I ended up timing the bond / interest rate market back in 2020 and I bought this car with 18k miles on it for $50k… at its height it was worth maybe $90k in 2023. But I’ve passed the point of “collector miles” and just want to enjoy this thing everyday to its and my dying breath, bouncing off the rev limiter, sideways.
The instant nature of the revs is what does it for me. Is like a racecar on the street. And it’s astonishing that it doesn’t take much ultimately. Everyone defaults to 911, this is a great example of how good the Spyder platform is.
Having driven a Cayman of this generation, I can say with 100% confidence it was 70% the fun as my GT3. Id imagine with these mods it’s probably closer to 90% for a fraction of the cost. Love it
@@sdlausen1the gas powered Boxster and Cayman is going away after this generation. The Spyder was very limited production for each gen but especially in the 987 gen, only gen to get a hydraulic steering rack as well. I’d say it’s at least as special as the S2000 CR. Having owned an S2000 AP1, and now a 987 Cayman S, the Porsche is a much different car, and can handle a lot more out of the box without modification, when you start modifying them they really become fun. My S2000 was stock and many years ago. I went Miata, S2000, E46 M3 FBO, E92 M3 (supercharged) M6 V10, MazdaSpeed 3 (FBO), another E92 M3 (stock), CLS55 AMG, and now Cayman S. I’ve owned the Cayman S longest, and modified it (coilovers, exhaust, headers, IPD intake plenum, GT3 throttle body, tune, and short shifter) and go on long periods of time where I don’t drive it, then start toying with the idea of selling it. Every time I get to that point I drive it, and don’t want to sell it, most fun car I have ever owned.
I already had the Cayman/Boxster pinned as my 'perhaps-one-day-actually-possible dream car' and you've just reinforced that to a point where this is all I want. This is it for me.
It’s truly all you need. Especially for backroads. I can honestly say I don’t even keep up with new car news anymore because I feel like I have the best.
Brother you make such a strong case about this Boxster 987-2 that if I didn’t have my 04’ S2K I believe I would go for one of these easy just off of watching your videos and seeing what you get for your money. It’s a truly solid car 👏🏼
Life with a Cayman is very good! I'd love to do an exhaust on my 987.1 but I'd need the whole system which is just a bit much right now. If my 80,000 mile service doesn't uncover any expensive needs it could happen. Thanks for the help with discounts! Every bit helps is true for sure.
exhaust from who/brand? worst case, wait for a major holiday and capitalize on a %-off offer...it can't hurt. I used Blk-🍟-day to save 25-30% on my AWE system for my WRX. I try to save purchases for major holidays and or "bonus loyalty points/contests" from my vendors.
Soul Performance working with Softronics Tuning has maxed out the 9A1 engine with bolt on mods. The intake adds little to nothing. Full exhaust with stage two tune yields 360-370 hp. Only thing after that is more aggressive camshafts which basically ruin the bottom end of the power curve. Frankly spending this amount of money on a 987 is too me a waste. You’re looking at least $100,000 investment for the car and these mods. For that amount of cash you can get a 981 Spyder with the 3.8L engine from the 991 911S. The 981 Spyder makes about 430HP with a tune and headers. You’ll also still have a car that can be returned to stock easily and won’t depreciate except for the miles you put on it.
Hey boxster fam! I have a 981 boxster GTS with stage 2 Cobb tune and a fab speed headers. Makes about 450 hp to the rear wheels. I’m biased but one of the best sports driving experiences you can have. I will say with the six speed manual. The clutch starts the slip when you really beat on it. Stock clutches probably starts to fade around the 430ish mark
I've said if you could just have one Porsche in the garage, 981 GTS Boxster manual is an amazing option. You get all the modern interior and tech and still a good raw performance. Hardest part about the Boxster GTS manual is.....finding one for sale! There's usually no more than 1 or 2 for sale nationwide in the USA with a manual. Congrats on that!
You want to grip good, but kick it out hard, nitto nt555 g2's really do the job. Super grippy with my 986, but with your power, it'll truly make your day worthwhile. Sliding around for over a year & the tread still looks brand new
I’ll wait until my flywheel actually needs replacing. That intake roar!! IPD is on its way as my last mod. Not focused on Hp but torque. Needs more low-mid. It’s nice to have the top down so you can hear it all..
Just found your channel via an Instagram reel. You make great content!! You’ve earned a new sub. Currently in the market for a 987. You make me excited to finally acquire one!
Hey man, I'm actually a tire technician! Your tires are really good but I'd highly recommend Nexxen Nfera's. AA Traction, A Temperature, and 500 treadwear. They wear really well and GRIP. I love and trust these tires with my life. Outside of those I'd also recommend Bridgestone Potenza Sport's. Bridgestone brought me out to one of their autocross events and I was able to use and abuse their M340i's on those tires. If you have the money and the car for it those are the tires to go for. They're also pretty even in the comfort level as well. I use the Nfera's literally every singe day of my life.
I've driven a stock version of your identical car, and it definitely didn't feel underpowered. Adding another 50+ HP to it must be bonkers. I'd still take it over a 718 spyder though cause that 987 is just so raw.
I drove it tonight on these Japanese style highways…. Totally still in love. Mega mini CGT vibes and the wail would echo off the walls of the highway. Top down 78°F… livin
I really don't like the location of clutch pedal (almost right under steering column) so I got PDK cayman instead. However your mod is something I am looking forward! thanks for the video!
Hankook RS4 have nice stiff sidewalls and not too much grip, they wear quite slowly as well. They do take some time to get up to temperature though. RT660 have amazingly stiff sidewalls and response but they are pretty grippy, probably close to cup2 level if not more in some scenarios.
Back down one level of Michelin to the 4S. 30,000 miles. Far more quiet and comfortable tire, better overall except at 9/10+. Still no good below 40F though.
@@f.kieranfinney457 The tires are extremely predictable still. Use at your own risk, sure. But...anyone who knows how to drive can easily still drive on them. Just don't expect them to grip like they would on a 90F hot day.
Excellent channel! Definitely making me consider a 987 now. Question: with the mods you have on your spyder, how do you think it would compare to a regular boxster s with the same mods? You think s vs spyder is a bigger difference or you think your mods make the bigger difference?
Hello, you are also singlehandedly slowly convincing me to pick one of these up. I’m currently looking at one that doesn’t have the sport chrono option. I had a 987.2 2.7L Cayman back in the day with sport chrono which gave the ‘sport’ button in the interior. I remember the throttle response becoming WAY more responsive after pushing that button. I later had a 987 without chrono and I really felt it lacked that sport mode. However I will be ecu tuning the Spyder just like you. Can I tune in the sport mode throttle response and benefits the sport chrono option gives, without physically having the chrono option?
@DasCayman Would love to see you get a 2016 spyder and squeeze every ounce of power out of that 3.8 liter. You know what Vanessa With a F always says, “Two Spyder in my hair the other day!?! Huh?!? How you got two Porsche and can’t pay child support hahn?!?.. No I don’t care,, Ima sue that ass for support!!!! Trust!,.,. no,.,. No! You are the prohbmelm!!! You are! I want Gucci on mine!!! You gotta pay me! My. Chillld Suppart!”
GT radial champiro sx2 if you want stiff sidewalls and not much grip. Cup2 is trash garbage when it comes to value, wear, grip, sidewall stiffness compared to 200s anyway. Or just go with endurance 200s like r-s4 or ecf, or you could try ad09 or potenza race or something.
I justified a lot of the parts when comparing what it would cost to buy my dream car… 997.2 GT3 RS…. Which are now $330k…. So spending $5k here and there seemed like a “deal”
@@lucasbaer1193 100% and I was so close to pulling the trigger on one back in 2020 for $130k… every now and then I bring up the Ad on BAT and cry like the scene from Interstellar “No!! Noo!!!”
@@DasCaymanit seems like every guy has the one deal they look back on and regret it like hell. But frankly I think I would prefer your current setup. Unless I was tracking all the time having the top down on the backroads in a Boxster seems like the way.
It will be interesting to see how the IPD plenum with the Dundon runners vs factory stock runners works out. Has the impact plate been removed @ the side intake grill?
Fellow 987.2 owner here, love your videos. Looking to do the flywheel eventually. Question for you, have you figured out what gear oil to use on our cars (manual + LSD)? I'm looking at some motul products currently
I would only use Genuine Porsche gear oil. As someone who is rebuilding a 997.1 911 manual trans, I’ll save you the hours of research… other stuff is not worth the price or risk
@@DasCayman Thank you for the reply. I was looking at OEM oil too but wasn't sure if they use the same oil between LSD and open diff cars. Any comments about that?
Would you use this on the track? Would you be worried about chassis twisting? I’m considering getting a Boxster S as it’s like 10-20k cheaper than cayman S
I got a 987.1 Boxster S about 9 months ago. Ive taken it twice to the track and it was a great car to track. Its been a very reliable car. I have a video of me on track on my page if you wanna check it out.
Did you even get an increase in power after spending all that money on parts? The dyno showed stock numbers it seemed. There is a guy who ripped apart a boxter and realized the majority is off the carrera and the only difference in engine part numbers were the intake and throttle body and tune....the only 2 parts your NOT changing..😂 i was really surprised at that they are so similar yet priced waaaay different.
I'll share a bit of information on the MA1/9A1 engine series with you. The 2.9 (987.2) & the 2.7 (981) share the same engine cases and bore dimension, but the stroke is different between the 2 engines. The 3.4 (987.2) & the 3.6 (997.2) share the same engine cases and bore dimension, but the stroke is different between the 2 engines. The 911 3.8 (997.2) & (981) GT4 share the same block and it's base off of the 911 Carrera S; it also share the crankshaft (77.5 mm) with the 3.4 engine. How you get the 4.0 is by installing the 3.6 (81.5 mm) crankshaft into a 3.8 engine. I have a modified 2010 Cayman S and have made all the changes he's done on the Spyder, with some minor parts differences, except for the Dundon intake runners and I have 323 to the ground vs 320 @ the flywheel (stock) which equals 372 now @ the flywheel. Hope this helps you out. Long live Mezger Junior.
Hey Das! I own a Cayman S 987.2. I al ready have a GT3 throttle Body and a IPD Plenum, air filter, and headers with a custom tune which roughly gives mi 345 hp (320 is stock). I was asking myself if I could install the dundon runner intake, however I have read that with all the stuff I al ready have the runner intake will be pointless, to much air flowing wont make better results. I am hesitant about making that upgrade and making a new tune to adjust the intake runner. Hope to hear back from you soon! cheers.
Hey! I think I got back to you already on IG, but incase others have the same question I'll post it here too. I would not do the Dundon intakes after you have what is already on the car. You'll have too much intake compared to the displacement of the engine. If you did add the intake runners I believe the improvements would be very small and not worth the labor and $4k for the parts and another $1k on the tune. Surprisingly I will actually be doing this to my car to prove this :)
Without wanting to be that way, there's absolutely no way this thing is making 380ftlb of crank torque. If it is, you have the highest specific torque output ever seen in an NA engine, far exceeding anything from Porsche, Ferrari, Cosworth, the best NA F1 engines and so on. It's equivalent to and every bit as implausible as claiming it's making about 600hp with a couple of bolt ons. Just as one reference point for sense checking, the 4.0 in the 991.2 GT3 makes 339ftlb. Increasing torque from an NA engine is super hard and anything above 80ftlb per litre is very, very good. That GT3 engine makes 85ftlb per litre. A Ferrari 458 only does 88ftlb per litre. The state of the art new Cosworth V12 in the Murrary T.50 is 94ftlb per litre. V10 F1 engines from the peak NA era only just got over 100ftlb per litre. And your dyno guy is reading 112ftlb per litre at the crank? Obviously that's a calculated figure, but equally there's no way it's making 337ftlb at the wheels as that means it has better specific torque at the wheels than the Murrary T.50 has at the crank. No chance. That figure isn't a little high, it's totally, utterly beyond implausible. To make 337 at the wheels from a 3.4-litre NA engine, it's got to be making miles over 100ftlb per litre at the crank. In reality, the car will be making no more than 300ftlb, at the absolute most, and probably 350hp maximum. Still a nice result and I am sure it drives better, but the dyno numbers are, I am sorry to say, total nonsense.
Hey I hear you on this, it's why I wanted to post both sets of numbers. What I do know is the wheel torque measured on the dyno which was 324 ft-lb at the wheels. I didn't want to focus on the conversion back to the crank which is why I put the assumptions in there. Not here for any dyno wars or big claims. But I wanted to personally spend the $1200 for the dyno tune and document that. If you have a better back calculation for crank torque please let me know and I'll update the figures. Thanks for the feedback. At the end of the day, I'm a driver / mechanic / engineer, not an engine tuner. Monkey get number from dyno, monkey post number from dyno...if you will. Goal was to get the car harmonized and optimized with the dyno.
@@DasCayman Yeah, afraid the 324ftlb wheel torque number is still totally ridiculous. No way on earth it's even close to that. Doesn't mean the tune is bad, but that figure is basically impossible from a 3.4-litre NA engine. You're still beating every NA engine ever by miles for specific torque output, which obviously can't be the case in reality. It'll be well under 300ftlb at the wheels.
Just to clarify, anything substantially more than about 85ftlb at the crank is highly, highly dubious. That's about 290ftlb. Stock is 273ftlb. Again, those are all crank figures. If you're doing 324ftlb at the wheels, that's at least 350ftlb at the crank, probably a fair bit more. Again, absolutely no chance it's even close to that. It's miles, miles too high. Again, to clarify, for a wheel torque figure it's at LEAST 50ftlb too high to be remotely believable.
@@flat6croc I agree with you. The tuner I went with does all the engines for DeMan and Dundon and has been doing it for over 30 years. Frank Smith Tuning in Crofton, MD. Either way, I plan to remove the Dundon intake runners and do the IPD and fabspeed intake to see if I get similar results. His dyno room is both temperature and humidity controlled with massive HVAC handlers.
Yeah the C6 Z06 is probably the best higher-end performance car for the money. Just make sure you don't look up the Dundon intake upgrade on the GT4RS.... ~$22,000
If it has the 82 mm TB then the plenum is also of a different design allowing more flow. When BGB raced 987.2 Cayman S @ Daytona they were allowed to change to the 82 mm TB and 911 S plenum, along with an airbox located in the rear compartment with an air scoop through the hatch for better breathing; within the rules.
Have you done a DME report since installing the LW Flywheel. I ask because I have read there is some affect to range numbers and I hope you can disprove it.
@Poorschdriver i that is the best laugh I have had for a while. I think he'd even laugh at that. I read he just wants to drive the heck out of it, I'm fine with that.
