[BigShow]

I like Pefectlap’s Reply. Here’s my buyer’s perspective. First I’m a newb, the only thing I know about Porches cars is what I’m reading online, and that over the last two to three weeks, love the 986 Forum.

I’m researching Boxsters, Caymans, and I’m starting to look at 911s. I think that actually I’m 6 to 12 months away from buying. Locally the selection looks thin, better deals on the East Coast; Texas, the South, and the West Coast are just too far away.

The few Boxsters that I’ve seen are 1999 and 2000 models, most had about 60,000 miles and none looked very good. I’m looking at a 1999 911 tomorrow. These Boxsters were in dealer lots, one in a Porsche dealer lot. The Porsche Dealer wanted a lot more for a car with 30,000 more miles than the others.

There’s virtually no vehicle history for these cars. There’s no telling what has or hasn’t been done, IMS, RMS, brakes, you name it. It’s like I’m buying a ticking wallet bomb. My perception is that I’m contemplating buying a money pit, but I still want one (I sold my boat so I know what it’s like).

I’m starting to think that buying a used Porsche, an older one, from a dealer is about the worst decision you can make and buying from a private owner, an informed one, is a much better option, worth more to me. The KBB or Edmunds will show higher prices at the dealer and lower at the private seller/owner, I think that for a Boxster that’s backwards. I doubt dealers are going to offer a warrantee on a 14 year old car.

When (or if) I do buy a Porsche I’m going to use the lack of information, and the ticking time bomb IMS, as heavy leveraging tools to beat down the price. I’m further going to use the PPI results to try beat down the price more.

So, what can you do to make your Box stand out to a buyer like me? I don’t need to know that it has standard equipment, I don’t want to sort through that, it hides what’s unique. I want to know in order of preference:
Asking price
Mileage
Model year
Base or S
No kidding Great/Good/Fair/Poor condition assessment (I‘ll do a PPI so be accurate)
Private/Porsche Dealer/Major Dealer/Joe’s around the corner dealer
Available service records and by who
IMS replaced
RMS replaced
Miles on tires
Miles on brakes
Miles on rotors
Other replaced parts
Other enhancements like Audio, Radar detector
I really don’t want a car that someone has tweaked for more power

I was thinking of developing a buyer’s check list. Actually started one. But I’m thinking that I’ll pay someone to do a PPI. So If I get emotionally attached to a car the PPI should be the tool to take out the emotion.

If I can’t find something that I like in a year I’ll look hard at the new I4/V6/GT Mustang and the GTI. I’ve ruled out Camaro, Tobaru, and Z370. Corvettes, Audis, and BMWs don’t appeal to me.