get a Cayman over the Carrera.

The market is pretty efficient in pricing used cars based on their desireability. IMO a person could get a very nice 3.6 996 with a warranty for far less than the price of a new Cayman S, leaving room in the budget for an extra set of wheels, track time, etc. That's what weighs on my mind.

Also I like the idea of back seat; it makes a lot of sense for people with small kids or expecting to have children soon. As a child I loved riding in the back of my Dad's sports car (which didn't have a back seat so it involved reclining on part of the top and holding onto the fabric for support). Finally, there's the vainglorious issue of being able to say you own a 911, instead of having to explain to everyone "what a Cayman is."

I have no doubt that both a Cayman and a 996 will depreciate, but in my experience cars that are already 3 years old don't have quite as steep a decline as brand new cars. So the 996 is going to cost less in that regard too. Depriciation is the silent monetary killer that we sort of choose to overlook when we really want a new car that's honestly a bit beyond our sensible budgets.

A standard 996 is not as close to being a great track tool as a Cayman, but most of us are not serious track hounds. I'd expect to run in the fast group at a track day with either the Cayman S or the 996, and have a great time. I do like the feel of the rear engine compared to the mid-engine, having borrowed both 911s and Boxsters for PCA and other events...

JEC_31

Depreciation, schepreciation. These cars were meant to be driven, not sold.

Drive an example of each back-to-back and follow your heart.

bet

As a current 01 Carrera owner and someone who has spent some time in the Cayman S and spent a day in Cayman here are some thoughts (for what they are worth). First, drive both and decide what you are looking for. The Cayman the 01 Carrera are really different animals. All my comments are based on daily driving observations. Things may change on the track but I am not the one to over opinions on that.

The Cayman is very agile and tossable. It has a much more precise feel to the steering. However, it lacks grunt and power compared to the Carrera. Driven back to back you can immediately notice the power difference in the 3.4l Carrera vs. the base Cayman. The Carrera just has the base Cayman by the neck with torque and power. However, the Carrera feels heavier and not near a quick to turn in when compared to the Cayman and is does not feel as tossable. That said the Carrera has great gripe (like the Cayman) and allows for you to get on the power sooner in corner and just provides for a very satisfactory power on feel out of a corner. If you are looking at 02 and newer Carrera’s the perceived power differences get even greater.

Interiors and styling are completely objective. Personally of the 996 cars I think the 99-01 cars are much better looking than the 02-04 cars. I like the new Porsche interiors (987,997,CS, etc.) a lot. In my experience the 996 has been an extremely reliable and robust car. Depending on what options and mileage you are looking at you should be able to find a 99-01 Carrera for less than a similarly spec’d Cayman. If depreciation does matter to you the used Carrera is likely going to depreciate less at this point than a new Cayman.

The cars are dissimilar enough that you really need to decide what you are looking for in the car. Will it be a daily driver? Will you track it?, etc. When you figure this out you will know which car is better for you. If would like more specific comments please feel free to PM or email me.

MrClean

I could not choose a base Cayman over a 996 Carrera.

However, if you were talking about a Cayman S versus a Carrera 996 then, I would think this is decision that would require more thought. I had this decision in front of me over the last year.

I chose the Cayman S for it's performance, it's design and it's full 4 year warranty for what I considered a very reasonable price. Granted, I could have likely find a CPO 996 that has an extended warranty, but unless I knew the seller and the history of the car, I would not chance it. I have been down that road before on "pristine" pre-owned cars, only to be disappointed by tape lines found later or something else unexpected.

I am absolutely loving this Cayman S. IMO, it has the best proportions and design since the 993! The performance is down right outstanding from my point of view.

Good luck and enjoy the search!

RaceCarDriver

I had to make the same decision this summer. I was looking at 02 996's in the 50k range and a new Cayman S. A Cayman S with the performance options I wanted would be about $65k.

I drove the two back to back and preferred the power of the 3.6 996. I would give the Cayman S the edge in handling, but I was coming out of a Z06 so I really didn't want to have such a big power drop.

The clincher for me is that I have a two year old daughter and she fits perfectly in the back with her baby seat.

In the end, I found a mint condition 02 996 C4S for $50k (private sale).

I probably will pick up a used Cayman S in a few years when the used prices come down to the $30k range. It would make an excellent autocross/track car.

perfectlap

Congrats. I really dig that color on the CaymanS. Please take care of her and call me in two years.

Wachuko

If you do not need the rear seats, go with the Cayman. Better interior, great sound, and overall nice car. Even if it is the base Cayman and not the Cayman S you are getting a car with full warranty and that is great peace of mind, imho.

If you are in need of the rear seats (which I doubt since you are considering the Cayman) I suggest either to wait a bit or stretch you budget for a 2002+ 996. The updates made are worth it, again imho.

prm1177

Thanks for all the thoughtful advice. The rear seats aren't much of an issue since this will be a second car (I also have a Cayenne). The Cayman intrigues me as its styling is fresh and the road manners are impeccable. Owning a 911 has always been a dream for me, but the one downside is that they've always felt like the original VW Beetle on steroids to me (sorry). I will take the advice and drive them back to back and see.

P-Car fanatic

I drove my
3.4 99 996
cayman 's'
997 's'

back to back

I preferred the cayman s

the 997 felt porky and less viscereal (sp) than compared to both my 996 and the cayman

The cayman interior is much better than the 996 one - after all that design is over a decade old....

defintely drive back to back

driving the cayman s gave me a grin on my face that i have missed since I sold me 2.5 boxtser - power is certainly not everything

Chris 996

Power.... If you like fast starts and power go with the 996.
If you like pulling hard G's in the corner go with cayman S.

Best of both worlds would be the Cayman S with 400HP or more. Ruff.

Dr. Car

Just to stir up the pot, I've noticed that '01 and '02 996 Turbos probably go for about $60K based on the asking prices I've seen. Rennlist's market analysis showed that to be the median price for them. That's a heck of a lot of car, but admittedly more expensive to own and the cost of consumables has to be a lot worse.