986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners - View Single Post - How to make a 2001 Boxster S a Daily Driver?

~jeff · 09-10-2019, 05:03 AM

Hi,

I just posted a long story about a low-mileage 2001 Boxster S that I've been preparing to be a daily driver -- for those with too much time on their hands here it is . . .

So simply, I bought a Boxster with just under 45k miles on it to use as a daily driver for the next four years, and I've put almost 3k miles on it since. My goal is to preemptively deal with anything that could cause the car to fail on the road so I don't have to get towed home.

It's never had the IMS done, but a physical inspection of the oil and the guts of the filter shows no evidence of metal in the oil, and a Blackstone Labs analysis confirms that. For now, I'm not going to worry about the IMS until I have reason to do so, and when I do I'll change the clutch, or I'll replace the IMS when I need to replace the clutch, whichever comes first.

Since I purchased it other than small maintenance items I've either done or had done the following:

Detailed inspection by Jay at The Popular Mechanic
Engine oil change, switched from Mobil One to Motul
Transaxle oil change, also with Motul
Flush and replace brake fluid
Replace the accessory drive belt
Replace AOS
Clean radiators of debris
Replace tires

One concern I do have is that the CV boots are starting to split, and I know I need to deal with those. For those who have had them changed recently, what should I be looking at pricewise? Wayne Dempsey's ten year old 101 Projects book shows it as an $800 job, but I've been quoted twice that and am looking for a reality check.

Another concern is the cooling system; the temperature gauge sits in pretty much the same place all the time, but when i get stuck in heavy traffic on a hot day it starts to creep up above the "normal" position. Even though the coolant is "lifetime" I'm wondering if it's time to flush the cooling system and replace the rubber hoses in the system, and maybe even change the water pump. Heavy traffic is part of my reality, unfortunately, and I want to prepare for it.

For those of you who have used a Boxster in this mileage range as a daily driver what else am I missing? The suspension is tight and appears to be in great shape so I'm not too worried about anything there, although I wonder how many miles/years I can get out of the original factory struts. I also had Jay check the coil packs and spark plugs for miss-fires as a sign of impending failure, and his tools show that there aren't any, so I don't want to change the plugs and coil packs until I have a reason to so.

I welcome any and all advice about how to keep my car on the road and running strong, and appreciate the sharing that goes on in this community.

Thanks!

~j

09-10-2019, 05:03 AM	#1
~jeff Registered User Join Date: May 2019 Posts: 8	How to make a 2001 Boxster S a Daily Driver? Hi, I just posted a long story about a low-mileage 2001 Boxster S that I've been preparing to be a daily driver -- for those with too much time on their hands here it is . . . So simply, I bought a Boxster with just under 45k miles on it to use as a daily driver for the next four years, and I've put almost 3k miles on it since. My goal is to preemptively deal with anything that could cause the car to fail on the road so I don't have to get towed home. It's never had the IMS done, but a physical inspection of the oil and the guts of the filter shows no evidence of metal in the oil, and a Blackstone Labs analysis confirms that. For now, I'm not going to worry about the IMS until I have reason to do so, and when I do I'll change the clutch, or I'll replace the IMS when I need to replace the clutch, whichever comes first. Since I purchased it other than small maintenance items I've either done or had done the following: Detailed inspection by Jay at The Popular Mechanic Engine oil change, switched from Mobil One to Motul Transaxle oil change, also with Motul Flush and replace brake fluid Replace the accessory drive belt Replace AOS Clean radiators of debris Replace tires One concern I do have is that the CV boots are starting to split, and I know I need to deal with those. For those who have had them changed recently, what should I be looking at pricewise? Wayne Dempsey's ten year old 101 Projects book shows it as an $800 job, but I've been quoted twice that and am looking for a reality check. Another concern is the cooling system; the temperature gauge sits in pretty much the same place all the time, but when i get stuck in heavy traffic on a hot day it starts to creep up above the "normal" position. Even though the coolant is "lifetime" I'm wondering if it's time to flush the cooling system and replace the rubber hoses in the system, and maybe even change the water pump. Heavy traffic is part of my reality, unfortunately, and I want to prepare for it. For those of you who have used a Boxster in this mileage range as a daily driver what else am I missing? The suspension is tight and appears to be in great shape so I'm not too worried about anything there, although I wonder how many miles/years I can get out of the original factory struts. I also had Jay check the coil packs and spark plugs for miss-fires as a sign of impending failure, and his tools show that there aren't any, so I don't want to change the plugs and coil packs until I have a reason to so. I welcome any and all advice about how to keep my car on the road and running strong, and appreciate the sharing that goes on in this community. Thanks! ~j