How close is KBB for REAL Porsche Value?

[Perfectlap]

well I think you're missing some options that end up making the car look like a 2.5. Namely 18" wheels, Litronics and aero. But to be fair I don't believe that these were available options in '99 (which is why it looks like a 2.5 at first glance). So basically the bulk of the value in your car boils down to the going rate for a low'ish mileage 2.5 engine. Porsches in general are worth shockingly little without their engines.
I'd say between $9-$10K is fair.
Any higher at all and you can probably land a 3.2 also on the smaller 17" wheels, also minus litronics or aero treatment with slightly bit more mileage but as long as its in the 30K - 50K range its still the more sought after option because you're up to 250 HP. That's the problem with Porsches, even if you have a low miler to sell, there's always a similar Porsche with more power for sale right next to yours and the market doesn't seem to give somewhat bigger engines that much of a pricing bounce thereby making those the first to sell.

[RaisedOnPorsches]

I concur more or less with Perfectlap here. For the water-cooled Porsches (especially 986/996) it is a buyer's market out there. In my case it doesn't help me that the rainy season *finally* just started in Northern California.

I wont toss around numbers since I'm in this sellers market too right now, but I will say that my $12.5k price for my '99 Boxster (with 82k miles, hardtop, humps, RTS and various significant repairs, such as IMSB, RMS, cluth...yadda, yadda, yadda) is a starting point for negotiations.

One of my buddies almost bought my car (in part because he's been drooling over it during the entire period of my ownership), but his wife cracked the whip and demanded 4-doors and 4-seats because they want to have kids soon. Instead he's looking at a 2007-8 BMW 330i sedan (300 hp due to twin-turbo v6) for $15k from a dealer. The 330i isn't a Porsche and it isn't a sports car, but it is a hell of a lot of car for the price and its practical enough for the wife-factor.

Within the PCar world there are a lot of 986/996 for sale right now. Outside of the PCar world, there are a lot of used cars out there at a similar price point that can make it difficult to convince a buyer to go with the 'impractical' 2-seat roadster.

Good luck!

[BIGJake111]

i was actually able to buy my specific car under what we valued it for on KBB... but hardly any boxsters in my area are piced at the value, most are 2k or so over what they are valued, and the lower the miles the higher the margin between the sellers price and what it is actually "worth"

[BIGJake111]

as for OP though, only suggestion is make sure to price it lower than the cheapest S you can find.... because the people with the money to buy a 2.5 with low miles would likely rather buy a 2.7 or an S with 60 to 70k miles for the same price of course.

[BigShow]

I like Pefectlap’s Reply. Here’s my buyer’s perspective. First I’m a newb, the only thing I know about Porches cars is what I’m reading online, and that over the last two to three weeks, love the 986 Forum.

I’m researching Boxsters, Caymans, and I’m starting to look at 911s. I think that actually I’m 6 to 12 months away from buying. Locally the selection looks thin, better deals on the East Coast; Texas, the South, and the West Coast are just too far away.

The few Boxsters that I’ve seen are 1999 and 2000 models, most had about 60,000 miles and none looked very good. I’m looking at a 1999 911 tomorrow. These Boxsters were in dealer lots, one in a Porsche dealer lot. The Porsche Dealer wanted a lot more for a car with 30,000 more miles than the others.

There’s virtually no vehicle history for these cars. There’s no telling what has or hasn’t been done, IMS, RMS, brakes, you name it. It’s like I’m buying a ticking wallet bomb. My perception is that I’m contemplating buying a money pit, but I still want one (I sold my boat so I know what it’s like).

I’m starting to think that buying a used Porsche, an older one, from a dealer is about the worst decision you can make and buying from a private owner, an informed one, is a much better option, worth more to me. The KBB or Edmunds will show higher prices at the dealer and lower at the private seller/owner, I think that for a Boxster that’s backwards. I doubt dealers are going to offer a warrantee on a 14 year old car.

When (or if) I do buy a Porsche I’m going to use the lack of information, and the ticking time bomb IMS, as heavy leveraging tools to beat down the price. I’m further going to use the PPI results to try beat down the price more.

So, what can you do to make your Box stand out to a buyer like me? I don’t need to know that it has standard equipment, I don’t want to sort through that, it hides what’s unique. I want to know in order of preference:
Asking price
Mileage
Model year
Base or S
No kidding Great/Good/Fair/Poor condition assessment (I‘ll do a PPI so be accurate)
Private/Porsche Dealer/Major Dealer/Joe’s around the corner dealer
Available service records and by who
IMS replaced
RMS replaced
Miles on tires
Miles on brakes
Miles on rotors
Other replaced parts
Other enhancements like Audio, Radar detector
I really don’t want a car that someone has tweaked for more power

I was thinking of developing a buyer’s check list. Actually started one. But I’m thinking that I’ll pay someone to do a PPI. So If I get emotionally attached to a car the PPI should be the tool to take out the emotion.

If I can’t find something that I like in a year I’ll look hard at the new I4/V6/GT Mustang and the GTI. I’ve ruled out Camaro, Tobaru, and Z370. Corvettes, Audis, and BMWs don’t appeal to me.

[RaisedOnPorsches]

BigShow - It's a darn shame we aren't closer to one another because you seem like the sort of buyer that I'd like to connect with.

[BIGJake111]

the only issue with using ims and whatnot to haggle, is that there will always be some idiot that just wants a cheap porsche and the seller will know that.

[BigShow]

RaisedOnPorsches listing is about perfect, a great example. Cool roof rack plus a hard top. I could put my wakesurf boards on the roof rack. Yes, too bad your on the Left Coast.

[Perfectlap]

Originally Posted by BigShow

When (or if) I do buy a Porsche I’m going to use the lack of information, and the ticking time bomb IMS, as heavy leveraging tools to beat down the price. I’m further going to use the PPI results to try beat down the price more.

So, what can you do to make your Box stand out to a buyer like me? I don’t need to know that it has standard equipment, I don’t want to sort through that, it hides what’s unique. I want to know in order of preference:
Asking price
Mileage
Model year
Base or S
No kidding Great/Good/Fair/Poor condition assessment (I‘ll do a PPI so be accurate)
Private/Porsche Dealer/Major Dealer/Joe’s around the corner dealer
Available service records and by who
IMS replaced
RMS replaced
Miles on tires
Miles on brakes
Miles on rotors
Other replaced parts
Other enhancements like Audio, Radar detector
I really don’t want a car that someone has tweaked for more power

winner winner chicken dinner.

p.s.
I would add points to the PPI if it has the latest coolant cap. A car that's had the coolant tank/waterpump/coolant cap replaced as precautionary maintenance is a big peace of mind check box (enthusiast owned red flag).
Thus I would do a leak down test and not just the compression test to see what's up with the engine history.