Enthusiasts Blogging Our Favorite Classifieds
A few weeks ago I stumbled across a 1980 Porsche 930 Turbo in one of my favorite paint-to-sample colors – Viola Metallic. It’s deep enough that it certainly looks like a special color and can blend in when needed without being so purple that it looks like Barney the Dinosaur driving down the road. Turns out I’m not alone as people are still dishing out large amounts of money to paint it on the current generation 911. And what better model than the GT3 Touring?
I’m not sure what to make of the Porsche Panamera. Does it get a pass because it is a Porsche and we find things we like about it and ignore the rest? Or is it just a good car that coincides with what we like about Porsche? Probably a little bit of both, but since its launch in 2009, it has always been more of an afterthought in the Porsche lineup and even more so with the introduction of the Taycan. Now that they are very much just “used cars,” is it worth looking into over the competitors from BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Audi?
As prices of Porsche 911s seem to be running away and value-for-money on used examples gets worse and worse, it only makes sense to maybe check out what the used Cayman market has to offer. I’ve said many times that I’m not a huge fan of the 718 unless it has a flat-six, so that means backing up to the 981 generation – where you can have all the flat-six you desire. Today’s car, a 2016 Cayman S up for sale in Miami, seems to check all the boxes if you want a really optioned 981 without spending crazy money.
Well, they are here. One of the hottest and most anticipated Porsche models in a while. The 718 Cayman GT4 RS. For everything the GT4 is, the GT4 RS is at another level. You know the drill. The naturally aspirated 4.0-liter flat-six makes a peak 493 horsepower and 331 pound-feet of torque, good enough to pull down 0-60 runs in 2.8 seconds. Those are hypercar numbers in a Cayman. All at a starting price of $150,000. Of course, that is if you can get one, which of course you can’t unless you’ve been leasing loaded-up Cayennes every 3 years from your local dealer since they came out back in 2004 as well as buying everything else that has been offered to you without fuss. Then maybe you can get on the list. If that isn’t you, then here you go. All you need to do is send the money…a lot of money.
Crazy to think that the older 991-generation of Porsche 911 is now 10 years old. Time stops for no one and here we are. For myself, I loved and still do admire the 991. There is nothing conversational or risky about it, other than maybe it is a little large. However, cars growing in size aren’t exactly unique to Porsche, as every car has grown outside of the really niche models. If I had my choice, I’d have a 991 GT3 and call it a day, but for around $60,000 less, I’ll take today’s car: a 2012 911 Carrera S coupe.
