Is the Boxster the unloved stepchild?

[stephen wilson]

Perfect, you answered your own question. The usual purchasing advice for buying a used P-car is the newest model possible. That will be a Boxster, a comparably priced 911 will be older, and/or have much higher miles.

I think the Boxster looks better than a 911 Cab. , top up or down. Eh, each to their own

[jaykay]

Porsche number 1 was mid engined as I recall, as are their race cars.

Subsequent 356s were based on VW architecture for manufacturing econ. This why the engine is where it is. The 911 was a two plus two sports car compromise; so now you have wicked polar moment; this was optimized over the years. The layout has some unique handling characteristics that can be used to advantage and there is that quirky character brand appeal along with mastering it

The arrangement is not ideal though and didn't come from a performance justification. It was mass production economy for the general public along with 2 plus 2 seating. These days the arrangement is so far optimized and developed that there probably little justification other than seating capacity and unique handling.

I am a 911 variant fan; I grew up sitting atop a beetle engine but a "real" or traditional Porsche would have to be mid-engined.

[Perfectlap]

Originally Posted by stephen wilson

Perfect, you answered your own question. The usual purchasing advice for buying a used P-car is the newest model possible. That will be a Boxster, a comparably priced 911 will be older, and/or have much higher miles.

I'm not so sure that when it comes to Porsches, if that's the best advice.

Put it this way, if I had a sum of cash on hand for a sports car, enough to buy a regular type car new, but not enough to buy a new Porsche, I don't think finding the newest Porsche would be my objective.
I'd be looking at air-cooled along with the newer stuff. And depending on the 911 series (and the specific vehicle's history) I'd have no problem crossing off many water-cooled Porsches right off my list an opting for a much older Carrera vs. low mileage Boxster/Cayman.
The newer Porsches are said to be "low-maintenance" yet I've still put in over $13K in major maintenance and unexpected repairs with mileage well below 100K miles. Did I mention I only drive weekends? And unlike some air-coooled Porsches, my car is only bleeding value every year.

[stephen wilson]

Well, I wanted a car to drive, not work on. Newer/low mileage is almost always a better bet. For an air-cooled 911 you'd be talking 15 or more years old. There's no getting around the fact that the higher the sticker price, the more it has to degrade/depreciate before hitting a certain price point.