986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners - View Single Post - Help make my base 2001 look like a 2000newerthanthat!

RandallNeighbour · 05-10-2006, 07:16 AM

Scott, I have a 1997 and I have done the following mods to it so far, which makes it look far younger, something around 2002:

3 spoke wheel and airbag
5 speed shift knob out of a 2000 base 996
Techart silver gauge faces and aluminum trim rings
clear side markers
litronics and clear corners
red and clear tail lamps
rear storage box with speakers
8-way seats out of a 2002 996

I'd say I've dropped nearly 5k into these mods and I doubt I'd get a penny on the dollar for them when selling the car. But I didn't do it for the sake of resale, I did it because I liked all these features in the newer ones and couldn't afford a $35k Boxster, so I took a $15k boxster and put this into it plus about $4k in repairs over the course of the last two years.

Have I sunk far too much into my old car? Yes! Do I care? No!

I plan to keep this car for a long, long time. Short of outright winning a new boxster (which I attempt to do once a year in a raffle) I have no plans to sell it. So why not fix it up the way I like and enjoy it?

I'll put 18 inch Carreras on it (regardless of the warnings one reads here and there) and have it torn down and repainted one day. I'm also planning to bolt a supercharger on to it.

I guess it all comes down to how long you plan to keep the car and how dedicated you are to owning an aging Porsche with all its expensive repairs and maintenance costs. If this is just "your next car" then don't do a stinking thing to it because you'll be tired of it in a couple of years and sell it, wasting a lot of money on updates.

05-10-2006, 07:16 AM	#5
RandallNeighbour Registered User Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Houston, Texas Posts: 7,243	Scott, I have a 1997 and I have done the following mods to it so far, which makes it look far younger, something around 2002: 3 spoke wheel and airbag 5 speed shift knob out of a 2000 base 996 Techart silver gauge faces and aluminum trim rings clear side markers litronics and clear corners red and clear tail lamps rear storage box with speakers 8-way seats out of a 2002 996 I'd say I've dropped nearly 5k into these mods and I doubt I'd get a penny on the dollar for them when selling the car. But I didn't do it for the sake of resale, I did it because I liked all these features in the newer ones and couldn't afford a $35k Boxster, so I took a $15k boxster and put this into it plus about $4k in repairs over the course of the last two years. Have I sunk far too much into my old car? Yes! Do I care? No! I plan to keep this car for a long, long time. Short of outright winning a new boxster (which I attempt to do once a year in a raffle) I have no plans to sell it. So why not fix it up the way I like and enjoy it? I'll put 18 inch Carreras on it (regardless of the warnings one reads here and there) and have it torn down and repainted one day. I'm also planning to bolt a supercharger on to it. I guess it all comes down to how long you plan to keep the car and how dedicated you are to owning an aging Porsche with all its expensive repairs and maintenance costs. If this is just "your next car" then don't do a stinking thing to it because you'll be tired of it in a couple of years and sell it, wasting a lot of money on updates.