Its funny you should mention that...I actually had to special order my E320 without a sunroof....I perferred the head room. It makes a huge difference. The dealer fought me all the way saying it was crazy and no one orders a car without a sunroof and you won't be able to sell it. I did anyway and have no regrets.

As far as convertibles go, they could be cool to own maybe for the seattle summers, but I am not a big fan on how it changes the car's lines. In addition, as many state, already...its just more about never getting the exact right conditions to be comfortable. Just yesterday, we saw a guy driving a Bentley Continental Convertible with the top down and the temp was close to 20F. We were all laughing our a_s off. This guy obviously was struggling finding a good time to use it.

 

In ost areas it's the winter and no one buying cabs in winter. Summer rolls around, cabs will be sold.

 

I use a 997.2 C4S Cab as my DD. Here around Houston, November through April is top-down season. With a heated steering wheel and heated/cooled seats, it's comfortable to drive in any weather condition. Even with the top up, there's plenty of headroom (I'm tall) and unlike other convertibles there's no claustrophobic feeling. Noise levels are not much worse than a hardtop - I can easily hold good phone conversations via PCM/BT even at highway+ speeds. Love the car!

 

I'm surprised more cab owners haven't chimed in here. My first Porsche was a cab, then after a year I moved to a Targa. While I loved the Targa, I missed the cab, and 1 1/2 years later was back in a cab again. Mine is my daily driver here in So Cal, and I absolutely love it either top up or down.

I doubt if anyone but an experienced track person would notice the difference in handling. These cars are so well made, there is virtually no body flex even in the cabs. I agree with one of the above comments, that cabs typically don't sell too well in winter months, for obvious reasons. I bought my current one in Denver in January. Accordingly, I managed to negotiate a fantastic deal.

Good luck.

 

u'll have to see the Dealer's order and sales stmt to determine the actual reason for the large inventory of the cab left on the lot..

but usually, dealers pre-order what the customers want to buy.. however, with the economy the way it is.. plus now being the winter months, i can pretty much assume the cause..

although i love my cab, i dont think the rigidity is comparable to the Pcar with an actual roof (sorry ken)... when i exit my driveway at an angle, i can definitely feel the body flex.

 

No. No. ( Had to put in a minimum of 4 characters, hence my repeating myself. )

 

That's a very common view taken by Cayman owners as well (when comparing Cayman to Boxster). The lines are different and the hard top gives the car a better line (opinions of Cayman owners) and resulting "better" look. Plus, it's easier to add spoilers/wings to the coupe to make it look sportier (more race car like).
I've talked to hard top owners who wish they had gone with a soft top.

 

I read the thread and came back to the original question . I have noticed that in regions like the northeast and at certain times of the year like spring it is nearly impossible to find a cab in inventory. Yet in places like Florida and So Cal they are plentiful all year long and often times one might see an over supply .

I can start listing my guesses as to why but it would veer away from the question.

 

Question for Cab owners. How long before the top needs to be replaced? Or do most trade in before that is a problem?

 

That's a tough question for them to answer . Parked indoors or outdoors ? Climate ? Region? Construction? Landscape ?
A lot of factors contribute to wear and tear.

 

That's true, let's say garaged at night, driven a few days a week in sunny climate. Driven with the top down mostly. How do you guys store the car at night? Top up or down?

I had a S2000 Honda since 2002 the top is mostly okay except for a bur in the frame common to Honda's where a tear pops up on the passenger side.

On the fence right now which direction to put my order in for a Turbo. We sat in one and my poor little 9 year old looked all pushed forward in the back seat in the cab.

 

i guess its cool that there is lots of supply here where i live. couldnt hurt me, so i dont mind.

what are your guesses for why the over supply?

 

My guess --

Cold --
A person who lives in cold climate sees the snow melt, the sun pop out (in spring) and many want the car that they waited for all winter . In my opinion .. it's an impulsive shopper who blends wanting the dream car along with seeing the sun . The problem is taht in general the dealerships have less Cabs in inventory (for all those cold months) .
The shopper rushes to the dealership and with limited supply the price goes up and ideal optioned cars are scarce .

Warm --
Those in warm climate on the other hand one can have sun anytime . a person doesn't need to pay 10K extra to sunbathe when he can go to the beach for free . The sun isn't worth the higher pricetag, lower performance , potential of rain leak , poor acoustics to sit baking in the sunlight on his way to work .

Opinion --
The bottom line is the the coupe gets the a lot of demand in the region where cabs would be viwed as ideal. Now it's true that there are some very loyal cab owners in sunny regions too but not enough to sell all those nicely optioned cars which aren't sold.

 

Just went from a 997TT cab to a coupe, live in New England, like the lines of the coupe much better, more usable space in back seat and less road noise on the highway. Just found it to hot mid day and ended up using it mostly at night.
Durability wise the Porsche soft top is excellent, only drawback I have seen is the lighter
color tops seem to get a mold like stain as they get older, so black or dark blue seem best.

 

Confusing the issue is personal preference. Each group will preach the advantages of their choice--which nicely reinforces their choices.

Cabs have the same top speed; only slower by .2 sec to 60; have been reported as more fun at the track. Porsche system has no systematic weaknesses; top is up in 20 seconds at up to 25mph (maybe higher now)--and then you have your regular a/c, etc., to protect you from the elements.

I like the lines of a softtop--makes the cars look more like the original speedsters. Top down--it's a completely different car. If I lived near a major, city center--I don't think I'd own a cab. (You're trying to escape what's around you--not be in touch with it.) But nice evenings, neighborhoods and scenic roads--there's nothing like a cab.

Just a personal choice. I've had hardtops & softtops. I like 'em both. They're just different.