986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners - View Single Post - Help! Looking to purchase 99 Boxster and had questions about PPI findings

legume · 07-31-2006, 10:18 PM

Hi guys, newbie/wannabe posting all the way from Vancouver BC.

I'm hoping that you guys can provide some insight as I'm looking to purchase a 99 Boxster from San Diego and have it shipped up to Seattle, then driven onwards to Vancouver BC.

After much searching, I found a decent looking 986 ('99) near San Diego. Relatively low mileage (53K). Newly installed roof

Sport Design wheels

. After some discussion with the dealer, I decided to send the car to a Porsche shop for a pre-purchase inspection (one of the shops recommended by the San Diego Porsche club).

The inspection came back with the following:

1. Vehicle has seat belt fault for driver's side ($336 to fix)
2. Engine has small oil seepage (valve covers, spark plug tubes, RMS) RMS seal kit quoted as $1156 installed. I got a quote for $650 CAD here in Vancouver for this same thing.
3. oil pump o-ring and cam plugs and cap seal (approx $1100 to fix, if desired)
4. starter is making noise ($624 to fix, if desired)
5. left front suspension has been replaced (strut, arm and knuckle)- dealer explained that this was done since suspension was "squeaky"
6. vehicle has been repainted in areas
7. left front headlight is new

Beyond this, everything checked out ok. No evidence of frame damage/serious accidents. The mechanic, who seemed like a pretty good guy, said that most of the repairs (save for the seat belt) are not serious and would be preventative. I interpreted that as being repairs I'll have to make a few year(s) down the line, nothing out of the ordinary for any used car (although Porsche labor isn't cheap), particularly one that is 8 years old.

The dealer came down in price once in pre-inspection, then again in post-inspection so that it's very competitive w/ Blue Book value assessments ($17K). I would be recouping some of the repair costs with the reductions in price.

My question- in your experience, do any of the PPI findings present any red-flags? I know RMS is a big thing in the Porsche world, but it seems that every owner is subject to this risk. I would essentially be buying this car sight-unseen and having it shipped, so I'm quite nervous....

I'd love to hear what you guys think.

07-31-2006, 10:18 PM	#1
legume Registered User Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: canada Posts: 11	Help! Looking to purchase 99 Boxster and had questions about PPI findings Hi guys, newbie/wannabe posting all the way from Vancouver BC. I'm hoping that you guys can provide some insight as I'm looking to purchase a 99 Boxster from San Diego and have it shipped up to Seattle, then driven onwards to Vancouver BC. After much searching, I found a decent looking 986 ('99) near San Diego. Relatively low mileage (53K). Newly installed roof Sport Design wheels . After some discussion with the dealer, I decided to send the car to a Porsche shop for a pre-purchase inspection (one of the shops recommended by the San Diego Porsche club). The inspection came back with the following: 1. Vehicle has seat belt fault for driver's side ($336 to fix) 2. Engine has small oil seepage (valve covers, spark plug tubes, RMS) RMS seal kit quoted as $1156 installed. I got a quote for $650 CAD here in Vancouver for this same thing. 3. oil pump o-ring and cam plugs and cap seal (approx $1100 to fix, if desired) 4. starter is making noise ($624 to fix, if desired) 5. left front suspension has been replaced (strut, arm and knuckle)- dealer explained that this was done since suspension was "squeaky" 6. vehicle has been repainted in areas 7. left front headlight is new Beyond this, everything checked out ok. No evidence of frame damage/serious accidents. The mechanic, who seemed like a pretty good guy, said that most of the repairs (save for the seat belt) are not serious and would be preventative. I interpreted that as being repairs I'll have to make a few year(s) down the line, nothing out of the ordinary for any used car (although Porsche labor isn't cheap), particularly one that is 8 years old. The dealer came down in price once in pre-inspection, then again in post-inspection so that it's very competitive w/ Blue Book value assessments ($17K). I would be recouping some of the repair costs with the reductions in price. My question- in your experience, do any of the PPI findings present any red-flags? I know RMS is a big thing in the Porsche world, but it seems that every owner is subject to this risk. I would essentially be buying this car sight-unseen and having it shipped, so I'm quite nervous.... I'd love to hear what you guys think. Last edited by legume; 07-31-2006 at 10:47 PM.