Planet 9

toro del mar · #1 11-19-2008, 04:31 AM

New Guy here.....Not much of a car guy, I'm a ship captain. Cant help but notice that now is a good time to buy one of these fabulous looking Caymans. I see a few on the used car lots and I'm curious about the difference between Tiptronic and Manual. Obviously one is automatic. What interests me is the reliability of the product. Particularly the engine ,drive train. I believe that the Tiptronic in controlled in such a way as to prevent over reving of the engine when downshifting. Down shift from high to low with a manual at 60mph and that's plenty of revs. My question is...Is it safer to buy a used Cayman fitted with a Tiptronic. ? Forgive me if this question has been answered in other posts. Thanks and nice to read this forum.

Nitro8472 · #2 11-19-2008, 08:40 AM

Welcome to the club, I'd suggest you check the FAQ, they'll help you a lot. Now about it being safer or not, techincally it is, but either way you can get a printout of the revs at the dealer, that should help you decide whether a car's been over-revved or not!

________________________

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A good car will get you from point A to point B. A great car... will just get you into trouble!

**KS-CS** · #3 11-19-2008, 09:33 AM

Welcome aboard skipper!

I bought my Tip used at 14K miles; when I checked the DME for record of over-revs, there weren't any - as one would normally expect in a Tip. As you point out, the Tip computer essentially protects the engine even if you try to downshift to 1st at 100 mph.

As to the longevity and reliability of the drivetrain - I guess that remains to be seen. I am now at about 24K miles and have done 15 or so track days, and a few AX, and have never had any problem with the tranny. The Porsche Tip has been around for a while, so I think that it is pretty durable and reliable. Read the FAQ about buying a used Cayman, get it checked out by a reputable mechanic, then take it out and enjoy it.

**titanic** · #4 11-23-2008, 09:10 PM

It's definitely safe because of the over-rev protection but it's not fast. I believe the manual has almost 2-sec advantage over the tip from 0-160 kmh, and it's really down to the gearbox.