Brian_Innes
Member
Cruden Bay Harbour
My 2019 718 Cayman GTS PDK
- Thread starter Brian_Innes
- Start date
Brian_Innes
Member
A fabulous 2019 GT3 RS at Cruden Bay.
Brian_Innes
Member
Winter gloaming on the A97 Logie Coldstone road in Aberdeenshire.
Brian_Innes
Member
My 718 Cayman GTS 8,654 miles and counting.
Brian
Brian
And a Very Happy New Year to you too Brian. As usual, an interesting commentary as well as some excellent photos.
I was hoping to get to the Isle of Skye to spend Hogmanay with some friends but unfortunately the attentions of my niece's very young daughters over the festive period left me with too little energy to make the 600 mile trip, but I always count myself lucky when in the Highlands to drive some of the best roads in the UK.
Like others I look forward to reading about your continuing CGTS exploits in 2020, and I'm very gratified to hear that you have no regrets in having chosen the car for the roads on which you drive.
Jeff
I was hoping to get to the Isle of Skye to spend Hogmanay with some friends but unfortunately the attentions of my niece's very young daughters over the festive period left me with too little energy to make the 600 mile trip, but I always count myself lucky when in the Highlands to drive some of the best roads in the UK.
Like others I look forward to reading about your continuing CGTS exploits in 2020, and I'm very gratified to hear that you have no regrets in having chosen the car for the roads on which you drive.
Jeff
Hi Brian, many thanks for all the time and effort you have put into your splendid reports, not counting the time to drive 8654 miles (that's the fun bit). Elsewhere there continue to be "shoot from the hip" opinions of the 718 in its various guises, but your reports are in my opinion the only properly researched, extensive and reasoned ones, set against the personal requirements for your car that you so clearly define. Congratulations and all the best for 2020.
Happy New Year to you too Brian, you certainly have some fantastic roads and scenery in the Highlands! And as the others have said thank you for your very interesting commentary on your first year's ownership. It's always interesting to hear about other peoples' travels and experiences with their cars!
Hope you have many more fantastic miles in your car in 2020 and beyond [
]
Hope you have many more fantastic miles in your car in 2020 and beyond [
]
Brian_Innes
Member
Thanks to all for your kind comments on my scribblings. Without your much appreciated support, this thread would have withered on the vine a long time ago.
Just to finally wind up the January 2nd drive-out day at Cruden Bay, the following two photos perhaps illustrates the bitterly cold, blustery day that greeted us upon arrival at the harbour. My facial expression says it all.
Brian
Just to finally wind up the January 2nd drive-out day at Cruden Bay, the following two photos perhaps illustrates the bitterly cold, blustery day that greeted us upon arrival at the harbour. My facial expression says it all.
Brian
Brian_Innes
Member
The wind surfers put us all to shame!
Brian_Innes
Member
Looking back and reflecting upon 12 months of driving and owning my particular version of the 2019 718 Cayman GTS PDK, I can report I have had no mechanical or electronic issues whatsoever. Nor have I experienced problems with condensation on the light lenses, which according previous posts on this forum, seems to have afflicted some owners of 718 Boxster and Caymans. Neither have I had any engine cooling or coolant reservoir leakage problems.
Compared to my previous 2016 718 S PDK, which incidentally had an identical wheels, tyres, and chassis spec, this GTS is incrementally optimised in every department. Individually, the gains may seem small but taken as whole the end result is a significantly more capable dynamic performer. The extra power and torque of the GTS, a very modest 15bhp and 10Nm torque, may not seem much on paper, but in practice offers more than may at seem apparent at first acquaintance. I am convinced that during the long factory shut-down in 2018 while the R&D boffins developed the revised Gasoline Particulate Filter (GPF) engine specification, the engine mapping was tweaked to compensate for the GPF and match the new lighter, and revised exhaust system. I have the advantage of owning both versions of the 2.5 4-pot turbo back-to-back, driven in the same manner, on the same roads, and on the same race tracks. In my track day experience, it is crystal clear that the 718 GTS when timed on the stop-watch against an identically specced 718 S, comes out comfortably ahead. On the public road the comparative differences between the GTS and the S are less obvious. The former is undoubtably quicker, but not by a huge margin when driven within the constraints of public roads.
One dynamic area where I could say the difference between my previous 718 S and the current GTS is most clearly demonstrated is with the steering feel. Again, taking back-to-back comparisons on the same roads into account, the GTS has a far more tactile response at the steering wheel rim than it's predecessor ever did.Incidentally, both my 718's had identical steering wheels, the smaller 360mm diameter Sports GT Alcantara steering wheel. There is a "fizz" at the wheel rim transmitted to the driver which I hadn't experienced since driving my Cayman R. Whether the R&D boffins also tweaked the steering map on the 2019 GTS is a moot point, but there is definitely an improvement over the previous 718.
Taking everything into account, the options of PCCB ceramic composite brakes, Power Steering Plus, Michelin PS4S N0 tyres, and last but not least, my individual wheel alignment preferences, all contribute to the best steering feel I have ever experienced on any of the five Caymans I have owned. At risk of upsetting some of the more hard-line purists, this 718 Cayman GTS as I have specced it, is as far as I am concerned, the spiritual successor to my much loved and lamented Cayman R. Until such times as Porsche launch a 718-6, and hopefully designate it as the "R", this particular GTS sitting in my garage is more than a worthy standard-bearer in the meantime. This is only my opinion I hasten to add, but it is coming from my extensive experience of both models on road and track. I rest my case.
Finally, I'll leave you with a photo of my PCM data log on my past 12 months mileage, total driving hours, mpg and combined average speed. The mpg figure of 27.9 is completely acceptable given my individual driving style of driving in PDK manual sport mode most of the time, and on predominately A and B roads in rural Scotland.
Brian
Compared to my previous 2016 718 S PDK, which incidentally had an identical wheels, tyres, and chassis spec, this GTS is incrementally optimised in every department. Individually, the gains may seem small but taken as whole the end result is a significantly more capable dynamic performer. The extra power and torque of the GTS, a very modest 15bhp and 10Nm torque, may not seem much on paper, but in practice offers more than may at seem apparent at first acquaintance. I am convinced that during the long factory shut-down in 2018 while the R&D boffins developed the revised Gasoline Particulate Filter (GPF) engine specification, the engine mapping was tweaked to compensate for the GPF and match the new lighter, and revised exhaust system. I have the advantage of owning both versions of the 2.5 4-pot turbo back-to-back, driven in the same manner, on the same roads, and on the same race tracks. In my track day experience, it is crystal clear that the 718 GTS when timed on the stop-watch against an identically specced 718 S, comes out comfortably ahead. On the public road the comparative differences between the GTS and the S are less obvious. The former is undoubtably quicker, but not by a huge margin when driven within the constraints of public roads.
One dynamic area where I could say the difference between my previous 718 S and the current GTS is most clearly demonstrated is with the steering feel. Again, taking back-to-back comparisons on the same roads into account, the GTS has a far more tactile response at the steering wheel rim than it's predecessor ever did.Incidentally, both my 718's had identical steering wheels, the smaller 360mm diameter Sports GT Alcantara steering wheel. There is a "fizz" at the wheel rim transmitted to the driver which I hadn't experienced since driving my Cayman R. Whether the R&D boffins also tweaked the steering map on the 2019 GTS is a moot point, but there is definitely an improvement over the previous 718.
Taking everything into account, the options of PCCB ceramic composite brakes, Power Steering Plus, Michelin PS4S N0 tyres, and last but not least, my individual wheel alignment preferences, all contribute to the best steering feel I have ever experienced on any of the five Caymans I have owned. At risk of upsetting some of the more hard-line purists, this 718 Cayman GTS as I have specced it, is as far as I am concerned, the spiritual successor to my much loved and lamented Cayman R. Until such times as Porsche launch a 718-6, and hopefully designate it as the "R", this particular GTS sitting in my garage is more than a worthy standard-bearer in the meantime. This is only my opinion I hasten to add, but it is coming from my extensive experience of both models on road and track. I rest my case.
Finally, I'll leave you with a photo of my PCM data log on my past 12 months mileage, total driving hours, mpg and combined average speed. The mpg figure of 27.9 is completely acceptable given my individual driving style of driving in PDK manual sport mode most of the time, and on predominately A and B roads in rural Scotland.
Brian
Brian_Innes
Member
The significantly lighter PCCB discs and light alloy hubs on the front axle, contribute in no small way to the improved steering feel on my GTS. Compared to the weight of standard cast-iron discs and hubs, the PCCB version has considerable unsprung weight advantages to steering and handling.
Brian
Brian
Wow! You certainly haven't been hanging around in your GTS Brian - Total drive time 99:59 h; Total distance 8648.0 mi gives an impressive average speed of 86.5 mph.!
But hold on though - I think that the Drive time must reinitialise at 100 h so the posted Continuous avg. speed of 46 mph sounds more reasonable. []
On a more serious note, you're in the privileged position of having owned and driven 718 CS and GTS cars with very similar specs, in identical driving locations and over an extended period, so to me your comments and comparisons carry more weight than the limited musings of the press.
Keep up the good work in 2020!
Jeff
But hold on though - I think that the Drive time must reinitialise at 100 h so the posted Continuous avg. speed of 46 mph sounds more reasonable. [
]On a more serious note, you're in the privileged position of having owned and driven 718 CS and GTS cars with very similar specs, in identical driving locations and over an extended period, so to me your comments and comparisons carry more weight than the limited musings of the press.
Keep up the good work in 2020!
Jeff
Brian_Innes
Member
Jeff,
I thought it wouldn't be long before you twigged the drive time - total miles equation! Annoyingly the Porsche PCM only logs drive time to a maximum of 99 hours. I'll be resetting the PCM log to zero before the 2020 touring season commences.
Regarding the average speed total, I was surprised at the 46 mph figure being so low. I don't spend time in traffic jams very often, except when travelling in the south, and my A and B road excursions are usually conducted at the maximum legal speed of 60 and 70 mph whenever safe to do so. I don't commute, nor do I spend much time driving in urban environments. My track day mileage in 2019 was considerably less than 500 miles, so even though I was hitting three figure speeds for most of the time, track mileage forms only a tiny part of the overall total. If were to guess what my average speed would have been over the whole year, I would have put it closer to 50mph. Anyway, 46mph is what the computer says.
I do sometimes cringe at the comments and opinions of the 718 Cayman models published in certain notable magazines of the motoring press. Professional car road testers can only give a brief appraisal of what the car is like......coloured by what their core readership expects to hear. They neither live with, nor own the car over an extended period, having only a very limited qualification for constructive opinion. I have yet to see published a six month extended road test of any 718 Cayman. All the mags seem to be interested in, are publishing photos of road tested cars in lurid oversteer slides as the banner headline to any test report. That is not the way to drive a Cayman! The Cayman, and I include all Cayman models, are best driven in a tidy, precise manner. Like The Stig when doing a timed lap. Provoking the supremely balanced mid-engined Cayman into a sideways opposite-lock slide just for the cameras is doing nothing to promote the exquisite handling of the marque. All this is doing is pushing the tyres beyond their grip threshold of maximum performance. This cuts no ice with me and is a stupid practice to follow. Inevitably road testers focus on the 4-pot turbo engine, and I've lost count of the ridiculous hyperboles often used by motoring journalists to describe the exhaust note acoustics. I am of the opinion the sound of the 4-pot turbo is acceptable for an engine of that configuration. Having previously owned a 1969 Volkswagen Beetle 1300, the 718 sounds a whole lot better by a considerable margin.
I appreciate your comments recognising my previous experience of the Cayman marque. I always strive to be honest in my opinions. When I moved on from owning my Cayman R manual into the uncharted waters of the 718 PDK, it was a calculated gamble on my part. If the car had been horrible I would have said so. It would have been promptly sold back to an OPC despite the financial hit, for another flat-six Cayman. As it happened, the 718 Cayman S specced to my taste, turned out to be a revelation. Suffice to say, I bought the GTS to follow it.
Brian
I thought it wouldn't be long before you twigged the drive time - total miles equation! Annoyingly the Porsche PCM only logs drive time to a maximum of 99 hours. I'll be resetting the PCM log to zero before the 2020 touring season commences.
Regarding the average speed total, I was surprised at the 46 mph figure being so low. I don't spend time in traffic jams very often, except when travelling in the south, and my A and B road excursions are usually conducted at the maximum legal speed of 60 and 70 mph whenever safe to do so. I don't commute, nor do I spend much time driving in urban environments. My track day mileage in 2019 was considerably less than 500 miles, so even though I was hitting three figure speeds for most of the time, track mileage forms only a tiny part of the overall total. If were to guess what my average speed would have been over the whole year, I would have put it closer to 50mph. Anyway, 46mph is what the computer says.
I do sometimes cringe at the comments and opinions of the 718 Cayman models published in certain notable magazines of the motoring press. Professional car road testers can only give a brief appraisal of what the car is like......coloured by what their core readership expects to hear. They neither live with, nor own the car over an extended period, having only a very limited qualification for constructive opinion. I have yet to see published a six month extended road test of any 718 Cayman. All the mags seem to be interested in, are publishing photos of road tested cars in lurid oversteer slides as the banner headline to any test report. That is not the way to drive a Cayman! The Cayman, and I include all Cayman models, are best driven in a tidy, precise manner. Like The Stig when doing a timed lap. Provoking the supremely balanced mid-engined Cayman into a sideways opposite-lock slide just for the cameras is doing nothing to promote the exquisite handling of the marque. All this is doing is pushing the tyres beyond their grip threshold of maximum performance. This cuts no ice with me and is a stupid practice to follow. Inevitably road testers focus on the 4-pot turbo engine, and I've lost count of the ridiculous hyperboles often used by motoring journalists to describe the exhaust note acoustics. I am of the opinion the sound of the 4-pot turbo is acceptable for an engine of that configuration. Having previously owned a 1969 Volkswagen Beetle 1300, the 718 sounds a whole lot better by a considerable margin.
I appreciate your comments recognising my previous experience of the Cayman marque. I always strive to be honest in my opinions. When I moved on from owning my Cayman R manual into the uncharted waters of the 718 PDK, it was a calculated gamble on my part. If the car had been horrible I would have said so. It would have been promptly sold back to an OPC despite the financial hit, for another flat-six Cayman. As it happened, the 718 Cayman S specced to my taste, turned out to be a revelation. Suffice to say, I bought the GTS to follow it.
Brian
Brian_Innes
Member
Sandy,
No, that's not my actual racing Stiletto, your photo looks like the Mk1 version.
My car was originally owned and driven by circuit racer David Enerby in the 1970's. I bought the car as a non-rolling shell basket job from David Llewellyn from Essex.
My car is shown below, with revised, tidier bodywork remodelled in glass-fibre by a local fabricator in Aberdeenshire.
Brian
No, that's not my actual racing Stiletto, your photo looks like the Mk1 version.
My car was originally owned and driven by circuit racer David Enerby in the 1970's. I bought the car as a non-rolling shell basket job from David Llewellyn from Essex.
My car is shown below, with revised, tidier bodywork remodelled in glass-fibre by a local fabricator in Aberdeenshire.
Brian
Brian_Innes
Member
Ha, ha! [] My knees are still flexible with the passing of the years Colin. Whether I could maintain that crouch long enough for a photo these days is moot point!
My Silletto handled like a lightweight 911. The sticky hill-climb Avon slicks provided huge confidence of grip, taming the pendulum effect of the rear-mounted engine.
It was a pure joy to drive, and my time racing this car with the unending patience and support of my dear late wife Sheila, were some of the happiest years of my life.
I'll close this topic with another photo of the car in action at Doune hillclimb Perthshire in 1987.
My 2020 tour plans are currently on-going. More news to follow.....
Brian
] My knees are still flexible with the passing of the years Colin. Whether I could maintain that crouch long enough for a photo these days is moot point!My Silletto handled like a lightweight 911. The sticky hill-climb Avon slicks provided huge confidence of grip, taming the pendulum effect of the rear-mounted engine.
It was a pure joy to drive, and my time racing this car with the unending patience and support of my dear late wife Sheila, were some of the happiest years of my life.
I'll close this topic with another photo of the car in action at Doune hillclimb Perthshire in 1987.
My 2020 tour plans are currently on-going. More news to follow.....
Brian
A refreshing change to other Porsche forums that I used to read, Brian. I’m very happy with my year old Cayman 2.0 F4, but on a lot of other boards there just seems to be a constant hate of the engine and it’s been called everything from a ‘bag of rusty bolts’ to ‘a disgrace’, so I tend just to visit here now for interesting and informative posts 
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