Bottom line to it (despite my joking post no. 4) is that I wouldn't buy a Boxster that's out of warranty or soon to go out of warranty unless I could stroke a check for a new motor. It happens. I believe it's much more often than with many makes of cars, and definitely more expensive. I would make sure I knew what I was going to do if the motor went from an IMS and I was out of warranty. Would I pay $12k to get another from PCNA? Would I have a rebuild by one of the guys who's doing that now? Would I have to just park the car because I couldn't afford to fix it? What would I do? It's a question I wouldn't ask if I were buying a Miata because the motor costs about $2000, and is very unlikely to let go. I bought my car with 4 years of warranty, so I never considered the question. It expired in December '08, so now I'm on my own dime. If it happens it happens. But if I couldn't write a check for the repair I would be a little worried. In fact, I'd be looking at selling, probably. Not because I THINK it's going to happen, but just the idea that I might get stuck with a problem that's hard to solve.
I'm really writing all this as a reality check for the people who are considering the raft of Boxsters now available for under $15k. It seems like a screaming bargain to those of us who paid a lot more for one, but I fear that many people in that price range will just barely be able to afford the $13k for the car, and if they think, "Wow! I could get a 99 Boxster for my bread or a 2006 Miata. Hmmm, Boxster is the clear choice," I would urge them to think about the questions I have posed above.
For many other people, a $13,000 Boxster is a 3rd or 4th car and a blown motor would be a PITA, but not a catastrophe. Just the sort of thing you would have to hide from your wife, telling her you loaned the car to your best friend for a couple of weeks or something, then grumbling about "the hit we took in the market this week because of those damn Wall Street pirates!!!"
Matt