[Carsbuddy]

Hello guys, so i'm thinking of buying the Porsche cayman 718.

I went to dealership and I saw the price differences as well as the options etc...

My question is, is paying for a GTS worth it?

Or am I better off buying the base model and then tuning it?

Because I'd wanna fully bolt on the car regardless of Base or S or GTS.

So I'd like to know if there are any limitations on the car models?

When I bolt on a base model and a GTS model, can I get both to the same Horsepower with the same bolt on?

Or it doesn't work like that? I'm trying to get max performance and not waste as much money.

So if with the same aftermarket mods I can get both cars to the same HP, I might as well buy the base model.

Please let me know if you've any idea because I honestly don't.

And what are your recommendations?

Thank you guys!

 

[MikesGTS]

In all fairness there is not a lot between 300bhp to 365bhp... and properly the same difference between 365... and 410.... theses might not be the fastest cars produced , but as a master class in balance and traction, with huge performance I cannot think of anything that will give you the same experience for the price. The only way is to drive them all. Enjoy ?

 

[Lamb]

I'm on my 4th Porsche, always kept them stock, so I have no idea...however, both the S and GTS have variable vane turbos, the base has a turbo, just not a variable vane type...and the GTS has an extra radiator...

 

[crk]

Do you drive faster 170 MPH when in your car if so buy a S or GTS. I don't come close to using 300 HP.

 

[Carsbuddy]

Thank you guys so much for the replies.
It really is a master piece of a car. I agree with all the above. Will probably consider S or GTS to be honest. Need that turbo ?

thank you!

 

[alf_17]

Theoretic acceleration graphs of 718 Cayman, Cayman S and GTS all with PDK, generated on https://www.automobile-catalog.com

 

[982CS]

..and the GTS has an extra radiator...

You also get the third radiator with the Sport Design package - certainly on the S anyway.

 

[jimmuller]

Will probably consider S or GTS to be honest. Need that turbo ?

Of course all of us will be perfectly happy with the car we bought, so asking is going to get you the obvious! That being said...

Of course they all have the turbo. Of course you need it. It's part of the package. The question is, is the package significantly different? The real life answer is no but you have to live with the answer in your mind, not the one in real life. That computer-generated performance graph is nice but the real answer is in your bottom side when you drive. That difference on paper is meaningless except in competition. Do you really care if the time to 160kph (100mph) is a few tenths quicker?

Do you need that third radiator? If you aren't doing sustained competition driving then it won't do anything special. It's part of the package.

If you want to start doing bolt-on performance enhancements, where do you stop? To put it another way, where does the incremental improvement become not worth the cost? Or are you working on a fixed budget?

The point is, you need to keep things in perspective. You may do better by spending you budget on some of the other possibilities.

 

[silvia718]

I have a base. It's perfectly capable and an awesome car. I bought it off the lot so I could try out HPDE days with the local clubs. At the time my basic qualifications were a heated multi-function steering wheel and it needed to be a color. If I had to do it all over again I'd spend the money on a GTS. I wasn't willing to do that originally not knowing if I would even like taking it to the track. I've put in seats, a half cage, and harnesses. I'm looking at camber plates and suspension next year. I will stay away from engine mods until the warranty is up if I do them at all.

They're all great cars, it just depends on how much you're willing to spend and what kind of mods you think you'll do. I drove a GTS and frankly it didn't feel a lot faster than my base, but the test drive was in traffic around town, not the best conditions.

My $.02. Happy shopping and good luck!

 

[717R]

If money is no object then GTS for me. Then again with the price differential I could stick with the base and additionally get a Harley.

More attractive for me from a lifestyle perspective. Sorry OP didn’t really answer your qn but I guess it all depends on what we want...

 

[don]

The base is obviously the best value for money and with a tune it is very close to the S or GTS.

As people point out you get all the performance options with the GTS. eg., only the GTS comes standard with PTV/LSD which is useful if you are going to tune for more power/torque.

From a tuning perspective the GTS has the slightly larger variable vane turbo so you will get much more out of it with a tune. You can see the difference this makes on the Cobb stage 1 tune with +70 hp (~425hp) at 7000 RPM for the GTS. Whereas the S with the smaller size variable vane turbo and stage 1 tune drops off after 6000 RPM and looks much like a stock GTS.

I think with full bolt on (when it exists) you will be looking at ~500hp in the GTS and will be passing GT3s. You also need to remember that with these cars the drive train losses are much smaller, like ~10-12% so 500hp is like 550hp in front engined rear wheel drive car.

Of course if your car is still under warranty then you might not want to do any of this so a stock S or GTS might be better.

Personally, I think the base, S and GTS are all fast enough and it is about driving the curves rather than he straights or 0-60 times, but if you have the tuning bug then I think there are exciting times ahead for these cars.

 

[BLKGTS]

I've put in seats, a half cage, and harnesses.

Was the half-cage a Porsche offering? Any details/pics?

OP: Firstly, assuming the differences in the models can be bolt-on/off (e.g. different brakes, seats, etc), the only thing you can't bolt-on/off is the difference in displacement (2.0L vs 2.5L). If that's the case you are left with the S and GTS.

On the Porsche configurator, the GTS was basically the same price as an S optioned with all the same things as the GTS (except for the slight power bump on the GTS which cannot be optioned) so my opinion is the GTS presents better value between these two. A second-hand or demo GTS would present even greater value.

Lastly, I wouldn't strain my finances to buy a depreciating asset so get the one you can comfortably afford because you will thoroughly enjoy driving any of them.

 

[DriveInHouston]

...
Lastly, I wouldn't strain my finances to buy a depreciating asset so get the one you can comfortably afford because you will thoroughly enjoy driving any of them.

Word!

 

[Chris NZ]

To me the S offers the best bang for your buck in the range and is more configurable than the GTS. However each car has it's own unique sales proposition so you should be able to work out which one suits your requirements.

Having said that, Porsches' have never been about maximum horsepower (they are rarely the most powerful cars in their respective classes), but rather the balance of power, weight, chassis etc. It's not about how quickly you can get to the next corner but more about what the car does when it gets to the corner. This is especially true of the the Cayman and Boxster. So if your primary interest is max horsepower you might be disappointed or better served looking at alternatives.

 

[Carsbuddy]

Wow, the replies were extremely helpful to be honest and there were many great points.

This forum has been super helpful, thank you so much guys! I appreciate it.
I’m going to reevaluate my finances and options and pick accordingly.
Side question, I saw somewhere that apparently 2020 there might be a flat six cayman coming out? Is that going to be on all models or is it a specific model like a “GT4RS” or so only?

 

[Basaltbox]

GTS

 

[jimmuller]

Side question, I saw somewhere that apparently 2020 there might be a flat six cayman coming out? Is that going to be on all models or is it a specific model like a “GT4RS” or so only?

I think @Basaltbox meant to consider a GTS, not that the GTS will have the flat 6. I know no more than what I read here but the story is that the 6 will be in the GT4. I may have that completely wrong too. Personally, I'd rather have the torque of the turbo 4.

 

[Chris NZ]

Wow, the replies were extremely helpful to be honest and there were many great points.

This forum has been super helpful, thank you so much guys! I appreciate it.
I’m going to reevaluate my finances and options and pick accordingly.
Side question, I saw somewhere that apparently 2020 there might be a flat six cayman coming out? Is that going to be on all models or is it a specific model like a “GT4RS” or so only?

There is already a boxer six 718 Cayman - the 718 GT4. There is a lot of speculation that the NA six cylinder engine will return to the non-GT range, either as a GTS or as a model between the GTS and GT cars, but nothing official yet.

Of course as a normally aspirated motor the potential aftermarket gains would be considerably less than they would be from a turbocharged one.

 

[Carsbuddy]

Ohh that makes sense.

Thank you guys for all the great replies!

 

[chester7]

Forgive me if someone already mentioned this, but many folks report the 2.5 liter engine in the S and GTS has more grunt and quicker repsonse at low RPMs. For some, that is a big deal.