Working towards a 'fast road spec' Cayman 987.1

[Despicable]

Good evening guys,

 

New to the forum, there are a surpising amount of forums dedicated to the 987 ilk, I've put my eggs in this basket as already I've found some really useful info on bits I've been working on with the car - so thank you those that made some of the how to's!

 

Do you guys have club meets or run outs at all? (UK side)- be good to attend some if there are?

 

I've recently bought myself a 987.1 Cayman S, low miles and SFSH. I looked for one some years ago but decided on an Audi S5 at the time. Prices are creeping up but haven't rocketed to the same degree as some other models or Marques. My intention is to convert it to a fast road spec, nothing too outlandish but it's not a daily so I don't mind it being a little raucous.

The 987.1 is a small car. I love it, compared to my daily and work cars it's diddy and very go kart like. It's certainly a small package to fit a 3.4 litre in. I tend to drive with my lights on in daytime as well, kind of like rolling with DRL's as you really fall into other driver's blind spots being so low down.

 

 

 

It doesn't have a great deal of additions- so no sport seats here or Bose sound system. It does have the PCM2.1 with archaic sat nav functionality though which is perfect for the bin. It looks to have the Xenon's, are these standard? The last owner restores classic vehicles as a business so he reprayed the front end to tidy up the stonechips and might have removed the spray jets from the bumper.

 

It's nicely modified already, to my tastes atleast. Sitting on staggered Bola CSR 19" wheels with Michelin Pilot Sport's, although I also have some OEM 997 Lobster Claw's too.

It's lowered 35mm on Vogland's I believe with OEM dampers. It sits beautifully and doesn't seem crashy, not too low for speedbumps either luckily as the GT3 esque  front splitter is not overly flexible.
It also has a stainless sports exhaust, brand unknown until I get underneath it but it's quite loud, I tend to choose the daily to go to work at 0500 hrs...

 

 

The first thing I put in was an extinguisher on a quick release mount- I have them in all my cars. It might not do much against an inferno but could still save a life.

 

The leather seats are in good condition but I used some Auto Glym conditioner to bring them back to their best. I'm no detailer, very amateur but I enjoy seeing results from some grafting. I might swap them out for some nice Gt3 style seats at some stage but no rush there.

 

 

I learnt this from the forum actually - the front air ducts do not provide any protection for the radiators and worse still is leaf collection that over time blocks and can cause rot. The radiators are new so I thought I'd best protect them. I see that you can buy special grilles made for the job, but I thought I would make some. I also decided to tint the foglights, I am unsure about them at the moment though. If you have an opinion, let me know!

 

 

[Despicable]

I've also done some fixes since I bought it, the last owner had it for a very long time but it wasn't driven a great deal so some stuff might have been missed. We're talking small stuff, the main one being the spoiler fault.

 

 

Fixes required to date: the spoiler throws that common Spoiler fault error at 75mph, it has a ducktail fitted but that's no reason for it not working. I was going to buy a Foxwell NT530 and code it out but I think I'll try to repair or fix the motor first as it'll be cool to be able to drop it.

 

Not really a fix as such, but I really didn't like the PCM system, it really aged the interior. In the past I have bought some Android system's such as Pumpkin and was hugely impressed to the point that I think they're still better than the current ones being pumped out by premium brands outside of Tesla's infotainment.

 

 

I decided to try out a cheap Android 11 double din unit. I can't remember the brand but I'm sure they are all one and the same, just different boxes. I also bought the rip off Porsche cage and surround and the 987 specific ISO harness.

 

This should have been a 10 minute job but I had NO IDEA that these cheaper 'double din's are not actually regulation sized, it's about 5mm bigger in each direction so would never fit flush or even in the double din sized cage. I managed to get round the issue by carefully cutting and reshaping the cage to fit, then mounting the headunit behind the rip off Porsche surround instead of in it.

I would not do it again, massive ballache to make it work well but it now atleast looks good and is done right, I'd have just binned it otherwise about bought Kenwood or Alpine HU.

I'm using the AGAMA car launcher interface on it bought from Play Store, way better than the generic one that it came with. Until last week I didn't know you could buy differing car interfaces!

 

 

Oh and while it was all out, I replaced the buttons on the climate control unit.

 

[Andy]

Has someone been chewing on those old switches!!! 

Car looks lovely, think the wheels really suite it and it sits nicely on them too. 

I had a 'cheap' Android headunit in my car for a while, but just didn't get on with it so went back to the stock system and use an Alexa Auto now instead. 

[Despicable]

Cheers Andy, I know... minging!

The wheels look just right, offset it perfect without needing spacers too. I actually bought some genuine Lobster Claw's thinking I wanted OEM look but now I'll probably just sell them and keep the Bola's.

Where did you get the AutoAlexa from? Not seen this before. I'll see how I get along with this and if its not great I'll just put it in a drawer somewhere.

[and.rs1800]

That looks great-I really do need to get mine lowered!

[Despicable]

Small update, I got to the spoiler motor to test it for power, it was receiving 12v just fine but could not hear it attempting to operate. I gave it some taps with a small hammer in the manner you would knock an old starter motor to free the brushes and it did the trick! Not sure how long this will last or if I've managed to free it up after inactivity but I'll see how it goes. I'll be on the look out for a new motor to replace it potentially.

 

 

It's not all rosy though, as although the spoiler operates fine from the button manually by going up and down as it should, at speed it goes up but then does not come down automatically, meaning I have to use the button to bring it down. Not sure whether this is programming or motor related, I need to do some more researching to get to the bottom of it as it's odd. Anyway, is nice to be able to drop it finally even if its only manually.

 

 

In the mean time, I have ordered my self a Foxwell NT530, meaning that if the 75mph beep persists I can code it out easily until I replace the spoiler motor. I've heard they are really useful pieces of kit and compatible with additional software for multiple cars, I'm looking forward to testing it out.

 

In other news, I did not like the polished tail pipes, too many shades of silver going on with the paint, surround and tips. Matt black with HTP is an improvement IMO.

 

 

Lastly... I learnt a valuable lesson about cost. Usually I am not one to buy cheap (buy twice) but I took a gamble on an £85 Android 11 headunit (new) - it was nothing like the ones I had in an older car, albeit where I paid about £300 some years ago. This one looked good was so slow, terrible sound quality and as I previously mentioned, a nightmare to fit as it came up far bigger than it stated as 'double din'.

So, I am back with PCM 2.1 but with a Parrot handsfree I pulled out of an older cars and threw in the garage. it handles calls, Spotify etc and now teamed with a decent dash mount sucker for my phone, I am happy it will suffice for satnav duties too when called upon.

 

 

For those interested, this is my other pride and joy, a 1989 Mercedes 190E with only 67k miles.

 

 

 

In this vehicle, only 80's music is acceptable.

 

 

[Despicable]

Over the last few days I've been getting the 987 ready for a road trip next week to Germany. I was going back and forth over which car to take, but decided on the most uncomfortable sports car I own, complete with the loud exhaust and no cruise control, heated seats, decent stereo etc... Might regret it or it might be the perfect tool for the job. I've not done drives in it over 1 hour yet as anything long distance has always been done in my F11.

 

 

in preperation for the journey, a full overhaul was in order, replacing worn bushes, lubricating where necessary, doing fluids, underbody protection and generally going through the car, sorting advisories from the last MOT and getting to know it well on a mechanical level, so I will be able to trust it on a very long drive.
 

 

 

Whilst I have the car in the open air, I didn't like the two tone silver around the exhausts so have now used some plastidip to go matt black around the tips. Much better imo and very durable. Ties in with the black exhaust tips a lot better now.

 

 

[Andy]

Does look much better that. 

Good luck with the drive! 

[Despicable]

On 23/03/2022 at 10:54, Andy said:

Does look much better that. 

Good luck with the drive! 

 

Thank you mate, much appreciated.

 

[James Mitchinson]

Hi @Despicable, great intro and it’s reminded me that I really should do something similar having purchased my 987.1S in Feb this year. 

Really like the look of yours and have a couple of questions:

 

1) what did you use for the mesh in the intakes? I’m looking to do mine this weekend and if you have a link for the mesh you used it would be greatly appreciated.

 

2) any insight or tips for fitting the mesh in place?

 

3) I really like the ducktail! Do you know who the manufacturer is?

 

4) where abouts are you based? I saw you were asking about meet ups/drive outs? I found a great place in Sussex that hosts an exclusively Porsche event, unfortunately they’re just looking to relocate but I’m sure it’ll be even better once they’ve found a new venue… it’s called B Road Hunting Club.

 

Hope you’re enjoying the road trip!

 

James 

[Despicable]

On 31/03/2022 at 10:51, James Mitchinson said:

Hi @Despicable, great intro and it’s reminded me that I really should do something similar having purchased my 987.1S in Feb this year. 

Really like the look of yours and have a couple of questions:

 

 Thanks mate

On 31/03/2022 at 10:51, James Mitchinson said:

 

1) what did you use for the mesh in the intakes? I’m looking to do mine this weekend and if you have a link for the mesh you used it would be greatly appreciated.

 

Ebay link

 

On 31/03/2022 at 10:51, James Mitchinson said:

 

2) any insight or tips for fitting the mesh in place?

 

I did it without needing to remove the inserts or bumper, using the above mesh I just measured the dimensions, made a quick cardboard template (old school pencil shaded outline) and then cut it to size using a stanley knife. Cut too big and then reduce in areas to get the perfect fit. Once happy with it being over layed, fild the mesh up a bit and push it through the slats, let it return to shape on the otherside of the slats and then use mini black zipties to hold the mesh in place. Voila!

 

On 31/03/2022 at 10:51, James Mitchinson said:

 

3) I really like the ducktail! Do you know who the manufacturer is?

Not too sure to be honest, I think an imported US one.

 

On 31/03/2022 at 10:51, James Mitchinson said:

 

4) where abouts are you based? I saw you were asking about meet ups/drive outs? I found a great place in Sussex that hosts an exclusively Porsche event, unfortunately they’re just looking to relocate but I’m sure it’ll be even better once they’ve found a new venue… it’s called B Road Hunting Club.

 

South Coast so not a million miles from Sussex. Easy drive, thanks I'll take a look.

 

On 31/03/2022 at 10:51, James Mitchinson said:

 

Hope you’re enjoying the road trip!

 

James 

 

[Despicable]

For those interested, I recently returned from a trip to Germany. I created a small Nurburgring report below:

 

Back from a quick fire Nurburgring Nordschleife trip