RustyShackleford

Hey everyone, I'm on the market for a used Cayman, and wanted your suggestions! I test drove a cayman yesterday, ~25K miles, 2008 base, ~$34k, manual transmission. Do you think this is a good price? What price should I be asking for out the door? What caught my eye is that it's a certified preowned with a 2 year bumper to bumper warranty.

Also, any suggestions of where I can do a little more car shopping?? I tried cars.com, porsche.com, carguru.com! lmk thanks.

http://ucl.porsche.de/ucl/plsql/usa/...&pnr_=1&lnr_=1

M. Schneider

^^^^ Answer: Not a clue. What part of town are you located? East coast, west coast? Avatar is clueless. There were many build changes throughout the years with the base & S Cayman models; for your ownership what is important? The technical developments or aesthetic changes and or a mix of both. It is a sports car after all.....

Direct fuel injection was introduced in MY08 IIRC... as example a Cayman w/direct injection would be sought before a Cayman without direct injection. The larger displacement S models provide greater day to day useable torque. The base engine is noticeably lacking torque.


With large production numbers out there, its a buyers market. Know your stuff regarding model year, options, etc. Buyer's market. Troll the Porsche Club of America website's classified section.

RustyShackleford

I'm located in Los Angeles. From the test drive, I'm very happy with the performance, but am still considering the S if the right deal comes along. Right now, my hardline criteria is low miles and up to $35k; $40k if it's an amazing deal. I would prefer an S, '09 or greater, but I have found it very difficult to find qualifying caymans within my criteria. Most have had 3+ owners, been a lease car at one point, etc... My #1 concern is reliability. Porsches are reliable cars, but I'm talking about hidden issues that may not have been caught from the pre purchase inspection. I would hate to invest in a car just to find out I need to pour another $3.5k into it. This car is going to become my baby, and I want to start off on the right food. Any advice helps! Thanks!

2011guardsredcay

Can't particularly comment on your "good price" question. Depends on your local market for these cars. We purchased a '11 Cayman Base before last Xmas with many options not found on most models, 17K miles, 6MT, one owner, one year of factory warranty left. I said "we" because my wife wanted it as much as I did and particularly wanted the color, Guards Red. What you get depends on how you use it. If you want to be in competitive speed events, maybe the S is a better choice. Our interest is for an overall enjoyable driving experience. Consider comfort/tech options vs S higher hp/tq. There is also the point made on this forum that S models tend to be tracked and over-reved more often, thus have earlier higher wear. Our car was a one owner, sold at the original dealership. Asked $41.5K, sold for $38K. Did we pay too much? Doesn't matter now as we have the car we want and enjoy. I think that the '08 has the older engine with the potential IMS bearing failure. 09' model forward has 2.9 engine with that solved. Good luck.

RustyShackleford

A 2011, low miles, 1 owner for $38K? I would say that's a great price, at least relative to the prices I have been coming across. How was your out-the-door price compared with the sticker price, or was it purchased from private owner?

I have heard about the IMS bearing failure and did a little bit of research, and apparently the earlier '06 models with the M96 experience this IMS issue, but later '06 and beyond with the M97 have apparently solved this issue. I'll do a little more research, but I would definitely prefer an '09 over a 1st gen. However, I've been on the market for a while now and have found it very difficult to come across what I'm looking for. I'm picky and want to get the perfect Cayman!

Thanks for all the help!

2011guardsredcay

This car was sold to the original owner 1/12 and then sold through that dealer to me, since the original owner had some kind of personal relationship with the dealership. The original sticker was $64K. Didn't need a trade, paid cash. Asked about additional CPO, but that would have added $3K to the cost, so decided to go with one year left on factory warranty. It was winter slow time end of year. Almost didn't buy it, then saw the "look that could kill" on wife's face.

RustyShackleford

Hahaha well I'm glad you're both happy with the purchase, and I'm sure I wont regret a thing as well! I was calculating my finances and barely fall within the range of being able to afford a 2015 Cayman, but I decided to test drive an '08 so I can have extra $ for whatever additional expenses and/or modifications I may need to invest. When I drove the '08 I did not expect to get such a rush from driving a 7 y/o car. I can't wait!

SCPete

I recently bought a CPO base 2010 PDK for 32.5, 43K miles. Great shape. I currently do not plan to track my car. I would not mind the extra HP of an S. But, assuming the S suspension is very much stiffer, I'm not sure I'd want that suspension. Granted, I did not drive one, so I'm not being critical. The base is not harsh, but its not my E39, either. I am east coast. Our roads are sadly under maintained. When I was looking there were many more cars west coast than east. That does not sound like a very good deal to me. Just my .02.

RustyShackleford

$32.5K? What OTD price did you get? If the car I'm looking at is $34k sticker, what OTD should I be looking for?

I'm located in Los Angeles and it has been really difficult to find a manual CPO cayman for some reason :/ I really don't feel comfortable buying random noncertified from small dealership...

I'll probably ask for $31k out the door, and if that doesn't go well I'll probably save for another year and get a brand new.

thank you for the info!

SCPete

Sorry I was not accurate. I bought from a guy who bought CPO about a year ago. I'm still under warranty til mid 2016. i got it inspected regardless. Always going to cheaper to buy from a individual. If they have good records and you get an independent inspection you will probably be ok. Just my thought. This guy had priced it higher and had just reduced the price.

RustyShackleford

Yeah i can save a lot buying private, but knowing my luck its hard for me to take the risk hahah. Im considering it though! I think i might have my cayman within the next 3 weeks, cant wait!