986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners - View Single Post - How do I make this long new (to me) boxster story short.

mikefocke · 06-09-2011, 01:15 PM

even a new car.

Having said that, the risk of an IMS failure is probably 1-2% per year per car. Outweighed by the 20 or so other potential failure modes that could happen. There are people who have 200k+ miles with little trouble, and others where serious replacements were needed before 10k. No way of knowing.

Having owned 2 and been following on all the Boxster forums for years, here is what I'd do.

I'd buy the car and arrange to drive it locally for a day or so at varying speeds to acquaint yourself with the car and to see if there were any out-of-hibernation failures that would crop up in the first few miles out of hibernation. I'd get the oil changed and then begin my trip. I'd have a copy of the AAA towing guide and a list of dealer locations with me (not because I think you'll need them but I'm one who likes to take reasonable and cheap precautions).

As to if you should do the IMS upgrade, I don't know your risk tolerance or ability to financially and emotionally deal with a big failure. But after all you are buying a 10 year old car and not a new econo-box with warranty so you must have some tolerance. How much to spend on preventative maintenance is always a tough question.

Hope you enjoy the new to you car.

06-09-2011, 01:15 PM	#9
mikefocke Registered User Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Sanford NC Posts: 2,551	There are no guarantees with a car even a new car. Having said that, the risk of an IMS failure is probably 1-2% per year per car. Outweighed by the 20 or so other potential failure modes that could happen. There are people who have 200k+ miles with little trouble, and others where serious replacements were needed before 10k. No way of knowing. Having owned 2 and been following on all the Boxster forums for years, here is what I'd do. I'd buy the car and arrange to drive it locally for a day or so at varying speeds to acquaint yourself with the car and to see if there were any out-of-hibernation failures that would crop up in the first few miles out of hibernation. I'd get the oil changed and then begin my trip. I'd have a copy of the AAA towing guide and a list of dealer locations with me (not because I think you'll need them but I'm one who likes to take reasonable and cheap precautions). As to if you should do the IMS upgrade, I don't know your risk tolerance or ability to financially and emotionally deal with a big failure. But after all you are buying a 10 year old car and not a new econo-box with warranty so you must have some tolerance. How much to spend on preventative maintenance is always a tough question. Hope you enjoy the new to you car.