[123.rishabh]

Hello Fellow BHPians
This is my first thread on the forum.

I was an 8 year old boy when i received a poster of a Porsche 911 (930) Turbo Stantnose and ever since that day i dreamt of owning a Porsche.

The 20 year old poster still in my room

As a kid kept collecting 1:24 scale Porsche models (The red Cayman S 987.1 is the oldest one)


I started to learn driving in 2007 on my Fathers Fiat Petra 1.6 (2004 model) and kept this car for a decent time period


This car was replaced by a Pre worshipped 2005 Petes Stage 1 Octavia VRS MK1 (Bought from a BHPian)


The VRS was further replaced by a 2010 APR Stage 2 Laura TSI.


A replacement for the Laura TSI was really difficult to find (at a decent price) as it was a real VFM fast car and only cars north of the 50L price tag could be a justified replacement.

As they say, you've got to date a lot of VW/Skoda before you get your Porsche and since i had fulfilled this criteria , being a Porsche fan it was very clear that it has to be a Porsche Sports Car, but which one was the question.

Cars Considered- All Porsche Sports cars only
1.Porsche Cayman/Boxter 987.1 (Gen 1 2005-2008)
It was a great car with the legendary Mid engine layout, Hydraulic steering etc. On digging further i found that there is a common Intermediate Shaft Bearing and Bore scoring issue in the M97.1 engines, which leads to major damage and it would be a pain to get the problem solved if it happened in that particular car. Secondly these cars were in a comparatively cheaper (20-25L) price range but were in bad shapes (I saw one on sale which had a broken driver side A/C vent replaced with a SX4 vent

2.Porsche Carrera 911 (997 Gen 1 & 2)
The legendary Poster car which anybody would love to own. On searching for these models, the 997.1 (2005-2008) again had the same infamous intermediate shaft bearing and bore scoring issues.

When i started the search for 997.2 (2009-2012) models, their prices were mostly north of 50L and beyond my budget, so this model was dropped.

3.Porsche Cayman/Boxter 987.2 (Gen 2)
Never thought much about this particular model, as there were very few of them sold in India over a short span of 3 years (2009-2012).
I had a word with BHPian Dante who was the lucky one to purchase one of the first 987.2 Cayman in the country. He told me the details about the car including all the pros and some cons and i started the hunt.

I made my mind on buying a Cayman Gen 2, but everywhere in the market I mostly saw a Boxter for sale. One of my friend had a 2011 Boxter and i had seen that soft top cleaning was really a pain in our climate, secondly the engine bay access was also difficult, as initially the soft top mechanism needs to be disengaged and even then you get less space to work (compared to a Cayman). Cayman also gives you a bonus of 10 more BHP and i love the coupe styling on it.

After searching for almost 2 long years across Mumbai, Bangalore and Delhi and seeing almost 4 cars i finally shortlisted mine.

Why 2 years for the shortlisting ?
Porsche or any sports car for that matter is something which you want to be absolutely immaculate, and I had set some strict parameters and checkpoints, only on fulfilment of the same was i ready to purchase the vehicle.

1.Strictly all original factory paint- I had seen a few cars which were repaired after major accidents hence didn't want to take any chances. This was a deal breaker in many cases as most cars were 8-10 year old and either a bumper, side mirrors or some other part was painted. Every time I went to see the cars, used to borrow a paint thickness meter from a friend who runs a 3M car care store (Dealers and owners found using that very odd as most of them had never seen it)

2.Odometer reading below 15k- Sports Cars are seldom driven so i thought this was something which could be easily met

3.Detailed Service History- The most important part, as you would never know if the car was kept properly or not

4.Owner should agree on giving the car for a thorough checkup at Porsche ASS

5. The car had to be BONE STOCK ! (Cars with aftermarket fittings like parking sensors/camera were rejected, Also saw one cayman which had an aftermarket Blaupunkt/Pioneer touchscreen audio system)

The Car !!!!!
Finally after all the hassle and a long 2 year searching period, i found one car which met all the standards which I had set, had only done 13,000 Kms on the Odo (It even had the shipping document from Hamburg Port to Nhava Sheva port).
I quickly processed all the formalities & picked it up


The points below have been written after driving the car for 1500 kms
What I like:

The Hydraulic Steering (It is actually for holding on)
Raw Naturally Aspirated Boxer (Flat 6) engine producing 320 BHP and 370 Nm but feels much more
The hot knife through butter handling (Mid engine & Great suspension) I can just go on and on about this
7 Speed PDK with Paddle shifters
Sport chrono package, a must have option for all Porsche Sports cars it totally transforms into a different animal in Sports Plus mode
Exhaust note post 4000 RPM upto 7000 !!!
Classic timeless styling (Inside out)
Forged 19 inch 911 Turbo Rims
Top notch material quality
Looks very classic Porsche
Carrera GT like headlamps
The finishing on the brake callipers (Finished like a proper exterior panel)
Porsche Dynamic Lighting system
The way those headlamp washers pop out
Practical to drive even on high speed breakers (No underbelly scraping)
Alcantara Interior & Super supportive seats
Decent overall Fuel economy of 5 Kmpl
10 Speaker optional BOSE audio
Loaded with most optional extras (A rare find)

What I don't:

Super Expensive Spare parts & not available easily in India
Attracts everyone on the road (I wonder what would have happened if it was a Speed Yellow or Guards Red shade)
Super stiff ride at low speeds (Not meant to be driven on rough or broken roads)
Need to be super careful with potholes as 19inch rims have 35 profile
Steering is super hard at parking speeds
Not specced with rear parking sensors

Build Sheet of my 2010 Cayman S 3.4
The owner had opted for almost all the good optional extras in the car which are as follows

Mechanicals
Engine - 3.4L (MA121- 320BHP & 370Nm Torque)
Gearbox - 7 Speed Porsche Doppelkupplung (Dual Wet Clutch Auto)
Wheels - 19 inch 911 Turbo wheels (Forged in Dual Tone)
Standard Rear Differential (Non LSD)
Hot Country Package - Triple Radiators in the front bumper
More Powerful Starter - 1.7 Kw

Exterior & Interior
Exterior Paint - Carrera White
Front Licence Plate holder - US Spec
Interior Trim Color - Ocean Blue
Seat Trim - Alcantara with Leather
Interior Dials - Carrara White
Stopwatch Dials - Silver

Technical Equipment
Sports Chrono Package Plus - Sport and Sport Plus modes (Factory remap) with more power
Porsche Communication Management 3.0 (W/ extended navigation module)
BOSE surround sound audio with 10 Speakers (W/ acoustic package)
Universal Audio Interface - For iPod, Aux and USB
Multifunction steering wheel with paddle shifters
Bi-Xenon Headlamps with Porsche Dynamic Lighting System and Fixed Washer Jets
LED day time running lamps

The NA Flat 6 Powerplant

This engine is reliable and an absolute joy to drive.It is the totally new MA121 unit which came with upgrades like Direct fuel injection, deletion of the infamous IMS bearing. To avoid bore scoring it is equipped with 5 Oil Pumps (Older had 3) and comes with an Alusil aluminium alloy crankcase & Aluminium cylinders that have embedded silicon crystals to reduce friction. Forged Aluminium Pistons and connecting rods are standard too.

This particular model is equipped with the Hot Country package and comes with the optional Triple Radiator Setup. The engine has a very raspy exhaust note and the thrum of the Flat 6 is very distinct due to which i think that i should keep it as it is and not go for an exhaust change/upgrade.

In the Sports and Sport Plus mode the RPM counter is mostly above the 3.5k mark and it really loves to be revved all the way to 7000.
Despite keeping 2 Turbo Petrol cars in the past, I'm loving the Linear power delivery of this engine a lot.

On paper the engine only generates 320 PS and 370 Nm torque, but when you drive, it it feels much more (Maybe due to the power to weight ratio). Claimed 0-100 Kmph is in 4.9 seconds, will soon be using a V box to test how well it performs on the right fuel.

The vent behind the drivers door consists of an engine heat scavenging fan, which helps to keep the engine compartment cool (Two separate fans are there in the front for the Radiators and Condensers). This engine compartment fan also monitors temperature upto 30 minutes after the car is switched off and can turn on anytime as per the need (Need to keep the car without the cover after parking for sometime). This fan also contributes to swatch Bharat abhiyan. When we opened the engine compartment for the first time (during inspection), we saw an Aloo bhujia packet inside. This fan sucks air at very high speeds and it is also mentioned in the owners manual to not throw a cigarette butt out of the drivers window or can be sucked inside and cause a fire.

The vent behind the passenger door is for the Air filter intake and has adequate covering in order to avoid big particles of dirt and water splashes in monsoons from going into the air filter.


This is how the engine access through the boot looks like. The cover below the luggage net needs to be removed in order to replace the Air filter


The cover on the right side has access to the Engine oil and coolant reservoirs


The oil level can only be measured by The electronic oil level gauge on the MID, there is no dip stick.


But being a dry sump system the sensor is precise and these cars are not plagued by oil consumption issues (Both my MK1 & MK2 Octavia Turbo petrols had this habit)

The PDK Gearbox

The car comes equipped with a 7 Speed wet clutch dual clutch transmission, another Gem which works very well with this engine. The sixth gear delivers the fastest speed, while the seventh gear optimises fuel economy.

It comes with Porsche fashioned paddle shifters (Takes time in getting used to these ones)


How is a PDK different from a DSG on a VW/Skoda/Audi car
PDK is designed for higher output engines, hence better quality of materials are used like, The PDK used Metallic Electro-Hydraulic actuators vs the DQ series DSG uses Plastic Electronic ones. (My understanding by reading on different forums and discussing with Owners abroad)

Sports Chrono Plus Package


The Sports chrono package integrates two (Sport & Sport Plus) buttons on the centre console. The Sport mode makes the throttle response significantly more immediate, adjusts the rev-limiter to a harder setting and tunes the engine dynamics for performance driving. The PDK shift time is reduced and gear changes become sportier. During deceleration, it initiates a brake induced downshift. The ESP (Porsche stability management) intervenes later. The Sport Plus mode enables the Launch Control & motorsport derived gearshift strategy which gives lightning fast gearshifts.

Sports Chrono Stopwatch

It is installed on the dashboard for the occasional track day timings, The set of timings can be viewed on the display for the audio and also be downloaded on a pen drive for further analysis on a PC.


Unfortunately like new models, this stopwatch cannot be used as a clock during normal driving.

Stopwatch in action


Steering & Handling
The hydraulic steering is something which i missed the most after selling my Mk1 Octavia VRS. This car takes it on a whole new level. It literally reacts like a Go Kart. Porsche has managed to tune the suspension very well and the Mid engine layout is one of the key factor for the great handling. The car just feels like it is on rails and even on high speeds it is a point and shoot machine which just cuts like hot knife through butter.

Pain Point- Not being used to high power RWD cars, I managed to almost spin out the car on a sharp turn once, when i started to accelerate it (Sports Mode) while exiting the curve. Will need a lot of practice for this.

Was curious on how difficult would it be for people to handle RWD Rear engine cars with higher power.

Ride
It offers a decent ride quality despite 19 inch rims with 35 profile. Have never driven it on bad roads and is also not meant to do that. The best part is the short wheelbase of the car and the stiff shocks and springs, which help it pass almost all the speed breakers without scraping its belly on the ground. This can surprisingly tackle speed breakers with ease where my A4 (Stock) and Laura (Bilstien B12 Pro kit) used to scrape.
Now i know how people abroad call this an everyday sports car.

This car has the standard suspension, would someday like to experience how much better are cars with the Porsche Active Suspension Management System (Electronic Dampers - Also super expensive to replace)

Braking
When i first drove a Cayman S in the year 2016, i felt that particular car had some issue with the brake booster or something else was wrong. I was used to the brakes on my Audi A4 2.0 TDI/ Laura 1.8 TSI (Tarox G88 and Hawk HPS Pads), force is not something required in these cars in order to get the brakes to work. In fact, if I were to use force, the car would shudder to an instant standstill with the hazard lights on and the ABS/ESP lights flashing on the dash. However, on driving the Cayman S I realised it was a totally different ballgame. The harder I pushed the pedal, the better they were. Then on further driving I realised that it required really quite a lot of pressure to get a good response from the brakes BUT the brakes were completely effective. On reading out about the brakes on several international forums i understood that the brakes on Porsches sports cars are less servo assisted giving the driver more of a ‘feel’ for what’s happening. If you’re used to driving a heavily servo assisted car the brake pedal on the Cayman will probably feel hard/heavy.

The car comes with standard 4 piston callipers and 318mm & 299mm slotted, ventilated discs on the front and rear axle with red callipers. Notice the yellow marking of the torque inspection from the factory (Low mileage of 13k hence did not need a change)


In Car Entertainment

Honestly I am no expert in this field, but the car comes with Optional Porsche Communication Management Touchscreen headunit along with a pretty good optional Bose 10 speaker audio system and i really love the sound

3 of them are located on the dashboard (2x2.5 cm tweeters on the sides, 1x7 cm speaker in the centre). 4 of them are located on the doors (2x8 cm mid range speakers and 2x20 cm bass speakers)


2 of them are located near the B pillar (2x8cm mid range speakers). 1 10x15 cm active subwoofer is located in the passenger compartment footwell


This setup is combined with a 7 channel amplifier located under the driver seat with total output of 385 watts.

Porsche Dynamic Lighting System
I'm in love with this system. I have driven cars with dynamic cornering lamps (where the projectors move left and right based on the steering input), but the one on this car is just super fast and reacts very quickly, it responds at the slightest input of the steering and helps light the road ahead with ease.

The Bi-Xenon lamps are also one of the most powerful which i have experienced on any car yet with a very powerful and long throw.
There are 2 projectors in one unit, 1 is a Bi-Xenon unit and the second one is a halogen high beam (This is the one which glows when dipper is used without the headlamp on)

Low Beam in Action


High Beam in Action


This car comes with no Fog lamps and that area is used for Daytime running lamps


There is a LED strip on the side of the DRL which works as a Pilot lamp, Both these lamps cannot be used together


The headlamp washer system in chrome finish looks like it is fixed (like on the freelander 2 and Octavia VRS MK1) but it extends and then retracts back. It is again one of the most powerful system i have ever seen on any car (Compared to Octavia Mk1, Endeavour 3.2, Freelander 2, Audi A4)

Washer in Action


The washer also gets a separate button on the wiper stalk for its activation and can be used N number of times (Unlike VW cars which runs along with the wiper mist and only for a limited time)


Attaching some more pics of the car below (All pics taken after a very basic detailing session). The beautiful and rare ocean blue interiors (Most cars i saw were specced with black and a few had red interiors)


The 911 Turbo forged staggered wheels simply look amazing and come with 235/35/R19 & 265/35/R19 on the front and rear respectively



I would like to thank all readers who were patient enough to read my thread.

[TheHelix0202]

Nice write up, you’re quite the photographer! Expecting to see more reviews and threads from you, especially on the Octavia and Petra (if you could). Enjoy your Porsche for many miles!

[123.rishabh]

The Finer details
The front hood is made from super light aluminium and needs to be gently kept down, then the Porsche emblem should be lightly pressed for locking it in place


Rear Spoiler is extended at speeds above 120 Kmph and is retracted at speeds below 80 Kmph. It can also be manually extended using a button on the centre console.


One big negative - This car was not specced with optional parking sensors and it becomes a bit difficult to park and have to get out and check the space behind. I do not want to fit any aftermarket sensors (rejected 2 cars due to the same) as would like to keep it as original as possible


The side mirrors are spring loaded, can be retracted manually and a yellow colored button can be pressed (only from outside the car) to lock it in place (Pic taken from the web)


The seats are a leather and alcantara combination in Ocean blue color and have semi electric adjustment. The back rest can be reclined electrically & rest all adjustments are manual (Personally I fell it makes things simpler and helps in finding the right driving position faster)


The key is old school and has buttons for Lock/Unlock(Same Button) & buttons for opening the Frunk & Trunk (Pic taken from the web)


There is a neat looking 2 CD holder in the glovebox (PCM has a single CD Changer)



The BOSE monogram on the door speaker


The Instrument cluster is laid out in the typical Porsche fashion with the big tachometer in the center. The speedometer graduates every 50 Kmph. The oil pressure gauge is sorely missed.


It comes with three digital displays, the one on the left shows the Odometer and Tripmeter, the one in the center shows all the details right from the Music, Stopwatch, Oil level, Warning Messages, Digital speed and a lot more, the one on the right shows the Time and temperature outside. The small box present on the side of the gear selector area activates in Manual mode and shows which gear is selected. One small dot visible on the speedometer is the light sensor which varies the lighting for the instrument cluster.The fuel gauge comes with an orange warning lamp for reserve and the Temp gauge comes with a red warning lamp to indicate overheating.

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[slayer23]

Great review! Your pre-purchase due diligence is really solid.
Lovely pics overall and I must say the speedometer is neat & completely no nonsense - 50,100,150 & so on. The intent is clear - Drive fast

[GTO]

Read your thread word to word! Incredible review - thanks for sharing, Rishabh. We have similar names (mine is with a "u") and similar taste in cars. I've been eyeing the Cayman closely...very closely. IMHO, it's the perfect sports car for India with just the right amount of power to be fast enough (not crazy fast) and that lovely gokart-like feel. I would actually prefer your Cayman over the newer one for a simple reason = 6-cylinders . While the new 4-pot turbo is quick, its missing that aural pleasure.

Cannot resist sharing these. Had the time of my life:

[ramnaresh_2000]

Congratulations on your dream car. It looks dashing. If you don't mind can you share the pricing details? I always wanted a Thar, Mini Cooper, Jeep Wrangler and a Pajero sports in my garage. Right now settled with a TUV

I really appreciate your patience and selection process. Not comprising on even small details like bumper re-painting, aftermarket HU and rear sensors shows your resilience. Not everyone can achieve their dream vehicle. Best of luck.

[iliketurtles]

That’s a concise review of a great looking car. Threads like this provide fodder for many guys like me, yearning to take that next big leap to a proper sportscar. Here’s hoping you have many fun miles at the wheel. She deserves a proper photoshoot too, do share more pics in due course of time.

May I ask how much you paid for her? The curious cat in me insists I ask.

[NannuBhai]

Congratulations buddy. And am I jealous or what? I’m also a big fan of Porsche, would gladly get one, just a small problem of finance.

[nkapoor777]

Great review of a fantastic car. Having experienced your immense knowledge first hand over many years, I'm not surprised you did all this due diligence - I feel for the folks you were meeting though. They wouldn't have known what hit them. Glad you finally found this after many years of search and hard work.

And I must admit I've been a beneficiary of your knowledge whilst finalising my own pocket rocket. So when are we swapping keys? It's been due for some time.

[sterlingsilver]

That is one immaculate car! Congrats on a fantastic acquisition. The previous cars in your garage speak well of your taste and car-worship.

With such a strict wishlist for your Porche purchase, I was initially skeptical while reading your thread and was eager to get to the part where you zero-ed in on THE car and its specs/paperwork etc. I did a small thumbs-up when you described that it fit all your requirements, including being Bare Stock and having clean paperwork. Patience obviously pays!

Do keep updating the thread with more ownership and maintenance info. Cheers!

[Haroon]

Mighty congrats on your dream car and wish you many many thousands of kms of enjoyable motoring. Generally speaking, we men dont have such a large list to splurge on. So the few that we can, you JUST DO IT!

I am not much of a sports car person (frankly cant afford to maintain one!) but among the list I always have a soft spot for Porsche. It was very interesting to read your detailed pre-purchase research & absolute resolve to ensure what you exactly wanted when buying one of these exotic pre-owned beauties.

Many thanks for sharing this lovely story and wish you safe driving

[De-Veer]

Congrats on the purchase Rishabh Bhai! I used to love the sound of the Petra whenever you brought it to college. So now that you have got a stock car, how long do you plan to keep it that way? Any mods planned or leaving that for a later date?

[LoneWolf9]

Your review reminds me of the Porsche ad.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7sWPHKU1XZU

[ChiragM]

Great review Rishabh. Loved reading it. Its great to see that you prefer bone stock cars. The 911 Turbo wheels looks splendid. That must be the alloys for the 997 IIRC. The Cayman is lovely car and best suited for Indian roads. Hope you have loads of fun driving it.

Originally Posted by 123.rishabh

The 20 year old poster still in my room

As a kid kept collecting 1:24 scale Porsche models (The red Cayman S 987.1 is the oldest one)

It all starts with posters and model cars.

Originally Posted by GTO

I would actually prefer your Cayman over the newer one for a simple reason = 6-cylinders . While the new 4-pot turbo is quick, its missing that aural pleasure.

Cannot resist sharing these. Had the time of my life:

Isn't this the 981 Cayman? Looks like it to me. Even the 981 came with a flat-6. Its only the latest 982 that comes with a flat-4.

Originally Posted by LoneWolf9

Your review reminds me of the Porsche ad.

Pretty much sums it up.