[Graustark]

My freeze date is in April so of course I am busy second-guessing all option choices. Mine will be pretty deeply optioned. And it will be manual, black/beige interior, with Burmester. Those alone I doubt you could ever find sitting on dealer lots!

But to my point: what are some rarely chosen / oddball options you selected (or stumbled into due to what was available), and what are your thoughts on them? Did you find yourself loving something that seemed totally silly? Or an option you do not really ever notice? Or something goofy that strangers and non-enthusiasts just appreciate on your 718 for some reason?

 

[RussellHodgson]

I don't have any options I consider 'odd-ball', but I did option the rear wiper which is pretty rare. I love having this. When it rains the rear window gets covered fast. Being able to quickly clear it off, especially when reversing makes it much easier to drive the car.

 

[JakiChan]

When I picked up my Cayman at PEC LA they were like "Well, we've never seen the Burmester on a Cayman so we need to hear this." "Hey Siri, play Welcome to the Jungle".

 

[MOG_80TH]

The few options I selected which my retailer tells me are a bit rare are:

1. Leather steering column. I feel this is a must if you are ordering any of the extended leather interiors as it finishes it off nicely.
2. Alloy gear lever - mine is a MT so I'm not sure how this works for PDK. I ordered a GTS, swapped the GTS interior to rid myself of the alcantara and noticed that the alloy gear lever was a no cost option! Win. It seems Porsche is fair when pricing options. GTS already had an upgraded gear lever hence the move to the alloy version was no cost. Aside from the cost part, it's a nice piece of kit. Do note that selecting this changes the leather boot to match the interior - in my case the boot when from black to graphite blue. This option is a must should you go with the alloy interior trim bits.
3. Satin Platinum Wheel Finish - the configurator shows this to be might brighter than it is. I'd say it's a light graphite colour. Here again I wanted to deviate from the black wheels on the GTS but maintain something that was not too bright.
4. Full Leather Package - while not odd, I do find most of the cars on the lot do not have this and I feel it's worth every penny over the incremental cost of partial leather. The stitching and leather on the dash/doors/console really set what is already a fab interior
5. Aluminium Interior Trim Package - here again, worth every penny. Love how it lifts the interior and combined with the leather dash, you are left with almost no plastic in the interior. I almost opted for the black tint version but decided against due to how easy it scratches.


Options I regret not ordering, but are a bit frivolous:

1. The colour coded key and key pouch: More for the key pouch. Like you, I have a two tone interior and the key pouch that comes from the factory is quite special. I've been using a normal black one and while a pain and likely only used for the spare key, I do wish I had the matching pouch.
2. Personalized Floor Mats with Leather Edging - very frivolous. However in your case you could get the leather binding to match the beige leather. I'm a stickler for the small details but at the time of ordering I felt I ticket more than enough boxes and had to hold back.

Good luck with your order!

P

 

[duegatti]

What's your exterior color - is it black, or was that part of the interior description? I assume you are getting a first choice exterior color.

And I'm just a little ashamed to admit that I had the pseudo-chrome headlight washer covers replaced with Miami Blue painted covers shortly after I got the car. But it did make it faster, and handle better.

 

[CaymanMatt]

My freeze date is in April so of course I am busy second-guessing all option choices. Mine will be pretty deeply optioned. And it will be manual, black/beige interior, with Burmester. Those alone I doubt you could ever find sitting on dealer lots!

But to my point: what are some rarely chosen / oddball options you selected (or stumbled into due to what was available), and what are your thoughts on them? Did you find yourself loving something that seemed totally silly? Or an option you do not really ever notice? Or something goofy that strangers and non-enthusiasts just appreciate on your 718 for some reason?

1) Get white gauges, or some brighter color that works with your interior. The standard color gauges are invisible in shady or dusk conditions until the headlights come on, particularly if you have sunglasses on. This one I think is really important. If you're near a dealer try a car with the standard color if possible.
2) Get the luggage net.
3) If I was to do it again, I think I'd not get the smoker's package. An extra spot to put things (albeit small spot) can't hurt in this car.
MOO

 

[DriveInHouston]

1) Get white gauges, or some brighter color that works with your interior. The standard color gauges are invisible in shady or dusk conditions until the headlights come on, particularly if you have sunglasses on. This one I think is really important. If you're near a dealer try a car with the standard color if possible.
...

I'll second the light color of the dial faces! Get any other color than the stock dark grey. In the bright Houston sunlight, sunglasses or no sunglasses, the only items you can see are the digital displays for the gear no. and speed.

Absolutely useless! I don't know what these people were thinking when they were driving the test mules...

 

[phroenips]

May not work for your color combinations, but I probably get the most comments on my yellow seatbelts (to match the yellow car)

 

[gmtsteve]

I'll second the light color of the dial faces! Get any other color than the stock dark grey. In the bright Houston sunlight, sunglasses or no sunglasses, the only items you can see are the digital displays for the gear no. and speed.

Absolutely useless! I don't know what these people were thinking when they were driving the test mules...

In the interests of balance, I'd like to suggest never getting white gauges. I had them on my 911 and they were awful unless they were lit. In daylight you can see all the un-illuminated warning lights which gives a cluttered appearance.
Plain stock black dials are much better IMHO.

 

[CaymanMatt]

In the interests of balance, I'd like to suggest never getting white gauges. I had them on my 911 and they were awful unless they were lit. In daylight you can see all the un-illuminated warning lights which gives a cluttered appearance.
Plain stock black dials are much better IMHO.

But you could actually see them. I see nothing but a black hole - no numbers, no sweeping pointer, just a black hole. I can deal with extra info. I don't like not getting any.
MOO

 

[Olympic Blue]

My car was a CPO and had all the performance options I wanted, plus. that alone was VERY unusual. it also had the full leather and Graphite Blue / Chalk Sport-Tex seats. this was an option I never considered and would not have paid the extra $ for.
But now I really like both the comfort and the looks of the interior. and in my opinion looks good with the Sapphire Blue exterior.

 

[Third]

...
And I'm just a little ashamed to admit that I had the pseudo-chrome headlight washer covers replaced with Miami Blue painted covers shortly after I got the car. But it did make it faster, and handle better.

Don't be ashamed! While expensive for what they are, I think exterior-color headlight washers are a must! I feel the same way about the side intakes, and while I'm at it, the front and rear fascia (although I admit those last two make less of an overall impact than the intakes and washers.)

While I wouldn't put 18-way Adaptive Sport Seats Plus in the oddball column, they're not commonly ordered but are a must-have for me.

I also find PASM and, of all things, Automatic Climate Control are must-haves.

 

[Wine.O]

Fun topic. Yep, $700 for white gauges seemed silly, but I love them. Also, the painted side vents was a must for me. Hated the look of unfinished plastic bits on the side of an otherwise elegant car.

Funny quote from my SA: going through my options and adding the white gauges. My girlfriend asked, "Do you really need those?" SA responded to her, "Need? Look around. We don't sell 'Need' here."

 

[dave92101]

Yep, $700 for white gauges seemed silly, but I love them.

I feel the same way way about the white gauges. Pricey, but so glad I got them. My other 'oddball' options were Sport-Tex seats, Burmester sound and red seat belts. I kind of wish I'd also optioned the illuminated door sills too, but thought that was a bit too $$$.

 

[jimmuller]

I never quite understand some color preferences. For example, I have never ever had a problem reading my standard base model gauges. But then, I have a Cayman with its fixed roof, and I have the PDK so I'm not constantly watching the tach (even though I am watching it). But even so, I never have trouble seeing the tach numbers or the needle. The critical stuff like temperatures, oil pressure, etc. are all displayed by bright images. The speedometer is a big lit-up number in the middle of the tach.

Similarly I don't understand some of you folks' exterior preferences. Small bits of chrome here and there look nice to me. But then, I have a silver car, and I'm used to old-style cars where chrome even on the dashboard was a standard item. The orange side markers accent the gold Porsche emblem on the frunk. Wheels are supposed to be metal, which mean they look metallic. TIres are supposed to be black. Brake disks are supposed to be steel and look like it. Red or yellow brake calipers are a neon sign sayig "Look at me, I have Brembo brakes!" but otherwise are just a color clash.

And then there are the reviewers who decry the appearance of "plastic" interior bits but never quite grasp the fact that carbon fiber is actually just a type of, well, plastic.

In the "roadie" section of a bicycle forum I read someone wrote a few years ago "I hate silver! Hate it! Hate it! Hate it!" Probably an arrogant hotshot who thinks every part on a bike looks better when made of black carbon fiber. Silver just looks old and nobody likes old. And here I'm thinkin' nothing looks better than the glint of sun flashing from stainless steel spokes on a beautiful sunny spring day. At last count I had 11 bikes, all vintage and mostly a combination of shiny and patina. Don't have anything against black bike parts but sparkley is where it's at for me. But what do I know?

 

[Third]

I never quite understand some color preferences. For example, I have never ever had a problem reading my standard base model gauges. But then, I have a Cayman with its fixed roof, and I have the PDK so I'm not constantly watching the tach (even though I am watching it). But even so, I never have trouble seeing the tach numbers or the needle. The critical stuff like temperatures, oil pressure, etc. are all displayed by bright images. The speedometer is a big lit-up number in the middle of the tach.

Similarly I don't understand some of you folks' exterior preferences. Small bits of chrome here and there look nice to me. But then, I have a silver car, and I'm used to old-style cars where chrome even on the dashboard was a standard item. The orange side markers accent the gold Porsche emblem on the frunk. Wheels are supposed to be metal, which mean they look metallic. TIres are supposed to be black. Brake disks are supposed to be steel and look like it. Red or yellow brake calipers are a neon sign sayig "Look at me, I have Brembo brakes!" but otherwise are just a color clash.

And then there are the reviewers who decry the appearance of "plastic" interior bits but never quite grasp the fact that carbon fiber is actually just a type of, well, plastic.

In the "roadie" section of a bicycle forum I read someone wrote a few years ago "I hate silver! Hate it! Hate it! Hate it!" Probably an arrogant hotshot who thinks every part on a bike looks better when made of black carbon fiber. Silver just looks old and nobody likes old. And here I'm thinkin' nothing looks better than the glint of sun flashing from stainless steel spokes on a beautiful sunny spring day. At last count I had 11 bikes, all vintage and mostly a combination of shiny and patina. Don't have anything against black bike parts but sparkley is where it's at for me. But what do I know?

This is what makes the world go round, and thankfully we all don't agree on a the same color scheme! And while I prefer the painted parts for most exterior colors, of course it's totally in the eye of the beholder.

 

[718Niko]

5. Aluminium Interior Trim Package - here again, worth every penny. Love how it lifts the interior and combined with the leather dash, you are left with almost no plastic in the interior. I almost opted for the black tint version but decided against due to how easy it scratches.

YES.

Also, not oddball, but I think it would be rude not getting colored seatbelts.

 

[k.alexander]

In the interests of balance, I'd like to suggest never getting white gauges. I had them on my 911 and they were awful unless they were lit. In daylight you can see all the un-illuminated warning lights which gives a cluttered appearance.
Plain stock black dials are much better IMHO.

I initially wanted colored gauges, red or yellow, but got my car as a CPO. That, plus my interior is Leather Graphite Blue/Chalk with Sport-Tex Sport Seats Plus and neither red nor yellow would remotely work with my current interior, so I'm happy with the simple black gauges. The thing I wanted to really say, and this has been said before above, but my OCD would be on high alert all the time if I saw all the warning light outlines in the gauges as is the case with basically any set of gauges other than black. Lastly, no problem viewing the gauges for me as well, couldn't really figure out why everyone was complaining, but now thinking maybe the problem mostly or entirely only affects Boxster drivers.

 

[CaymanMatt]

I initially wanted colored gauges, red or yellow, but got my car as a CPO. That, plus my interior is Leather Graphite Blue/Chalk with Sport-Tex Sport Seats Plus and neither red nor yellow would remotely work with my current interior, so I'm happy with the simple black gauges. The thing I wanted to really say, and this has been said before above, but my OCD would be on high alert all the time if I saw all the warning light outlines in the gauges as is the case with basically any set of gauges other than black. Lastly, no problem viewing the gauges for me as well, couldn't really figure out why everyone was complaining, but now thinking maybe the problem mostly or entirely only affects Boxster drivers.

Ours is a Cayman GTS.

 

[k.alexander]

Oh, don't forget the stupid Lighting Package (or whatever it's called) that costs roughly $300 or so. Would have never purchased it on a car if I ordered the car, and my car doesn't have it now, but as others have expressed else on forums -- it is a well worth the money.

Full Leather Package - as stated by someone above - absolute must, although I probably wouldn't have spent money on this if ordering a car myself either, but my god, absolutely upgrades the interior of the vehicle many many fold.

CarPlay? Not sure if it comes standard on 2020 models, don't think it does, but get it even if you don't think you're going to use it--may change your mind one day.

I also really miss not having Porsche Entry & Drive. My prior much cheaper car from 2009 had the equivalent, and I just got so **** used to it.

Lane Departure warning system is nice if you don't mind spending the money.

I'm a huge proponent for Multi-functioning Steering Wheel--sooooooo much better than the one without the buttons, it's not even funny. That's the one thing I use like every 15 seconds.
I also have the smaller GT wheel which is also nice.