987 to 718 - First Impressions

[mikeg]

Sold my 987.2 S and bought a beautiful Guards Red 718 Cayman S (2017) with a manual box after a fruitless search for the right 981.

First Impressions ....... why did I wait so long to get such a fantastic car !! If the 987 was brilliant I can only describe the 718 as phenomenal. Handling is razor sharp, power is more than any sane person would ever need and superb gear change. The lines of the car are really growing on me and, next to my 987, it looked very modern.

Yes, the sound is different but again is growing on me, and the noise level in the car is a lot better after I disabled the Sound Actuator.

Out of the three generations, 987, 981 and 718 which would I choose ? - the answer would be the 718 in an instant .....

 

[Silversword]

Cannot fault that assessment. May it give you many happy miles of motoring.

 

[Brian_Innes]

Mike,

A great choice. Enjoy getting to know your car.

Brian

 

[Dylan1]

Having owned 987s and 981GTS I agree the 981 is a huge step up from the 987

having only had a week with a 718S I’m not sure it’s such a huge step up from the 981S

 

[Peter_Bull]

Can I ask what you mean by disabling the Sound Actuator?

 

[AndrewCS]

Can I ask what you mean by disabling the Sound Actuator?

Peter ... I was also `wondering` on that, found .... https://www.718forum.com/threads/sound-actuator-question.10649/

 

[Motorhead]

Chaps,

The 'Sound Aktuator' is a device which has been in use for some time on VAG vehicles which seems to have made its way into the Porsche 4-cylinder mid-engined cars.

It's a very crude device; just a small vibrator attached to the engine bulkhead designed to supplement the engine's sound, although many VW/VAG owners choose to disconnect it. I think quite a few 718 owners are following suit.!

A number of manufacturers use much more sophisticated methods to augment interior noise by playing sound through the ICE system. BMW and Jaguar have been doing this for a number of years, the latter much more successfully in my opinion, and no-one seems to complain about Jag in-car sound. They were a very early adopter of sound quality techniques, which should stand them in good stead as we move into the electric vehicle era.

Jeff

 

[mikeg]

Re disabling the Sound Actuator, the simplest way is to remove the 7.5A fuse in slot No 10 from the rear offside fuse box. Guide here www.718forum.com/threads/viffermikes-super-duper-soundaktor-disconnection-guide.16592/page-4#post-148474 if you need it. I found its a great improvement.

 

[Peter_Bull]

Can I ask what you mean by disabling the Sound Actuator?

Peter ... I was also `wondering` on that, found .... https://www.718forum.com/threads/sound-actuator-question.10649/

Thanks for the info - much appreciated. Never even thought that a speaker was behind the bulkhead, but now I can understand where awful sound is originating and may be contributing to my dismal experience with the 718.

I would like to try out one that has been deactivated.

 

[Motorhead]

Re disabling the Sound Actuator, the simplest way is to remove the 7.5A fuse in slot No 10 from the rear offside fuse box. Guide here www.718forum.com/threads/viffermikes-super-duper-soundaktor-disconnection-guide.16592/page-4#post-148474 if you need it. I found its a great improvement.

Mike,

Removing the fuse is much simpler than physically deactivating the device but I'd add a note of caution that I'd be inclined to ensure that it doesn't have an untoward effect upon the complex CANbus electrical system in these cars.

Jeff

 

[AndrewCS]

Can I ask what you mean by disabling the Sound Actuator?

Peter ... I was also `wondering` on that, found .... https://www.718forum.com/threads/sound-actuator-question.10649/

Thanks for the info - much appreciated. Never even thought that a speaker was behind the bulkhead, but now I can understand where awful sound is originating and may be contributing to my dismal experience with the 718.

I would like to try out one that has been deactivated.

Me too ... and having driven at least six versions over the past three years and finding the `sound` different in almost each one , this may explain it ?

The early (2016) cars were very `engine mechanical` biased, in 2017 they were less so and the sports exhaust made hardly any difference. The latest cars are an even better refinement.

 

[mikeg]

Jeff,

Its been out for two months now and not had any alerts or notifications but I was aware of that potential issue and keeping a look out.

Peter,

The first time I 'tested' this was a loan car for a day from an OPC - morning with the fuse in and the afternoon without, as it literally is a 60 second task. I was very surprised at the difference it made.

 

[PHB1969]

Possible in car video of on and off?

 

[carnaby35]

Hi Mike, couldnt agree more. Did exactly the same swap last week albeit in Boxster form. The 718 just eclipses the 987s I had, as nice as it was!!