Flexible onions

Interesting, so it's been appreciating, but is that because it's collectible or because the market for any/all used cars has gone insane?

I've got a similar vehicle ('08 Boxster RS60 Spyder, numbered LE). I don't think these cars are appreciating yet. The thing that, IMO, they really have going for them is that they have options that are otherwise somewhat rare on 987s.

To me, $35k sounds like a lot, but then I think someone else on the board just sold a Cayman and said that he sold it for almost what he paid for it just a couple/few years ago. I think he said it sold the first day for his asking price so he figured he asked less than he could have.

I think you'd enjoy the car, but I think we're in a bubble so the price is high and may not hold once the bubble pops.

I wouldn't be that worried about an IMS issue. I think the probability is pretty low for 2008, and at 70k miles, I'd think that if it was going to happen, it probably already would have. I would assume these would be at a little bit of a premium because of the options.

My boxster has PSE, PASM, Sport Chrono, sport seats, sport design parts (wheels, shift knob, etc...) and most of the rest of the options of the special edition you're looking at.

That seems like too much money for that car.

Now may not be the time to buy any performance ca. Last week I sold my 08 Cayman S for $22,500 and was offered more. A year ago I would have been lucky to get $17,500. That said it had 98000 miles and no engine issues other than a water pump at around 81000 miles. I think maybe the engine problem have been blown out of proportion. Or, was I lucky ?

That's it, you were the fella that I was thinking about that had just sold a Cayman.

I assume (hope) that the issues have been blown out of proportion.

When you get it out on the open road, you will yearn for either more power or less weight. And take a look at the "R" with the GT3 seats.

I think the weight difference between my seats and the GT3 seats is supposed to be about 15-16# per seat. While I'd love to have the support of that style of seat, and I think I'd be happy to have a car with those seats, I'm not sure the missus would enjoy the experience as much.

Porsche did a bunch of limited additions in 2008 and they were really good bargains. I’m sure they bring more money than the average car, as they were usually more heavily optioned, but I still don’t buy the price increase we’ve seen in the last year.

You wouldn’t like the GT3 seats on a long trip. I had the sport seats in my RS Spyder and even those put the hurt on you after a couple hours. When your body is locked into one position, it doesn’t like it much. I had sport seats in nearly every Porsche I owned and none of them were uncomfortable like those.

Exactly, I think the car market is in a crazy bubble. It's probably a bad idea to buy any car right now unless you have to.

It is hard to say. The internet, Love it and hate it. So much misinformation to get through. Guys tend to scream loudly when they have a problem and other guys repeat that problem. Dont hear at all from all the guys that have no problem.
I knew I was taking a calculated risk. I decided I could take the loss if the 3.4 went south. I think thats the way one has to look at it. If you cant deal with a possible failure, stay away.

Exactly. Mine was COPO when I got it. I thought that while it was under warranty, I'd run it like I stole it to ensure that if a problem was going to occur, it would be before the warranty ran out. I think I've only averaged 5-6k miles per year, but I don't baby it. It sees plenty of revs. I've never had a hiccup. Fingers crossed!

I’m pretty sure that those of these 987/997 engines that see more revs have fewer problems than those that are babied. Not to say that you shouldn’t warm one up properly, but once it’s warmed up, don’t be afraid to rev it a little.

That was my plan. But then that's pretty much been my plan with any vehicle I've ever owned, '65 Chevy Impala, '78 Dodge Omni, etc....

Oh, and by the way, my Boxster is better because it's got 8 more hp than the Cayman. I am pretty sure, that was the only time the Boxster was rated for more HP than the Cayman. The 2008 Boxster Spyder RS60 was rated for 303hp (first 987 to "break 300hp"). All of the rest of the 987s were rated at 295 or less. Woo hoo! ;) :D

Pretty sure only the RS spyder had that 303hp, largely because of the exhaust system.

That's what I've read. I understand that the PSE on the RS60 is slightly different from the normal PSE.

I've had a person or two say that it wasn't the exhaust but that they had a different head gaskets.

I'm sure that's possible too, or maybe it's the exhaust.

Porsche said it was the exhaust. Who knows?

For Afterburner…

The sport Chrono option isn’t one I used all that much. It tightens the suspension, changes the relationship between throttle pedal travel and throttlebody opening and turns on the sport exhaust, if equipped. You also got a (eyesore) dash mounted stopwatch that most people never used.

The sport setting in the PASM suspension was too stiff for most roads and changing the throttle relationship just made the car more difficult to drive, if you were used to driving it with that off.

If you don’t have Sport Chrono but you do have a sport exhaust option, the sport button just turns that on and off and changes nothing else.

Best options?

I like
Sport Chrono (more aggressive throttle mapping, this one is really nice)
PSE (Sport Exhaust, louder, not more power, but sounds great).
PASM (10mm lower, active suspension management, hit a button and the shocks get firmer, but also is dynamic based on driving dynamics and speed, nice, but pretty stiff on rough roads)
Sport seats (more supportive)

Those are the options that I can speak to. Some folks like the sport suspension which is not active, but is 20mm lower than stock (and stiffer) or 10mm lower than PASM suspension.

Sport Chrono updates the throttle mapping. I prefer the sportier mapping. Otherwise the low throttle opening is really soft to me. And yes, if you've got Sport exhaust, it is enabled by the Sport button. If you've got PASM, it also is enabled. And if you've got a PDK, then it also changes the shifts/transmission to be more aggressive.

If you've got PSE but NOT Sport Chrono, then there's a sport exhaust specific button.
Yes, the stopwatch is not useful other than as an indicator that you've got sport chrono. I suppose you could manually time laps or something.

I have PSE, PASM, and Sport Chrono.

I have a button for Sport Chrono and a PASM button. I can enable PASM by itself. I can enable Sport and then disable PASM. I can't enable PSE without enabling the Sport Chrono.

I had the PASM on my 997S. I liked having the button, and thought I'd like it, but on real roads, it beat the heck out of me. If I were to do it again, I wouldn't hold out for it. It was nice, but I sure didn't need it with what I was doing. Just my 2c.

You’re preaching to the choir…

Recall that I owned a car identical to yours, back in the day…

Definitely the sports seats not the standard ones - they have the wings around the shoulder area. Heated if you live in a cold area.

Xenon headlights - you can tell if they are xenon by the headlight washer nubs just in front of the headlight

Sports steering wheel with the round airbag. The standard one with the triangular airbag is too thin rimmed.

Rear parking sensors or camera really helps because the back on these drops away steeply so from the drivers seat you don't know where the rear bumper ends.

Rear wiper delete option - it cleans up the looks and isn't necessary because the rake of the back window is steep enough that with rainex window treatment any water just runs off

I've basically just described my car ;) (with the exception of the steering wheel)

I'm ambivalent on the sport chrono - I don't have it on mine but I don't feel it I need it either. My car is lowered with H&R springs and I don't think you can do that on the magnetic shocks (I could be wrong)

Speaking strictly about my own experience with my 987.2:

PASM sucks. There are better aftermarket options, which involve passive damping.
Sport Chrono is great.
Sport exhaust is an option, but so is an aftermarket cat-back system.
The factory had an option for their own handmade headers. They work great.
19" wheels work much better than 18".
I really dig the aftermarket Numeric short shifter. A big improvement over the factory GT3 shifter.
I think Cayman R headlights look really fantastic.
I lust after GT-3 seats. I think I may buy them. I ended up buying a Polaris instead this year.

Good call. My car also has the sport wheel (thicker rim). I also have heated seats which I rarely use, but there are times when they are nice, even here where we're warm 10 months out of 12. I agree on the rear view camera. I have an aftermarket stereo with aftermarket camera and it's great. The one thing that's nice about the factory option is the lines that curve to show you where your car will go as you back up.
Really. I've often thought that it would be nice to have 18" wheels instead of the 19" wheels. The 19s look great and perform great, but I would think 18s would perform as well or practically as well, but be more comfortable and better protected.

What I like about the PSE is the dual personality. I can crank things up, but I can also dial things back. If I'm driving past a cop for instance, I like the ability to be a bit more stealthy. If I'm just cruising with the missus, I like the ability to be more quiet.

I don't have a problem with my shifter, but I really liked the short shifter in my old miata 6spd. I'd like to try a short shifter, whether GT3 or Numeric, but it's not something that I'm likely to spend money on any time soon.

I've always lusted after the GT3 seats (or previously Recaros). I think I'd like them. I have ridden in a car with Recaro SPGs and thought they were great, although it was a short ride. If I did any track time, I'd say they were a must.

I'd also like a limited slip rear, maybe a Quaife/Torsen style. Two of our three miatas had them and I much preferred it to the open diff.

One of the reasons I sold my car was because I got tired of the 19 inch wheels and the lousy ride they gave. On a street driven car, there’s really nothing needed larger than a 17. That’s plenty of tire for going around corners and it’s a large enough diameter for enough brakes to stop the thing. Anything beyond that is just overkill.

Please tell me more. I pledged in the Apex wheel group buy for 18's because in my BMW experience, 18's rode much better than 19's.

THANKS!

My 2006 Cayman S:

Options that I added myself:
Cayman R suspension - lowered the car about an inch and rides stiffer.
FVD Brombacher Headers
Porsche Factory Sport Exhaust - much louder when valves are open, quiet and civil when valves closed. I replaced the airbag light in the console with a switch for controlling the exhaust valves so I can decide when loud.
FVD Brombacher Computer Tune - Wow, this changed the engine performance substantially and in sport mode the car flys, the difference was shocking and very easy to install via OBII port.
IPD 84mm GT3 Plenum - helps engine breathe better when combined with sport exhaust.
Numeric Racing Shifter - Makes shifting much, much tighter and accurate.
Boxter Spyder/Cayman R Wheels - 1" wider than stock, fills wheel wells better and look great.

Options that came with the car that I love:
Gauges - they are white face with black numbers in the daytime and miraculously change to black face with white numbers at night - I don't know how do they do that but I love it.
Dimming mirrors - with the push of a button, rear headlights no longer blind you.
Rain sensing wipers - they did a great job with this and wipers will only work when windshield gets wet.

Options that don't exist but I wish they did:
An indicator light when rear spoiler is up - You can't see it from in the car and it would be nice to know.
Gear indicator - many cars have this today and it can be convenient to know what gear you are in. On occasion when traffic is at certain "in between" speeds, I won't know if I'm in 5th or 3rd.

BTW, all 2006 models were "S".

My button does have a light on the switch when it's up. Maybe your bulb/led is faulty?

I mean when the spoiler raises automatically. I generally don't use the button and wait until I hit 75mph but would be nice to see an indicator - better yet, the light on the button should illuminate both in manual an automatic mode. Currently the light only goes on if I use the button.

I’d suggest taking a look in the wiring diagram to see how that light is triggered, there might be a way to rewire it to do what you wanted to do.

You've got to hit a button to dim the mirrors? In mine, the button stays on all of the time and dims automatically.

Yep, the rain sensing wipers are nice. When it starts raining, I've got to bump mine on, but then until I turn the car off, they'll slow down, speed up, stop, start back up again, etc....

I often forget that I have a spoiler. I think I've hit the button about 3 times, once to see what the spoiler looked like and twice to wash things with the spoiler up. I always forget that to raise the spoiler, you just give it a quick poke, but to lower it with the button, you've got to hold the thing.

I would like to have the little Cayman style lip, but the smooth boxster style is good too.

I've always wondered "does it really raise when I hit 75?" since I can't see it and no light comes on, I don't really know. I assume it works. The light would be a nice way to know that it's still working.

I see folks that put their up manually and leave it up all of the time.

Mine is the same. I prefer to let it do it's thing automatically as that is kind of the cool part. I just wish the light came on when doing it - just a minor nit

Yes I should have clarified myself. The grip is better on 19" wheels. Definitely no question that the 18" will ride much better and be more comfortable.

I do have a limited slip diff and a 6-speed manual, which is why the grip comes into play. You can steer it around with the throttle.

Another reason is that I put 6-piston Brembos on the front. I've had to use every bit of that initial bite in holiday traffic. Other drivers suck.

Ah, so you do see increased grip from the 19" wheels? Interesting. Good to know, since I'm pretty unlikely to downgrade to reduce grip, that puts the kibosh on the change to 18" wheels.

I'd like a limited slip rear. (torsen-style, not clutch based) I liked the behavior of the miatas with LSD vs open.

Really, you upgraded the brakes. I wouldn't have thought it was needed. I thought Boxsters were supposed to be a benchmark for brakes.

My brakes are good, but I preferred the brakes in my old '88 911. I like a nice hard pedal with not a lot of travel. I feel like the boxster has too much travel.

I have found that there’s more variation in grip from different tire choices than from the wheel and tire size. You might also be surprised to find that older tires have a lot less grip than they did when they were new. It’s not something I would worry about on the street anyway, nobody ever gets to the limit of their tires on the street, they just think they do.

Likewise, if you can lock the brakes on both axles, bigger brakes aren’t going to help you much. Since every car can do that…

I haven’t gotten any Porsches serviced in Dallas in a long time but Ed Mayo’s place used to be the place to go. No idea if he would do a borescope inspection. I haven’t used him in probably 15 years, I don’t even know if he is still in business.

https://mayoperformance.com/

You can change the brake MC. I havent done that yet. All of those brake servos look like a PITA to bleed.

I was going for more initial "bite", not fade resistance or ultimate lockup.

I can't swear by it, but your PASM and brake biasing map I think behave differently when you program it for 19" wheels on summer tires. It just FEELS like it's less intrusive when you dive into a hard turn.

I also like a brake pedal and throttle pedal to have around the same level when hard on the brakes. I find it easier to heel and toe. Again, for the 6-speed manual.