718...0r 981

[jason90]

looking for as many opinions as you like...relevent to the car choice... as only have a few weeks before i am looking at deciding 

 

will be eiather a 718  GTS  2.5   turbo flat 4 ,,, the devils work to some...after opinions from the others who actually are driving them  is the sound that bad and are you unhappy with your choice if you could have had a 981 ?

 

or 981 GTS  flat 6  lower bhp but on side to most purists  lol   ...am i right in thinking   flat 6 more reliable and longer lasting engine than the flat 4 2.5 turbo  !!!

 

 

i am looking at the cayman but i had a boxster and not joined any cayman forums  i might get another boxster  but its the engine versions im looking at right now...

[jhemus]

I cannot comment on 718 ownership but I moved from a 987S to a 981 GTS and l love it! A truly wonderful car: the only 718 I would swap it for is a 4.0 GTS and £30k to upgrade is a little steep!

[Paul P]

Different view point - have a 987.2 3.4 PDK , had a 987.2 2.9 PDK - had both a loaded 718s and a decent spec 718 as a courtesy car. (both PDK)

718 - yeah, nice car, thanks, drives well - like it - no issue with that as a car , that's impressive from a 2L engine, can I have my car back now (3.4) 

718s - OH MY F**KING GOD - absolutely loved it - fast, low down grunt, silly noises from sports exhaust 300 miles in 2 days and a stupid grin - got as far as "and how much is that  - really - oh OK - no, don't want to buy it - because I can't afford a kidney and an arm as payment - but - can i just drive it again - please?" (when i had the 2.9)

Engine sound - yeah different - over it by 1st roundabout, thats me, your  mileage may vary.....

718 - impressive car, newer, different, if I won it, I wouldn't sell it - 718s - OMFG - I REALLY hope that 6cyl n/a nostalgia drives down the price because i really want a 718s - it doesn't sound as emotive - and I really don't care, not even a little bit,  but otherwise - jaw dropping performance (especially with the hyperspace button) - and the best looking variant to date.

All of course "IMHO"

And for context - I don't lust after  "raw" and "analogue" - I get people who do, but I had that with bikes for years - I like a little bit of modern and equipped.

As ever - just opinions, and by definition, what I think doesn't mean sh*t - drive lots, buy a nice one of whatever flavour does it for you and drive it like someone else stole it.

 

 

[Greenman]

Have you driven a 718?

what sort of driving do you do/how do you use your car?

How often is your current 987 above 4K revs?

There’s a few on here having gone from 981 to 718 and not regretted it.  There’s also plenty who have a 981 and have tried a 718 with a view to ‘upgrading’ and have stuck with the 981.  There is no right answer it depends what you are after.

I love the power delivery, throttle response and intoxicating sound of the engine over 4K of the 981 so will not be changing to a 718 4 cyl ( and yes I’ve driven lots of miles in them).  
 

w.r.t 718S performance - it seems much quicker than the 981S when driving lazily (tootling etc) but actually pushing on I found little difference between them

[jason90]

9 hours ago, Paul P said:

Different view point - have a 987.2 3.4 PDK , had a 987.2 2.9 PDK - had both a loaded 718s and a decent spec 718 as a courtesy car. (both PDK)

718 - yeah, nice car, thanks, drives well - like it - no issue with that as a car , that's impressive from a 2L engine, can I have my car back now (3.4) 

718s - OH MY F**KING GOD - absolutely loved it - fast, low down grunt, silly noises from sports exhaust 300 miles in 2 days and a stupid grin - got as far as "and how much is that  - really - oh OK - no, don't want to buy it - because I can't afford a kidney and an arm as payment - but - can i just drive it again - please?" (when i had the 2.9)

Engine sound - yeah different - over it by 1st roundabout, thats me, your  mileage may vary.....

718 - impressive car, newer, different, if I won it, I wouldn't sell it - 718s - OMFG - I REALLY hope that 6cyl n/a nostalgia drives down the price because i really want a 718s - it doesn't sound as emotive - and I really don't care, not even a little bit,  but otherwise - jaw dropping performance (especially with the hyperspace button) - and the best looking variant to date.

All of course "IMHO"

And for context - I don't lust after  "raw" and "analogue" - I get people who do, but I had that with bikes for years - I like a little bit of modern and equipped.

As ever - just opinions, and by definition, what I think doesn't mean sh*t - drive lots, buy a nice one of whatever flavour does it for you and drive it like someone else stole it.

 

 

cheers for your opinion most positive one to date  😉  it will be a few test drives i think as far as sound goes ...boxster and cayman drivers have always been pretty thick skin'd ever since       its not a real porsche was first said !!!

[jason90]

9 hours ago, Greenman said:

Have you driven a 718?

what sort of driving do you do/how do you use your car?

How often is your current 987 above 4K revs?

There’s a few on here having gone from 981 to 718 and not regretted it.  There’s also plenty who have a 981 and have tried a 718 with a view to ‘upgrading’ and have stuck with the 981.  There is no right answer it depends what you are after.

I love the power delivery, throttle response and intoxicating sound of the engine over 4K of the 981 so will not be changing to a 718 4 cyl ( and yes I’ve driven lots of miles in them).  
 

w.r.t 718S performance - it seems much quicker than the 981S when driving lazily (tootling etc) but actually pushing on I found little difference between them

driving a SL500 right now as started to slowly die in my kuga ....   and revs have been quite high most of the time as it sounds like a beast when you floor it  lol

 

again i think it will be a few test drives of both  as im not after just power !!  but a bit is good  😉

[CMA]

718 is an overall better car than the 981. I've owned two 981's (manual and PDK) and had four 718's as curtesy cars. Also driven the 718 at Porsche Experience Centre, Silverstone.

718 has power on tap without being worked for. Plant foot, wait for turbo lag, then go. A rapid rate of leptons is reached quickly but with no aural pleasure.

981 has less power, needs to be worked for, up to 4k then off it goes to an amazing aural crescendo around 7500rpm. To me more rewarding and more of an experience. But mine is a weekend car not a daily. I can see the attraction of the 718 as a daily commuter car.

Drive both, drive both hard, drive both on a commute style run and see which ticks your required boxes. Enjoy the hunt

 

 

[jason90]

4 minutes ago, CMA said:

718 is an overall better car than the 981. I've owned two 981's (manual and PDK) and had four 718's as curtesy cars. Also driven the 718 at Porsche Experience Centre, Silverstone.

718 has power on tap without being worked for. Plant foot, wait for turbo lag, then go. A rapid rate of leptons is reached quickly but with no aural pleasure.

981 has less power, needs to be worked for, up to 4k then off it goes to an amazing aural crescendo around 7500rpm. To me more rewarding and more of an experience. But mine is a weekend car not a daily. I can see the attraction of the 718 as a daily commuter car.

Drive both, drive both hard, drive both on a commute style run and see which ticks your required boxes. Enjoy the hunt

 

 

cheers  for that view ,,,, yes a daily car 

[mneil]

718s with performance upgrades has got to be the one, IMHO. Tried the 718s at PEC after it's launch and was VERY impressed; modern"tech" sharper lines, handles just that bit better than the 981 and of course, all that torque! Ok I did find some turbo lag but I did go searching for it!

Unfortunately I had already started the performance upgrades on my 981s: X73 suspension,remap, 200cell sports headers, slightly modified exhaust outlets and BMC air filters.

I now have more low down torque and  better performance than Porsche in their wisdom denied it originally, however at a cost!

If I were in the market for one, it would have to be a pre particulate filter model and with LSD to cope with performance mods, oh and a manual😇.

Have fun with whatever you buy😃.

 

[bandit_287]

I had a 718 GTS as a loan car for the day and it was a really nice car, very fast, handled really well and was a nice drive. It’s up for sale at my local OPC for £67,000. I used to own a 987.2 and that was a lovely car, had it for six years. I bought a 981 Black edition last year and the step up from the 987 is a big one, the step from a 981 to the 718 is not as significant in my opinion. I handed back the GTS and got back into my 981 and I wasn’t disappointed at all. As a contentious issue, the exhaust note on my 981 is so much better than the 718 and both have the PSE, they’re both lovely cars though. 

[jason90]

cpl weeks before money comes through and the amg gts has caught my eye  hahahaha

[Miopyk]

We had a 2.7 987 Manual Boxster for 8 years and currently have a 2.7 PDK 981 Cayman (5 years) and a 2.0 PDK Boxster (1 year).

My opinion is that the 718 is the best of the bunch. It's obviously faster but it also feels more complete as a package, its easy to use as a daily in commuter traffic and as exciting as a 2 seater go kart when you want some fun. 

Some people think the older cars are more fun because they are more anologue but I'm clearly not capable of making that distinction so think they just feel old. The 981 sounds epic with PSE switched on but that's the only advantage I think it has over the 718. I can't sell ours because my wife would kill me as its now her baby.

Like most 718 owners I don't think the sound is bad just different, plus it does everything else so well you soon realise it is the bargain of the Porsche range especially when you know its got similar performance to a 991.1 Carrera and the 981S. Its pretty impressive.

 

 

[mark-yorkshire]

Agree with Miopyk. Have had a 987.2 Cayman, 981 Boxster and a 987.1 Boxster S. I bought a 3000 mile 69 plate Boxster T in October. The performance of the 2.0 is superb - especially in Sport or Sport + mode. Just a shame that the pse is a little lacking in aural delight.

[Pezky]

I went from a manual 987.1S to a 718 with PDK.

Night & day in terms of performance in my opinion. I just have to think about the overtake and it's done.

The flat-6 sounds better when giving it the beans but how often are you going to be driving above 4K revs to keep it in the power/torque band? Anything above 2nd gear and you can say goodbye to your license.

 

[Tbone]

Ive had a 986, 986S, 987S and now a 718GTS (2.0)

Each has been a step up in terms of build Q, handling and general improvement.

It wasnt my intention to geta 718 until the 987S got crashed into. Yes, the sound of the 718 is not a flat 6 - goes without saying, but I like the rumble and coughs from the sports exhaust of the 718. At first the car feels slightly jaded, but thats the 1/2 second turbo lag.Once it gets past that -it just takes off.

 

So, I can comment on the 981, sorry. And In future I may be tempted to a 4.0GTS, who knows. But for now, I am very happy. Car is plenty fast enough and a step over the previous 987S, which was also plenty fast enough.

Good luck.

[bandit_287]

Is your GTS not a 2.5?

[Tbone]

oops yes.

2.5

 

No idea where 2.0 came from....

[Miopyk]

On 12/15/2020 at 8:45 AM, Tbone said:

No idea where 2.0 came from....

I get that comment a lot about mine, it's that fast 😉