MielsOnWheels

Hey all,

I'm a 993 guy and pretty active on the 993 board. I'm interested in doing some track days and HPDEs and thought a Cayman S might be just the ticket. It will be street driven too, but with VIR and Dominion Raceway close to me, I'd like to take advantage of some great road courses in my backyard.

I know 993s, not Caymans, so I need some help on what to look for.

My initial thought would be a 2009+, higher mileage, 6-speed, with service records. I'd get a PPI performed for sure.

Beyond that, I'm really not sure what to look for in terms of desirable/non-desirable options, weak points, etc.

Any advice and potential leads on cars would be appreciated!

tlarocque

I think you nailed it with the service records and PPI. I just purchased a 2009 CS PDK with almost 80k miles and I can't believe how tight the car still feels. I think most would agree that that the Gen 2 cars are pretty robust and make a great starting point for DE or more. The options would be personal preference and how much importance you place on them probably depends on how much you plan to enjoy the car on the street or track. For track performance items I think you would be upgrading from stock anyway and there are a lot of good options out there. PASM is nice if you don't plan to upgrade but, as I understand it, will limit your suspension options if you plan to upgrade but maintain its function. Biggest hurdle may be the relative paucity of cars for sale.

Beautiful 993 you have there.

Happy hunting.

MielsOnWheels

That's good info thanks. I was thinking PASM would be good to have but didn't realize that if you want to keep its functionality it limits suspension options. Sorting the suspension on the 993 has been one of the most rewarding upgrades, I'd think that's where I'd want to focus on a CS since I'd think getting a lot more power out of it would be $$$ as it is in the 993, but I may be wrong?

Love that Carrera too...

Terry T.

I have a track-oriented 987.2 and love it. It's an amazing track weapon. They are pretty hard to find, though, especially if you want a manual. I spent several months looking for mine and had to fly from Seattle to Phoenix to get it and drive it home. My son and I went in December of 2015, and it was a great road trip home.

I spent many happy weekends at VIR when I lived back east. It's my favorite track.

Good luck with your search.

certz

Good choice on the Gen 2 car - I am building a Gen 1 car for the PCA Spec Cayman class, otherwise I would have bought a Gen 2 car. I could go on and on about what you need to do to a Gen 1 car to make it track ready but I do not know much about the Gen 2 cars - other than the more robust motor. My suggestion would be to contact a shop that has built these cars for racing/DE and get their opinion. I am not sure where you are located but Charles Navaro at LNE or Pawel at BRS are good sources if you are in the Chicago area - they would probably answer your questions even if you are not.

Good luck.

MielsOnWheels

That's what I'm trying to determine, is the cost to make a Gen 1 CS track-ready and reliable close to the same cost as a Gen 2 CS out of the box?

HoBoJoe

The engine design changes in the 987.2 are more than enough to justify skipping the .1 even if you save a few $k after getting it track ready.

certz

VA993Dreamer and HoBoJoe - forgetting all the race car stuff like a full cage, fire suppression, etc, what I am doing to make the Gen 1 car ready for reliable track service costs a mint - deep sump, third radiator, power steering cooler, trans/diff cooler, oil cooler, Motorsport AOS, etc. The Gen 2 motor is much more robust and does not necessarily require all of this. But again, I would contact people in the know. Another resource is Tim Olsen of Olsen Motorsports - he contributes to RL as well.

There are guys just like Steve Wiener but for the Cayman out there - I have named a few - but go find them and listen to their recommendations, you will be much better off in the end.

tlarocque

Absolutely. I think there are some gains to be had with upgrading plenum/throttle body, exhaust and tune but the cost/hp is going to be pretty high.

I have never driven a Cayman on track but people seem to love them.

Terry T. -where are you in Seattle area? What upgrades have you made to your car? Do you ever go out to The Ridge?

MielsOnWheels

Helpful, thanks Certz...I'll reach out to some of those recommendations...

DaveCarrera4

Exactly. I lucked into a low miles local gen 2 S with LSD, SSK, PASM, 19" turbo II wheels and 6 speed MT. Fun on the track.

MielsOnWheels

That sounds like just about the exact car I'd be looking for. Is it capable enough (power/handling/steering/braking) in stock form for you on the track or do you feel it needs upgrades in certain areas to really dial it in? Is it true that PASM limits suspension options if you want to keep its functionality?

Terry T.

I'm in Mukilteo and I spent the previous two Sundays at the Ridge. Next week i'll be at the PCA event at Pacific Raceways. Will you be there? If so, please drop by and say hello. My car is midnight blue, number 44.

My car is pretty much maxed out as far as bolt-on mods are concerned: OS Giken LSD, PSS9s, Tarrett sways, RSS lower control arms and bump steer kit, Girodiscs, GT3 brake master cylinder, Softronics tune, ipd plenum with GT3 throttle body, Billy Boat exhaust, Numeric shifter cables, Cantrell roll bar, OMP seats, Schroth harnesses, OZ Allegerita wheels, Performance Friction 08 brake pads, Nitto NT01's, Raid steering wheel, and probably some stuff I've forgotten. The only bolt-on I haven't done yet is headers. Oh, and a 3.8 engine!

tlarocque

VA993- I think a car like Dave's would be great fun at the track but, like any car, to have it really dialed in you need some upgrades. But with just a good alignment (possibly requiring different LCA's), some good brake pads/fluid/cooling it would be an awesome start.

Terry - Your car sounds insane! Yep, next stop BGB for your 3.8.

https://www.teambgb.com/Engine-Conversion-s/115.htm

I live in San Diego but have a lake home on Mason Lake (very close to The Ridge). Probably going to take me a few years but my ultimate goal is to build a garage to house my boat and a track car that I can use when up there. We'll see.

John@Fabspeed

Completely agree with HoBoJoe, the 987.2 engine design upgrades are worth the investment over the .1 100%.

X73 suspension is relatively rare but it is excellent, much more track oriented than the PASM setup. It is factory on the Cayman R and I have little complaint about it, you have a to be a pretty damn good driver to push the limits of that shock/spring setup, although sway bars could use a little upgrade. Factory LCAs are junk, upgrade them immediately so you can run more camber and not wear the outside edge of your tires down. Factory pads/rotors/fluid don't hold up to hard track abuse (pads fade pretty easily, drilled rotors stress fracture, have to bleed fluid often). See if you can find one with PSE. The weakest links in regards to the performance of the car is the factory headers and software, and our Race Headers/PSE combination sounds incredible on top of the 20-30whp you will pick up.

There is so much to go over on this, so i'm shooting you over a PM and perhaps we can chat on the phone a bit. I'll be sure to help you make an educated decision moving forward