Just bought a boxster for 6k

[enjoikr3w]

I'm still recovering from the surprise shock of becoming a porsche owner. I recently bought a 2002 boxster with 80k miles for $6k from an auction. The car is in great shape, very clean and runs normally as far as I could tell (I'm going to have to get use to the speed ). The only problems that I have come across is the top not working. From inspection it looks like I need to replace two bars on each side of the top to make it start working. The first gear also has a tendency to pop out if I do not shift properly but I have learned to avoid it. Rear tires need to be replaced since theres a lot of wear on the inside of the wheel (I'm assuming it needs an alignment). What do you guys think? Too good to be true? Disaster waiting to happen?

*Edit*
BTW I love this site. I have a feeling I'm going to be spending a lot of time here!

[Jake D]

Sounds like you'll have to work out some demons which could be pretty costly, but at that price if it runs and drives, then its almost a throw away if something major goes wrong.

[SeanZ4]

What were the circumstances of that sale? Keep in mind there is nothing more expensive than a cheap Porsche. On the other hand about 15 years ago I bought a basically brand new Ninja zx6 for $2k at a seized property drug auction. It was the real deal. I rode that bike for a couple of years then turned it for $4500. That was a really rare, rare situation. This is a great forum with lots of information that will help you out. Good luck!

sean

[enjoikr3w]

The porsche was brought to the auction by a local luxury car dealer. I have the option to return it within 7 days if I discover any costly repairs. Basically, I have a feeling that this porsche slipped under the radar during the auction and I got very lucky.

The auctioneer started the bidding at 13k and went incrementally lower till 10k. There wasn't really a crowd around the car for some reason and the auctioneer got frustrated/confused as to why nobody was bidding and jumped down to 5k. I made a casual bid just for fun thinking I'm waisting my time. I battled with another bidder until 6k but he gave up since he wasnt a serious buyer and was there for something else. SOLD. The auctioneer had a dumbfounded look and said something like "Well I cant believe that we just sold a porsche... for 6k everybody."

I'm still trying not to get too attached to this car and I'm in the process of giving the engine a good look myself before the 7 days run expire. I do not have experience with porsches but I have worked on many other cars (honda, toyota, benz...)

[Soetekouw]

Congratulations on your 'new' purchase. And you are correct, this forum does provide a wealth of information and there are a bunch of helpful and knowledgeable members. But..........as JakeD and SeanZ4 have also indicated, it seems that you will have some repairs coming up and will have to set up a budget to maintain that Boxster.

A Porsche is not for the faint of heart, nor for those who don't have a bucket full of money. IMHO, I recommend that you have the vehicle checked out by your Porsche mechanic. Unless the previous owner has already done so, at 80K miles, some areas that you may want to look into, are:

1. Oil/filter change (every 5k miles)
2. Spark plugs and ignition coilsl replacement (at 60K miles).
3. Brake fluid replacement (every 2 years)
4. Transmission fluid replacement (automatic) (at 60K miles)
5. Brake pads
6. IMS/RMS repair
7. Water pump/thermostat replacement (2-4 years is recommended)
8. Battery
9. Belt replacement (at 60K)
10. Air Filter / Cabin Air Filter replacement (every 15K)
11. Wiper blades
12. Your top (since you mentioned it)
13. The dreaded quick wearing out tires (every 15K miles)

* some of the intervals may not be iaw the manual, but this is what I would do.

The above services will run you approximately what you paid for your car.

But, as JakeD mentioned, for as little as you have invested in the car, enjoy it while it drives and runs, and when something major goes wrong, it is basically a throw away.

[enjoikr3w]

Thanks for the reply everyone. When we bought the car, we paid extra to have the car inspected by a third party from the auction for major things such as frame damage, tranny issues, etc. The car came back clean. However, I'm still skeptical of their assessment since I do not know how much experience they have with porsches.

We're planning on opening the engine up to check the IMS/RMS issues everyone is talking about. While we are down there we're going to change the clutch, O2 sensors and spark plugs. We're gonna give the tranny a good look too. This morning the car was misfiring while the engine was still cold but the problem went away after it warmed up a little. I'm going to have to do a bit of research on that. Are there any other pressing issues I should be aware of?

[tonycarreon]

motor mount

[Brucelee]

The first gear certainly could be a shift linkage issue. Find someone who knows their stuff and won't con you on needing a new tranny.

Good luck and post some pix.

[WhipE350]

Originally Posted by enjoikr3w

*Edit*
BTW I love this site. I have a feeling I'm going to be spending a lot of time here!

Not as much as you will on the car lol! No really if like me you'll enjoy every minute. You have pictures of the car? Does it seem like it was taken care of? Maybe a carfax or one of the reporting places will help you find where it was serviced. A lot of the time a car like this was serviced very well for most of it's life, anyone that bought that porsche new had the 55k to dish out so it is possible it had some pampered years. Are the front rotors pretty much gone? How are the front struts? Does the brake fluid look clean? Any oil burn off after sitting for a while and then starting? You could change the gas filter too and take the throttle body apart and see how clean/ dirty it is, also look for oil build up or any shiny flakes in there. It isn't a very old car hope you found a great one!

[papasmurf]

I live in central texas but if you are in austin, DFW, houston area, there are usually people on this board or one of the other boxster forums that have a great deal of knowledge and do not mind helping someone out with questions and perhaps giving the car a look over.

[enjoikr3w]

My father and uncle are both really knowledeable with cars as they have rebuilt many engines in their day so labor will be free (it will probably cost me a few beers ). I'm in the process of giving the interior a good cleaning and will be posting pictures tomorrow when the sun is out!

@papasmurf: I'm in San Antonio, if there are members like this that would blow my mind.

[enjoikr3w]

Sorry for the late update and lack of pictures. Life got a little hectic and camera pooped out on me. I'll try and fix it and get pictures up soon. We have begun with the inspection process and here is what we have found:

The car had it's 60k maintenance done at the dealer when it had 71k miles.

Transmission most likely needs a new first gear syncronizer. I am in the process of finding a shop that can work on it. Recommendations for SA will be appreciated.

The clutch was on its last leg. It was pretty much down to the bone and has damaged the pressure plate. If it was used any longer then flywheel damage was probable.

The RMS seal is fine, no leaks. Now here is the predicament we are in. We have removed the IMS flange (engine was locked at TDC and tensioners removed beforehand) and visually inspected the bearing without removing it. It looks perfect, like new. We dont know if we should replace it since we're planning on keeping this car for about 10k-20k more miles before selling it. The LN bearing is $600 and my dealer quoted me $470 for the original. What would you do?

[Perfectlap]

don't even think about it. Upgrade the IMS with the LN unit. If I need to replace something I always go for the upgrade. Put it this way, if I were in the market for a Boxster and had the choice between one with the upgraded IMS and one without, I'd gladly pay $600 more for not having to deal with the hassle myself. A faulty IMS can go at any momment and I'm not sure you can really properly inspect the factory unit by just looking at it. Replacing it with an original IMS bearing is pointless. Also, Excellence had an issue where they tore apart the oil filter, more like un-rolled it, and pointed out that if there were shavigs the size of cracked pepper or larger it was not a good sign. But if the oil was recently changed that oil filter with the tell tale debris might have gone into the dumpster.

When I had my IMS upgraded I also had the axle boots serviced, the RMS replaced with the Cayenne seal, and decided to replace the flywheel with an OEM unit (I don't like noise of aftermarket units).

p.s.
After a few mods, some autcrossing and some more mods you'll be keeping that car a lot longer than you thought you would. If you sold it you simply would not be able to find a better car without spending more money. While the newer Boxsters have improved reliability and engineering, in my opinion, the higher price does not correlate into an equal increase in driving pleasure on a dollar per dollar basis.
Put it this way, I see no point spending $30K on a second hand Boxster when a $15K Boxster gives you practically the same Porsche roadster experience.
That's just extra money you don't need to spend that will slowly wither away like all depreciating assets. With your rare and excellent luck you have effectively avoided seeing any of your money go to waste.

[Flavor 987S]

You actually paid closer to $10,000. You just don't know it yet.

[enjoikr3w]

I am a college student right now so I do not have the income to purchase/maintain high end vehicles right now. This boxster is just a temporary play toy that I am not going to be getting too attached to. I'm only considering purchasing the upgraded LN bearing to help with the resale value.

[seningen]

Originally Posted by enjoikr3w

I am a college student right now so I do not have the income to purchase/maintain high end vehicles right now. This boxster is just a temporary play toy that I am not going to be getting too attached to. I'm only considering purchasing the upgraded LN bearing to help with the resale value.

Great price.

I work with a shop in South Austin that are becoming Boxster experts
at reasonable prices ($60/hr)

Everything from rebuilding the engines to just basic maintenance.

I personally own 3 of them, have owned 2 others. More than a dozen Boxsters
have been at this shop.

They can do a clutch, IMSR, RMS for ~$2k maybe a little more depending
on what damage was done to the clutch assembly.

www.lonestarrpm.com has some shop details and some of my personal projects.

Mike

[Perfectlap]

you're only get higher resale value from a Boxster enthusiast. Most Boxster owners probably have no idea what the IMS is. There aren't nearly enough of those enthusiasts out there to justify that as the rationale for doing the IMS upgrade.
You should do the upgrade PRECISELY because you are a college student. If the IMS were to fail you'd have a roller on your hands that would cost a lot more than $600 to fix.

[thstone]

Everyone here is right on in terms of maintaining a Porsche - not cheap.

Here is what I've done to my $11,000 1999 Boxster with 80K miles (and almost no repair history) in just two months since I bought it.

The good news is that I was planning to spend $25K for a Boxstger so I have lots of money left over for all of the maintanence/repairs/udpates (or even a replacement engine, worst case).

Also, note that I can do almost all of my work myself. The cost would be more than double my DIY costs if I had to pay to have the work done.

1. Oil/filter change ($180 dealer - wanted it done right away)
2. New Porsche logo floor mats (no mats in car) $120
3. Replaced battery cover (missing from car) $25 used from eBay
4. Replaced air filter/pollen filter (DIY $50 Pelican Parts)
5. Replaced fuel filter (DIY $30 Pelican Parts)
6. Replaced wiper blades (DIY $28 Autozone)
7. Red clip for alarm with top open ($8 eBay)
8. Replaced top microswitch (DIY $38 Pelican Parts)
9. Replaced all four tires (stock Pirelli PZero Rosso rear tires worn out) with Michelin PS2's in 225/45/17 front and 255/40/17 rear ($950 Discount Tires)
10. AUX Audio input (for iPhone/MP3) (DIY $85 Discount Car Audio)
11. Rear speaker kit (DIY $250 eBay Harvey PNP). This was something I wanted, not a must do. Stock CDR-220 sounds much better now.

TOTAL = $1,726

To be done in January-February:
1. Spark plugs and ignition coils replacement ($60 plugs, $250 coils DIY)
2. Coolent flush and replacement ($150 Indie shop)
3. Brake fluid replacement ($100 Indie shop)
4. Brake pads and rotors replacement (all four wheels) with EBC Redstuff pads and drilled rotors ($250 pads, $280 rotors, DIY)
5. GT3 brake cooling ducts (DIY $50 eBay)

TOTAL = $1,140

Not needed:
1. Battery (replaced by previous owner in Aug, 2010 $120)
2. Belt/tensioner/rollers (replaced by previous owner in July, 2010 $550 Indie shop)
3. Top (replaced by previous owner in April, 2010, $1,200 Indie shop)


So, I'll be in for $2,866 in 3-4 months time just to repair/update/maintain my "cheap" Boxster. If I had to do the items that the previous owner did, this would have added $1,870 to the $2,866 for a possible total of $4,736.

This is the real cost of getting a well used Boxster back up to par (~$5K). This is ONLY if you do most of the work yourself. Do most at a shop and you're looking at more than $10K.

And this doesn't inlcude the following repairs/updates that could come at any time:

When clutch needs replacement:
1. Clutch
2. IMS/RMS update
3. Water pump/thermostat replacement

[WhipE350]

thstone, sounds like my life the last 6 weeks!...but I'm doing most of it because I want and like to which makes you smart for maintaining a car that needs it and me nuts for just throwing money at it to make it as new like as I can. I have one of those list too and much more I want to do, as I told others it keeps me too busy to find myself married again . If my neighbor would let me park my car in his garage with a pit for two weeks heck I would take on the clutch, RMS, and IMS...just because it is interesting.

[davemon]

+1 on having seningen care for your new baby.
+1 on a good purchase, if you wanted to cruise in a Porsche

At $6k you paid about the correct price IMO. You'll need some tinkering to get it right plus you'll need seningen to keep it on the road with the motor firing.