I believe I can be of help to you on this issue. It was my first repair on my 1997 box.
1) Yes. You can buy a used BOXSTER cluster. Just make sure you get the part number for it and call your dealer to insure it will work for your model year.
2) No. It does not "find" your mileage and display it. You'll have to send the speedo to Palo Alto Speedometer (out in CA) to have them reprogram it to your car's mileage. Dealers cannot do this last I checked.
3) I don't think a 5 gauge cluster will work "plug and play" because there doesn't appear to be any wiring for the additional gauges (see my web site for a shot of the backside of a cluster). The other problem you face with a 5 gauge cluster is the cluster dash would have to be swapped out as well. That's gonna be price prohibitive just to get a couple of gauges.
The upside is that if you are patient, you can find a used cluster for your 2.7 with white gauge faces. I see them on Ebay from time to time and they sell for $400 or so. New from the dealership is $1200 or more... depending on the gauge face color.
If you like, you can call Sunset Porsche in Oregon and ask the price for a new cluster... they'll be the cheapest in the nation. Then, you can take the new, unprogrammed cluster (0 miles on it) to your local stealership or an independent mechanic with a PST tool and he'll program it for you and plug in your current mileage.
Hope this helps!
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