Is it possible to maintain/repair a 987 Boxster for $100/month?

[amcdonal86]

Hi,

I'm thinking of buying a 987 Boxster, and I was wondering if it's possible to maintain and repair the car on a budget of $100/month, assuming I am going to daily drive it 15k miles a year.

That assumes I am going to keep it for 4 years, and buy a low mileage one (<30k miles), so at the end of ownership, it will have 90,000 miles on it.

So, is it possible on $100/month?

[ekam]

That's only $1200 a year, sounds too low of a figure to be honest. It's not a Japanese car and stuff like brake pads & brake rotors are not cheap if they need to be replaced.

Are you going to DIY or are you taking it to a local mechanic? Maybe doable if you DIY but again my summer tires alone is already over that figure.

[tonycarreon]

i've had my '01 for a little over a year, put close to 14k miles on it...

$450 strut mount*
$650 cv boots*
$600 annual maintenance*
$175 headlight assembly connector clip*
$80 spark plugs
$120 fuel filter*
$350 engine mount*
$250 oil changes
$60 serpentine belt
$75 state inspection*
$35 air filters
$200 odds and ends ( license plate bracket, bumper plugs, ipod connector, etc...)
-------
$3045 (* work done at a shop )

if you do your own work then you might be able to get close to that number, but $1200/yr might be cutting it close - plus you'll need tires...

[mikefocke]

My car has been driven about 15k miles since I bought it.

In one set of tires alone I've spent about your yearly budget. A major service (30-60K) costs more than your annual budget. Oil change if you do it yourself is ~$70 in parts. Even if you DIY you use up alost a third of your budget (every3-5k miles)

Both my Acura and Honda maintenance costs over ~ the same number of miles exceed your budget.

A Boxster is a wonderful car. Mine has been wonderfully reliable. But it not cheap to maintain because you want to do things right.

[Quickurt]

The 20k service on my 987 was $825.00 and a set of tires was a little more (Sumatoma HTRZlll)

[gschotland]

$1200/yr will keep you in good shape for tires and oil changes, not much else. If you're going to do basic maintenance yourself, I think ~$2k/yr is a generous figure. Put $175-$200/month away in a reserve fund so it'll be there when you need it. For a low mileage 987 you may very well have a couple of years of not much more tires and oil changes (aka "free lunch").

[amcdonal86]

Edmunds TCO estimates a 2005-2006 ish Boxster (can't remember what year the numbers I have are for) should cost about $123/month in maintenance, and $180/month in repairs, on average, over 5 years at 15k miles a year.

Basically I have about $850/month to play with for my transportation needs. This needs to include car payment, maintenance, insurance, repairs, gas, etc.

Do you think I can afford this car?

I figure in the fall (when convertible season is ending), I can find a 2006 or so 2.7 model (maybe even an S if I'm lucky) for about $25000. I have a $5000 or so car that I will sell, so I will need a loan for about $25k. (Is it hard to get 5 year financing for a used car of that age?)

The monthly breakdown is as follows (assume 15k miles a year, 2005-2006 987 Boxster 2.7, 4 year car loan at 6%):

$470 car payment
$120 insurance
$165 gas

If my budget is $850/month for a car, that leaves me only $95/month for car repairs and maintenance.

However, if I could get a 5 year used car loan, then my car payment would only be $387/month, and that would afford me about $178/month in maintenance and repair costs.

Maybe I should just stick to a late model Miata or something? I had one before. It certainly won't turn as many heads as a Boxster, but I think it's at least 90% as fun as a Boxster, and much cheaper to own and operate.

I had a 944 for a few months. And it was a blast. But I sold it because I got really scared of the transmission going out (among other problems).

[sb01box]

45K miles over 3-1/2 years. Porsche certified used so they did the 60K service before purchase.
my outlay is running at $200 per month. all service done at the dealer, including 90K service.
AOS, coolant overflow tank, a rear bearing, set of rear tires are the big hitters.
oil change every 5K@$250 per.

[tnoice]

If you have $850 a month to spend on your transportation, buy something else and SAVE the difference for when you can truly afford what you want. Last thing you would want to happen is your vehicle breaks and you find yourself WAY over your $120 per month figure. I would suggest, if you want a fun car, buy a honda s2000 or a miata and place the remaining amount in savings. I do love my boxster, and nothing will replace the great feeling your get from it; however, you do need to be prepared for if something breaks without feeling it is going to destroy your budget. If that happens, you will never buy a Porsche again.

[tonycarreon]

or take that 850/mo and save it for 6 months, add that to your 5k you think you can get for the current car and that gives you 10k. you can buy a decent older boxster for 10k cash. no payments. then save the 850/mo for repairs.

[landrovered]

Once your car is paid for you can do a whole lot of fixing for less than the cost of a car payment. Also never finance anything that depreciates, like a car. because you lose twice. Also don't forget that your insurance costs will go up with a Porsche.

[jcb986]

Yes you can, if....the tires are in excellent condition and the car has been maintained. Oil changes are about $120 by the dealer, DIY about $70. Air filter/cabin filter about $40 bucks and a DIY. You will need a set of pads before 60K, Porsche, Padgett high dollars, Mintex pads very reasonable for about $120 for all 4 wheels. Major service at 60K, about $1200 from the dealer, but you can DIY yourself for a couple of $100 bucks. Tires $600 to $800 when they need replacing. Now, what if somethings breaks...you just don't know and I take the attitude...DON'T WORRY, BE HAPPY. The Boxster is an amazing and fun car to drive.

[davemon]

+1 on jcb's appraisal.

A few have mentioned $250 oil changes. Someone trying keep maintainenance on the cheap will do this themselves and have a $75 oil change. Get a Napa Gold filter (IIRC $19) and two 5 qt jugs on Castrol Syntec at Wal Mart ($55 @ ~$27 each).

[Tranlm]

Instead of a 987, why not a 986? It can be your project car, and would cost less. That's what I did. Just a thought.

[tonycarreon]

Originally Posted by davemon

A few have mentioned $250 oil changes.

that $250 was for 3 oil changes i did as a DIY - not one oil change.

[amcdonal86]

Originally Posted by tonycarreon

or take that 850/mo and save it for 6 months, add that to your 5k you think you can get for the current car and that gives you 10k. you can buy a decent older boxster for 10k cash. no payments. then save the 850/mo for repairs.

Well, my current car (Lexus LS400, ZzzzzzzzzzZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzz) costs me about $400/month. So I would only be able to pocket about $450/month.

Neverthemess, saving up $450/month would also be a good way to save up for a bigger downpayment on the 987, but I have other things I'd like to be saving money for. (Perhaps an entrapment ring, oops I mean engagement.)

My current vehicle is also depreciating, but not very fast.

[crod]

Well we need to remember that once the car is in good shape (meaning most major repairs are done) the Boxster is not that expensive at all to maintain.
When I got mine I did a couple things on it:

- Replaced the MAF ($400).
- Bought all rotors/pads (as I know I will have to change them sometime in the next 4-8 weeks - $500).
- Bought a new clutch kit ($400).
- Replaced all 4 tires ($700 with Hankooks V12 - great summer tires).
- Replaced one of the rear toe adjustment bars ($300).
- Replaced the plastic window ($250)

So basically so far I spent around $2500 and I am planning on spending another $700 to get the clutch replaced and the rotors/pads put it (my local mechanic charges $72/hr and worked for Porsche for many years before opening his own shop). When I do the clutch I will of course do the RMS/IMS what may add another $800-$1000. So adding all up and I may be at $4200.

But once this is done I do not expect the car to need anything else in the short term (8-12 months) meaning if I had budgeted $100 a month I am sure I would have $1200 handy after a year to do whatever is required and again, as all the major stuff would be done already, it should be more than enough for my yearly maintenance needs. Note mine is a 2001 S that I got with 35k original miles.
I would budget myself around $200 a month and again, assuming the car is ok and had all major things taken care of before you buy it (what a PPI would show) that number should be good to go.

Problem with Boxsters is they are indeed a box of surprises. You may run then forever with nothing more than regular maintenance or luck may bite you and you end up with an IMS failure that will cost anywhere between $7k to $15k to fix.

If you cannot afford the 'Boxster IMS Lottery' I would say it is not for you.

My 2c.

CR

[amcdonal86]

crod, thanks for the advice. I hadn't quite heard it put that way (if you can't afford the IMS failure, don't buy it).

I am really afraid of something like that happening. Hell, the cost of that failure is almost like the cost of a getting another used Boxster!

[stephen wilson]

How long until your current car is paid off? If you're very worried, and this is to be your only vehicle, I would save for a year or two so it's not such a stretch. That's exactly what I did, put away $425 a month for a year and a half.

Alternately, you could pick up a used Miata to run for a year or two, which should still be cheaper than your current $400/month, and continue saving for a 'Box. Sort of having your cake & eating it too.

[amcdonal86]

Stephen Wilson, that's a great idea (get a Miata temporarily while I save up for a P-car).

My current car is paid off. The $400/month comes from insurance, gas and maintenance/repairs.