Cayman 2.9 or gen 1 3.4S

MrDemon · Apr 18, 2016

get the 2.9 gen 2 imo

the gen 1 3.4 does have engine issue, although I ran one for 3 years and was happy with it.

gturner008 · Apr 18, 2016

Hello

could do with a bit of advice. I have a £22k budget to buy a Cayman. Wanted one or ages, and now have the budget. My little bit of research points me to either a facelift 2.9 or a gen 1 3.4S.

Its for occasional driving. We have other classic cars to drive, including a 1989 3.2 Carrera and NSX. I'm not a boy racer, so don't need outright performance. Which one should I go with? My gut tells me the 2.9 is going to be quick enough. But I want to know if others have done down this path and then found they wished they'd gone for the faster car. Any advice very welcome. Thanks. Gary

Hinchingbrooke · Apr 18, 2016

Hi Gary

I have had a Cayman S for 3 years have loved every moment with her

Try and get an S if you can with as many factory fitted accessories as possible

good luck

regards

Martin

BrianJ · Apr 18, 2016

As Mr Demon says, I'd go with Gen 2 2.9. You say you don't need outright performance and the Gen 2 engine eliminates the IMS bearing concerns of Gen 1.

AndrewT · Apr 18, 2016

Gary, I had to make a similar decision to you last year. I really wanted a Gen 2 3.4 S PDK on a Gen 2 2.9 budget. I bought the 2.9 and have been very happy with it but I do still crave after the Gen 2 3.4 S PDK - the problem now is that the price difference between the cost of a Gen 2 3.4 S PDK and the resale value of my Gen 2 2.9 is greater than it was last year. The moral of the story is to try the Gen 2 2.9 and satisfy yourself that it will satisfy your future needs.

stephenbailey · Apr 18, 2016

Hi Gary

Sample both of them before you decide. Obviously you need to look at service history etc etc...

Ive run a gen 1 Cayman S for just over a year now, done approx 5k miles.

The car is superb and has never let me down. The Indy that looks after mine tells me the Ims is not really an issue & the thing to be ware of is the possibility of bore scoring ( which can be checked and dealt with )

Hope you get sorted- I'm sure you'll be happy with either model

Steve

2006 Cayman S

Motorhead · Apr 18, 2016

Hi Gary,

As others have said, if you're not bothered about outright performance I'm sure that the 2.9 will be fine for you. A minor point - although the 2.9 has the revised Gen2 engine (no IMS, etc.), it uses indirect fuel injection whereas the Gen2 3.4 features direct fuel injection for improved economy and lower emissions.

Many 3.4 cars tend to have have better specs than their smaller engined counterparts - perhaps 3.4 owners have more cash to splash out when purchasing - which is something that could have a bearing on your choice.

I'm sure that you'll be happy with whichever one you decide upon. It's a great driver's car.

Good luck with your search.

Jeff

Buddy · Apr 19, 2016

I ran a 987.1 S for 8 years and no engine problems, I seldom let the revs drop in gear below 2,000 when rolling and always kept the revs above 2,000 if I was going to put any load at all on it since the bore oil jets open at 1.8 bar, the oil pump needs to be turning quickly enough to raise the oil pressure and loading an engine at too low a speed can promote piston slap. The IMS and RMS were at the time the latest iteration of their design at the time and in the case of the IMS the last, the 2.9 does take out the IMS but the 987.2 S as Jeff says is much improved with DFI etc.

As you say, outright performance is unimportant to you and so the 2.9 will probably be a good choice, I have noticed the 987.2 PDK has an added premium in the pricing over the past couple of years and last year when I bought mine I could have got a 981 2.9 manual but I'm very pleased with the 987.2 S PDK is great to use, some bargains can be found in the 987.2 S Manuals and the price difference can be surprising.

gturner008 · Apr 20, 2016

Thanks everyone for your comments and helpful views. I've taken the plunge and just bought a 2007 3.4S. 67k miles, good service history. Very pleased. Collect this weekend. Gary

Buddy · Apr 20, 2016

Enjoy it, they are a really nice drive.

MrDemon · Apr 21, 2016

Buddy said:
some bargains can be found in the 987.2 S Manuals and the price difference can be surprising.

very rare cars and not many to even choose from, never saw a bargin when looking , most are very expensive as they are the most sort after.

there is ONLY 1 car for sale at an OPC and it's £33k and over 5 years old !!