Must be a 997.1

911 Targa, the Caymans handle better :-)

Hah, I saw it on the local PCA facebook site on my phone. I guess I didn't look closely enough. Doh!

Go for a 987.2 if you can. The direct injected engine is a huge leap forward.

I have a 2010 987.2S and it is an absolute blast to drive. 90% of my time driving it is on the track, and the car already came with loads of track related goodies like BRZ RS-one coilover suspension, GT3 front brake cooling ducts...etc. I also have the Sport Chrono package.

The biggest upgrade that I did was to replace the open differential with a true mechanical OS Giken Porsche G87 Limited Slip Differential. I highly recommend that upgrade, especially if your son will do any track or autocross events with it.

The 987.2 cars are the sweet spot for the Caymans/Boxster. There's a thread over on the Cayman / Boxster forums from a couple of months ago that has some good information to help with you & your son's decision:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/boxster-cayman-forum/1092559-cayman-selection.html

Just note: the 987.2 cars are getting to be hard to come by. They were only made from 2009 to 2012, when there was a slump in Porsche car sales. Although the 718's are amazing cars, most folks haven't warmed up to the idea of a 4 cyl turbo Cayman. (Just wait until the all-electric ones are made...). Plus even the 981 Caymans / Boxsters are aluminum bodied - which can be pricey to "unbend" should something go sideways.

My mechanic informed me about a month ago that I could sell my 987.2 right now for 150% of what I bought it for last November. But -- what would I replace it with???

987.2 Caymans and 997.2 911s in manual seem like the sweet spot in used Porsches for a while now.

I think pandemic pricing has effected them the most for this reason.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-cars-sale-dealer/1099643-2009-cayman-s-6-speed-stunning-color-combo.html

Seems like a reasonable price. I may be able to get past the incident reports after inspection, but I think the red is jus a little too...............RED

I suspect that's an artifact of lighting and digital photography (not usually as good with reds as the rest). My interior on my '08 is red, and it's not that bright. I suspect the interior in that one looks a lot different in person than it does in the photos.

Several photos of my car from the website that I bought it from, presumably, they were all taken the same day by the same camera. The two bottom photos are the closest to the real color as it appears to the eye.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1632414973.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1632414973.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1632414973.jpg

This is probably the closest to the actual color of the bunch.
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1632414973.jpg

My wife was a little skeptical of the red interior from the photos, but liked it much better in person because it's a little darker and less saturated than some of the photos seem to show.

Like people pointed out 2008 to 2010 is an odd range... Either you get an 06-08 cheap and risk the IMS issue (a problem as you cannot replace it w/o splitting the case), or you get a more expensive 09+ and sleep easier, regardless of actual % failure, and recoup that at resale time.
I actually prefer the looks of the original one's tail, but I'd buy an 09 and above for peace of mind. Actually I believe the sweet spot is the 981. Great cars, more handling than power, especially in a base version - mine required a water pump at 45K mi, and an inside door handle repair (by me), oh and new radio buttons (turned to goo) - that is pretty much all - not the end of the world. Only thing I'd say is on a base Cayman I'd go for a stick instead to enjoy wringing the crap out of it, it's a sweet gearbox.

Is bore scoring an issue for the 987.2?

I think it's an issue for all DFI cars... But relatively rare, and generally due to bad injectors, someone will correct me if wrong.

Being frugal, he’s looking for a base model and the 09’s and up are above what he wants to spend.

So, are the 06-08’s out of the question, even if he finds a nice one?

I’m told him to look at E46 M3’s, but he likes the Cayman better

I loved my 08 base, and so did the dog! For the past 15 years I have always had a turbo, or two on hand. However, it is not so enjoyable when stuck in traffic. Winding it out with no traffic is fun, but you get to triple digits real fast! So, the Boxster was a good complement as I could wind it out without getting into too much trouble.

Nope. Just do due diligence, and educate yourself/him on the possibilities.

Not to further derail but 2022 brz is getting absolutely rave reviews. 230hp, limited slip, 2800lbs, its basically the 968 reincarnated. I think performance, handling, and fun to drive is right up there with an early base cayman for 30k brand new.

E46m are expensive these days and have a few major problem spots

They sound like a ton of fun. It's surprising that they are that heavy. It's still pretty light, but heavier than I would have expected. If only they were 300# lighter...

M3s are cool, but I'd never have one unless someone else were willing to pay for maintenance, repairs.

I hear ya everything is too heavy, however when you consider it is 200lbs lighter than the lightest current cayman and 300lbs lighter than an actual 968, its a pretty light weight car.

Miata is currently the only truly light weight car available new in the USA I think, but they are tiny (and awesome).

The old brz/86 was a great car let down by a dog engine. They seemed to have fixed that and made everything just a bit better. I want one. I may replace my daily driver

I love my '06. Only issue I've ever has is I had to replace that damm battery; the first one only lasted 12 years.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1632765945.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1632766025.jpg

The current issue of Excellence has an update on Boxster/Cayman. I'm not sure how helpful or informative that might be.

I LOVE those wheels. My car's got 19" Sport Design wheels. They look great. I'd rather have 18" wheels. All of the Porsche wheels that I like always seem to be 19".

I think that's about how long my battery lasted too.