986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners - View Single Post - Questions from a prospective Boxster owner

Finallygottaporsche · 04-05-2006, 03:58 PM

i tried to answer all your questions to the best of my ability. im sure someone will say that im wrong about something, but i think most of this is right on.

1. late 98's / early 99's had a defect in the casting process of the block. the blocks were porous, so porsche installed cylinder liners to fix the problem. some of these liners have come loose leading to catastrophic engine failure. many people will say that most of these effected engines how now been replaced. As far as RMS, there is some chance of RMS problems in every boxster and watercooled 911 except the 911 turbo, gt3, and gt2. these cars use a different block.

2. No. There is no issue with Lokasil liners. the issue was with the engines mentioned above.

3. the mechanicals and cables of the top were upgraded on the 2000 model year. these have far fewer probs. 97-99 have more top probs. top problems are very expensive at the dealer. they would charge you 700.00 just to replace stretched cables. the cables are about 30 bucks. labor is high at the dealer. as far as condition, its all reletive to care. Now 2003 and newer will have a glass rear window.

4. every 15k miles or one year. the 15k service is oil change, pollen filter, air filter, and a supposed checklist that the techs go through. at a dealer this can easily be over 700.00. this is sometimes referred to the minor service. the major service is the same plus spark plugs, bleed the brakes, etc. that can easily cost 900.00 at a dealer. yes, you are right- many people unload these cars cause they dont want to pay for a scheduled service and they know the car is near needing a brake job too or some other major service.

5. you can easily change your air filter, oil and filter, spark plugs, and maybe the clutch. you have to lift the car to do the oil change or sparkplugs. the air filter can be done from inside the car. if you are mechanically inclined you can do the clutch, but it may be a good idea to let someone else do it and check and replace the RMS at the same time.

6. not sure about this, but porsche sells a car seat that when buckled in will turn off the airbag. everyone i know has let the dealer do this.

7. i do not think an "s" will cost much more to maintain at all. parts for break jobs may be a little more.

8. i dont think you can disable abs. car has excellent brakes. there is a weird feeling under extremely hard braking though

9. no the wheel doesnt tilt

10. the drivers side seat bolster usually shows alot of wear on older cars.

11. because....... there is no subsitute, thats why!

i really reccomend that you stay away from 5-6 year old cars that have only logged a few thousand miles per year. i would look at year 2000 and higher. a car with high mileage and a good service history could be a safer bet. also, if you can budget it find a 2003 with some warranty left. a high mileage 2003 with 15 months waranty left is better than a 99 with 15K miles. if you buy a 99 it may or may not have recieved a new engine. sometimes this can be hard to find out. porsche dealers will generally only tell you if the car has been serviced at their dealer. the best bet is a very clean car with a stack of reciepts for all service.

04-05-2006, 03:58 PM	#5
Finallygottaporsche Registered User Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 81	i tried to answer all your questions to the best of my ability. im sure someone will say that im wrong about something, but i think most of this is right on. 1. late 98's / early 99's had a defect in the casting process of the block. the blocks were porous, so porsche installed cylinder liners to fix the problem. some of these liners have come loose leading to catastrophic engine failure. many people will say that most of these effected engines how now been replaced. As far as RMS, there is some chance of RMS problems in every boxster and watercooled 911 except the 911 turbo, gt3, and gt2. these cars use a different block. 2. No. There is no issue with Lokasil liners. the issue was with the engines mentioned above. 3. the mechanicals and cables of the top were upgraded on the 2000 model year. these have far fewer probs. 97-99 have more top probs. top problems are very expensive at the dealer. they would charge you 700.00 just to replace stretched cables. the cables are about 30 bucks. labor is high at the dealer. as far as condition, its all reletive to care. Now 2003 and newer will have a glass rear window. 4. every 15k miles or one year. the 15k service is oil change, pollen filter, air filter, and a supposed checklist that the techs go through. at a dealer this can easily be over 700.00. this is sometimes referred to the minor service. the major service is the same plus spark plugs, bleed the brakes, etc. that can easily cost 900.00 at a dealer. yes, you are right- many people unload these cars cause they dont want to pay for a scheduled service and they know the car is near needing a brake job too or some other major service. 5. you can easily change your air filter, oil and filter, spark plugs, and maybe the clutch. you have to lift the car to do the oil change or sparkplugs. the air filter can be done from inside the car. if you are mechanically inclined you can do the clutch, but it may be a good idea to let someone else do it and check and replace the RMS at the same time. 6. not sure about this, but porsche sells a car seat that when buckled in will turn off the airbag. everyone i know has let the dealer do this. 7. i do not think an "s" will cost much more to maintain at all. parts for break jobs may be a little more. 8. i dont think you can disable abs. car has excellent brakes. there is a weird feeling under extremely hard braking though 9. no the wheel doesnt tilt 10. the drivers side seat bolster usually shows alot of wear on older cars. 11. because....... there is no subsitute, thats why! i really reccomend that you stay away from 5-6 year old cars that have only logged a few thousand miles per year. i would look at year 2000 and higher. a car with high mileage and a good service history could be a safer bet. also, if you can budget it find a 2003 with some warranty left. a high mileage 2003 with 15 months waranty left is better than a 99 with 15K miles. if you buy a 99 it may or may not have recieved a new engine. sometimes this can be hard to find out. porsche dealers will generally only tell you if the car has been serviced at their dealer. the best bet is a very clean car with a stack of reciepts for all service.