Herbie555

Hey all - as the newbie-est of newbs, I'm trying to calibrate whether my current plans are realistic or just fantasy. I'm sure this will sound either woefully ignorant or insultingly naïve, but I only personally know a couple of Porsche owners, and their cars are all once-a-month cars-and-coffee garage queens or track-day only use.

Here's my question: Knowing what you know now, would you daily-drive a 987 Cayman, now, in 2023?

I'm finally at a point in life where I am no longer driving the daily school carpool, and have enough cash to justify a small splurge. After thoroughly enjoying a series of 2-seaters back before we started a family (Miata, Z3 3.0 Coupe, etc.), I'm missing having that kind of daily joy in my life and I have always coveted the 987 Caymans.

We'll have enough other vehicles in the family fleet to cover the "practical" needs of family trips, hauling, etc., but I would need something with at least 90%-95% "uptime". I'm not expecting a perfectly trouble-free experience - I'm willing to make an initial investment towards "stabilizing" a car, and of course the usual preventative maintenance, but I do need to have a reasonable expectation that I can drive the car regularly. (I'm spoiled by 20+ years of my daily being either a BMW or a Subaru WRX - very few surprises, even if there were occasionally some annoying niggles...)

Am I nuts for thinking this is a good idea? Or nuts for worrying about this? (Explicitly acknowledging that I'm nuts.)

sectachrome

I think you’d be okay but it’s a good idea to do preventative maintenance on all the basics. I would prioritize replacing the shifter cables as they are prone to breakage and could leave you stranded. Possibly water pump if you really want to get everything. Otherwise there’s not a whole lot specific to a 987.1 other than typical 15 year old car stuff. I’m assuming you’re already aware of the IMS and bore score stuff.

Herbie555

Good advice, thank you.

I'm aware enough of the IMS issue to know to research it more before I commit to something, but not enough to know all the particulars (yet). I was not hip to the bore scoring issue, which I now need to start researching also.

Cheers.

Akabeko

Do you plan on getting a base or an S? What kind of climate do you live in? How long is your typical commute?

From my research, bore scoring mostly affects the 3.4L engine. It is more likely to happen in cold climates, especially if you do a lot of idling or short drives.

Julian_KCMO

I live in Kansas CIty and up until a recent accident that has seen my 06 Boxster S get written off I drove that everyday, year round EXCEPT on the days in winter the roads were freshly salted. I covered 28k miles in a little over 2 years of ownership, including plenty of road trips halfway across the country.
That car already had 127k on it when I got it and the previous owner had definitley entered the realm of "defered maintenance" and so I took care of things as they came up through my normal maintenance. I do all my own work so was only paying for parts, if I was paying someone else....I wouldn't have chosen that particular car, but I also would have paid a lot more for a better maintained example. My Boxster NEVER left me stranded by the side of the road.
I am looking for another 987 and will defintely be driving it everyday.

Cheers,
Julian

Herbie555

Warm climate (San Diego), but short-ish commute (~10 miles mostly highway), plus errand running. I think I'd actually choose the base model, but given that S models outnumber the bases about 2:1 locally, it may end up as a "best maintained/lowest miles example I can afford" kind of situation.

Thank you for the input on the scoring issue.

Akabeko

For a good intro to the 987.1 models you could watch this youtube video on the PCA channel (featuring Nathan Merz)

XuTVJet

Back in October 2022, I bought a 987.2 Cayman Base 6MT. The intent was for it to be my fun car that would be driven occasionally during the week, sometimes on the weekends, and parked mostly in the winter. My daily is a modded 2016 BMW M235 6MT. Turns out I hardly drive the M235 except if it's raining, snowing, under 40 degrees, or if I need to take more than one person.

As others noted though, these cars are getting older and will require maintenance/repairs. Be prepared for that as it can get pricey, especially if you aren't the one turning the wrench.

Pavegeno928

Original owner of an 08 Base Cayman. Wife's daily driver since day one. 115K miles on it. All scheduled maintenance done on time. Just did clutch, plugs, serpentine belt, AOS, eng/trans mounts. Car continue to perform flawlessly. She has no desire to sell it and will daily drive it for as long as possible.

If you get a good PPI, just make sure all scheduled maintenance is done. If not, work that into the price. The air/oil separator is not mentioned in the manual as a replacement item, but we have put two in. First one failed about 8 years in so we just did the second one before it went and I plan on this being a time change item about every 7 years.

Love the car!

harveyf

I am going to say that your Cayman will love, love, love being driven every day! I think a lot of problems come up actually when there are long stretches when the car is not driven. 10 miles is fine as long as the temp gauge comes up to it's regular position. The main thing is to get the block above the boiling point of water so as to drive water out of the oil. Heck, if you drive 20 miles a day that comes up to what, 7500 miles a year? Not a problem in my book. I don't know what your commute is like but I would go for the manual tranny if I could.

hueyhoolihan

of course! just make sure it's in good running condition.

quickboxster

I just fired my Boxster up after letting it sit for the last month and I actually felt guilty. Drive it.

Dave in Chicago

Been daily driving my ‘05 BS for about 8 years. Love it. I stay up to date on all maintenance and stay ahead of the game on key PM items for IMS, air/oil separator, and water pump. That’s the co$tly part.

I drive the car year round with proper snows in the winters. A flat stopped me once. Failing clutch was only other item to remove it from the road in those 8+ years and over 110k miles.

I’d jump in and drive it anywhere still at 135k+ miles, regardless of distance. It’s that reliable.

Herbie555

Thanks, everyone. Still need to decide if I can afford/tolerate the maintenance pricetag, but good to know I've got a valid plan in mind!

J Free

I do, other than really snowy salty days of winter. I got it with 30K about 4 years ago, closing in on 80K now. All I've had to do was the water pump/thermostat recently.