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What to check: Porsche Cayman

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Ranked across all years of the Porsche Cayman, from its own MOT record and from what owners report. Tick it off at the car.

From this model's MOT record

The physical checks its own defect data says are worth your time, most telling first.

Brake pipes underneathFollow the metal brake lines with a torch where they run along the sills and over the rear axle. White crust or flaking metal means they are corroding, and the online MOT history usually shows the same advisory creeping up for years before the fail.Recorded on 1.8% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 1.9%

Bushes and ball jointsDrive slowly over broken tarmac with the windows down and listen for clonks from either end. Back at the car, have someone rock the steering wheel while you rest a hand on each front wheel; play you can feel through the tyre is a worn joint.Recorded on 1.8% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 5.9%

DampersLook for oil misting on the damper body behind each wheel, then push down hard on each corner of the car. It should settle in one bounce. A floaty or crashy ride on the test drive is the same fault felt from the driver's seat.Recorded on 0.7% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 2.3%

LeaksLook at the ground where the car usually stands, then glance under the engine after your test drive. Fresh drips of oil or coolant are the cheapest warning you will ever get about a car.Recorded on 0.5% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 2.0%

Worth doing on any used car

These judge the seller's upkeep rather than the model.

Tyres, all fourCheck the tread across the full width of each tyre, inner edge included, and look for cracking and mismatched brands. A set of decent tyres is £500 or more on most cars, which makes this the easiest money to take off a price. If the pressure warning light is on, budget for sensors too.Recorded on 13.6% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 20.1%

Pads and discsLook through the wheel spokes at the brake disc. A pronounced lip on its outer edge, or a rusty and scored face, means discs and pads are due all round, a few hundred pounds on most cars. A haggling point rather than a reason to walk away.Recorded on 4.5% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 10.1%

Windscreen and wipersScan the glass in daylight for chips, especially in the driver's line of sight where even a small one can fail the MOT. Run the washers and check the wipers clear without smearing.Recorded on 1.5% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 2.0%

Because of what owners report

Drawn from the owner reports rather than the MOT data. These are the model-specific ones.

On a Cayman S, listen for a metallic tick at idle and ask if there's an oil filter you can inspect for metal flecks.Both point to bore scoring on the 3.4, which means a rebuild, not a repair.

On a 2006-2008 car, ask whether the IMS bearing has ever been retrofitted or checked, and look for paperwork.No history either way just means the small risk is still sitting there unresolved.

Get the car up on a ramp and check for oil weeping at the joint between engine and gearbox.A damp bellhousing is the rear main seal starting to go, and fixing it means pulling the gearbox.

Check the coolant level and look for a damp patch on the front of the engine.A slow drip there is the plastic coolant pipe seals, cheap to fix if caught early, worse if ignored.

On a 718, ask for the oil top-up history between services rather than trusting the level today.Losing a quart every 1,000 miles points to AOS or turbo seal wear, and some of these needed a new engine under warranty.

Start a 718 2.0 from cold and listen underneath near the front of the car for a metallic rattle.That's the wastegate actuator corroding, and it only gets worse with age.

Read the full MOT advisory history, not just the pass or fail.The same brake or suspension advisory coming back year after year means it's being ignored, not fixed.

Full Porsche Cayman reliability report