Help me in my decision! - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

DerrickCaracter · 10-06-2010, 08:22 PM

I think im in love with

this car. The thing that sticks out the most to me is that it has 3 owners, and that the last owner leased the car. From my own experience, when someone leases a car, they drive the HELL out of it.

But I love everything about the car, the color, the auto transmission, the year/mileage.

Is there anything that anybody sees that would deter me from getting this car?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250705534910&fromMakeTrack=true&ssPageName=VIP:watchlink:top:en

Bruce Wayne · 10-06-2010, 11:27 PM

it looks fairly clean, there doesnt seem to much peppering of the nose from the ubiquitous stone chips, so check for any overspray and that if it has been painted on the front (not unusual - here in the UK, it's getting on for normal practices for dealers to paint the front bumper before putting it on the forecourt). also the rotors look, from the picture to be a little bit scored. no biggie, but bear in mind they may need doing.

also the wind deflector and baffles behind the seats are not in the picture, if the mounts are there for the center defelctor, you may want to replace it, or if it doesnt bother you, you may not.

tough to tell from the pics but it 'looks' straight and if the car fax reports check out ok, i'd put it in the mix for consideration for sure.

the point to remember 'caveat emptor'

good luck and let us know ..

eightsandaces · 10-07-2010, 01:54 AM

If it were me and I desired an automatic, I'd wait, save and buy a PDK. Tiptronic is heavy and slower than a manual on the same vintage. On the plus side, even if it has been driven hard at least it was not done by someone who can't shift right.

mikefocke · 10-07-2010, 04:08 AM

the car was driven hard, TIP may be bought for just the opposite reasons.

Seems well equipped, cant tell about the PSM/PASM and lacks Litronics but overall condition looks good from pictures. Get a PPI.

VGM911 · 10-07-2010, 04:57 AM

Didn't the '03 S have a split/dual exhaust pipe?

Highlow · 10-07-2010, 05:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VGM911

Didn't the '03 S have a split/dual exhaust pipe?

+1

Very pretty car though

jcb986 · 10-07-2010, 05:28 AM

If you bid or buy it must stimpulated that the deal cannot be completed until you inspect and drive the car. Be sure to have them put it on a lift and inspect the under carriage and engine. My car was a 1 owner and it was leased the entire 9 years they had it. Also, I have a TIP with the 3.2 and I am glad I do...it's such a pleasure to drive and enjoy. This car is very close to a 60K maintenance which at a dealer cost about $1200. Mine has nearly 70K on the clock now with no problems.

Johnny Danger · 10-07-2010, 07:01 AM

Buying a vehicle on eBay sight unseen, would be like purchasing a "mail order" bride. Unless you know exactly what you're getting into, it can be a roll of the dice . Personally, I would only consider a vehicle that I could inspect firsthand. This is really the only way one can truly assess a vehicle for its physical condition, and at the same time, ascertain important information regarding owner history, maintenance and repair records ect ... Last time I did a search on sites like AutoTrader and Cars.com, I discovered what appeared to be numerous low mileage boxsters in excellent condition. These vehicles were in the hands of "actual" owners or dealers that allowed for a thorough on scene inspection, along with the opportunity to test drive the vehicle.

JD
p.s. However, I fully support your decision to purchase a yellow boxster .

DerrickCaracter · 10-07-2010, 10:30 AM

here is the vehicle CARFAX report. It qualifies for the CARFAX Buyback Guarantee.
http://www.carfax.com/VehicleHistory/p/Report.cfx?partner=ECL_0&vin=WP0CB29863U661749>#null

Burg Boxster · 10-07-2010, 11:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DerrickCaracter

here is the vehicle CARFAX report. It qualifies for the CARFAX Buyback Guarantee.
http://www.carfax.com/VehicleHistory/p/Report.cfx?partner=ECL_0&vin=WP0CB29863U661749>#null

LOL - yeah, that and $10 will get you a mocha-caramel-iced-java-frappa-whatever at Starbucks. You best read the *, and the **, and the ***, and the ****, and the *****, etc. with that offer

Good luck in your search - there are many many many Boxsters (even SY) out there to choose from. Take you time and get the right one for you after carefully inspecting. There were over 200k 986 Boxsters produced.

DerrickCaracter · 10-07-2010, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Burg Boxster

LOL - yeah, that and $10 will get you a mocha-caramel-iced-java-frappa-whatever at Starbucks. You best read the *, and the **, and the ***, and the ****, and the *****, etc. with that offer

Good luck in your search - there are many many many Boxsters (even SY) out there to choose from. Take you time and get the right one for you after carefully inspecting. There were over 200k 986 Boxsters produced.

<------ is confused

Gforrest2 · 10-07-2010, 11:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Johnny Danger

Buying a vehicle on eBay sight unseen, would be like purchasing a "mail order" bride. Unless you know exactly what you're getting into, it can be a roll of the dice .

Agree, but great deals can be had with patience and luck. My last 4 vehicles were Ebay purchases, including a salvaged titled truck that drove and looked like new. So far, my $12,507 '03 Ebay Boxster has been working great. I did have to change the motor mount and just got new tires, but even so, I'm still in it for thousands less than what it would have cost me locally. And picking it up (opposed to having it delivered) allowed for a cool road trip to boot.

Johnny Danger · 10-07-2010, 01:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Burg Boxster

LOL - yeah, that and $10 will get you a mocha-caramel-iced-java-frappa-whatever at Starbucks. You best read the *, and the **, and the ***, and the ****, and the *****, etc. with that offer

Good luck in your search - there are many many many Boxsters (even SY) out there to choose from. Take you time and get the right one for you after carefully inspecting. There were over 200k 986 Boxsters produced.

Ditto !!!!!

jcb986 · 10-07-2010, 03:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gforrest2

Agree, but great deals can be had with patience and luck. My last 4 vehicles were Ebay purchases, including a salvaged titled truck that drove and looked like new. So far, my $12,507 '03 Ebay Boxster has been working great. I did have to change the motor mount and just got new tires, but even so, I'm still in it for thousands less than what it would have cost me locally. And picking it up (opposed to having it delivered) allowed for a cool road trip to boot.

$12,507 is hard to believe for an 03...what was the mileage on it and condition. The one this guy is looking at is priced reasonable but he might be able to shave a grand off. It's definitely a buyers market.

Burg Boxster · 10-07-2010, 04:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DerrickCaracter

<------ is confused

What per se am I supposedly confused about?

CarFax, let alone their "Buy Back" bull******************** isn't worth the paper it's printed on or PC screen it's viewed on. Too many variables and their "out" always is 'It wasn't reported to us'. Note that's not 'it didn't happen', or 'we didn't find', it's quite simply 'it wasn't reported to us'. In other words, all they do really is gather information that IS reported to them... not they found by really searching

That's not to say it can't be useful, just rather don't rely upon it. In fact, if you ever see anything bad reported on a CarFax, you should run like H3LL the other direction b/c of how bad their reporting is (except for title / # of owner info).

Good luck in your search

Gforrest2 · 10-07-2010, 04:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jcb986

$12,507 is hard to believe for an 03...what was the mileage on it and condition. The one this guy is looking at is priced reasonable but he might be able to shave a grand off. It's definitely a buyers market.

Well, I'll admit it did have a lot of miles on it, 79k. But it was in very good condition for that many miles, one small door ding on the rear fender, small dent in the bottom of the front spoiler, and the usual rock chips on the nose. Plus it came with a few extras, windscreen, OEM Speedster humps, 18" rims, cover, both keys, owner's manual and what looks like all service records. From these records, it looks like a lot of work was done before the warranty ran out, water pump, window regulator, even the remote receiver for the key. Couldn't do a PPI so I did a post PPI at the local dealer and it checked out okay. Brakes good, electronic diagnosis good, coolant system, belts. They only thing they recommneded was flushing the brake fluid and said one CV boot was starting to throw a little grease and probably should be replaced in the next year.

I don't know what they are actually selling for, but up here, the asking price for an '03 base is $15-$20k.

vipola · 10-08-2010, 05:40 AM

I guess the price decided for you.. it ended just under 19k.. :P

Gforrest2 · 10-08-2010, 03:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vipola

I guess the price decided for you.. it ended just under 19k.. :P

But it didn't sell.

If you do a "completed auctions" search, you'll see that about 95% of the vehicles don't sell. People coming to Ebay are looking for bargains, and although out there, they are few and far between.

ekam · 10-08-2010, 04:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VGM911

Didn't the '03 S have a split/dual exhaust pipe?

Stuff like this would totally bother me, the seller does not mention why it's changed because it'll fool 99% of the people who doesn't know enough about boxsters.

And I would pass on any boxster without Litronics, because you'll want it later and it's going to cost you.

Carfax is also a waste of time IMO, there are so many instances where cars got into accident, repaired at a small bodyshop and was never reported.

DerrickCaracter · 10-08-2010, 04:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gforrest2

But it didn't sell.

If you do a "completed auctions" search, you'll see that about 95% of the vehicles don't sell. People coming to Ebay are looking for bargains, and although out there, they are few and far between.

I'm not looking for a bargain. I just have a very particular car in mind that I want, and the only way I will ever find it is a nationwide search. Ebay and Cars.com are the 2 sources that I'm using at the moment.

Could someone suggest some more?