make sure to ask how many miles since the IMS was replaced.
And if was replaced with an aftermarket unit. These are important questions.
The aftermarket single row IMS bearing in 2001-2004 cars have a shorter shelf life than the aftermarket dual row bearings in the 1996-1999 cars. 2000 had a mix of dual and single row.
If the IMS was replaced with the "permanent" Porsche factory unit, that's not a serviceable bearing unless you pull the engine. Some think this isn't a big deal if you don't plan to own the car long-term.

From what I was reading in the Porsche buyer's guide, S model Boxsters don't sell as often as the base engine cars.
If I were in the market, I would place a WTB in the classifieds of all the Porsche forums first. You're more likely to get an enthusiast-owned car.
This means you'll have a better history and presumably, but not always the case, less deferred maintenance. You may also get the attention of someone who hasn't formally posted their car for sale yet. Always use the forums.

Local Porsche dealer has an 02 S with 28K miles. Might have to check this one out as well!

better off looking for an 03 car much better in my opinion . the motors run much smoother as well .

The 02 S with 29K miles looks awesome, but was traded in at a dealer so no history on the car. Passenger side rear in front of tire has small dent. Asking $16,400. If I can get a killer deal I will consider it.

02 S 50K miles, privately owned with amazing records, IMS, RMS replaced 6K miles ago with LN IMS. Every bit of work done to the car was done by an indy show that specializes in Porsche. Car is garage kept under cover and not driven in winter months. Only issue.....$18,750.

Car #2, negotiate a lower price if you can and remember there is value in the LN IMS. A well cared for car will generally cost less in the long run.

The fact that the dent wasn't repaired on car #1 makes me wonder what else wasn't taken care of.

There is value in the bearing....if it was changed BEFORE any damage was done. Lots of stories out there of people finding metal bits and then changing the bearing then selling ASAP. But those metal bits are still in the engine. Careful PPI should be done no matter what.

Car #1 was just traded in about 7 days ago. They have no intention of fixing it.

Car #2 was maintained perfectly at the suggestion of the local Porsche specialist. Guy has owned it for 10 years and put 20K miles on it with lots of records.

I have 15K max in my mind which is think it too much for #1 and too little for #2.

well lookey here... 986 Boxsters are not $9K throw away cars after all

Kind of makes me want to trade down into a 9k throw away boxster, less options more miles, less S, bet I could trade, keep a porsche in the stable, and have a supplement from the trade to maybe invest in another marque.

$15k will actually buy a lot of car or truck outside of the Porsche world.

#1 is down to $16,500

Still waiting for reply from dealer on #2 as far as pricing.

Found a #3, 02 S 57K blk/brick color interior. Really well maintained asking $15,900. Like the color combo as it's different but at 57K miles I need to think rationally and that seems like a too many miles for my liking. Not that it's a lot of miles, but a lot of miles for me to start at in my ownership. Other thing is it's almost 6hrs away...

PerfectLap's comments are really solid and should be re-read for clarity for anyone buying a used S.

The other thing I don't think prospective boxster owners give enough attention to is the rear glass window in the 03's and 04's. They're selling at a premium for a reason... that glass window top doesn't require hopping out to chop the plastic in half every time you drop it to keep from creating creases that will eventually (or immediately) crack when it grows cold outside.

What a pain in the @ss! This was a major design flaw in the 97-02 Boxster if you ask me.

I'm going to stand behind my recommendation to anyone shopping for a preowned boxster. Buy an 03S or newer with low miles and a strong repair/worn out suspension replacement set of records.

The cheapest Porsche you find and purchase will become the most expensive car you've owned to date. Learn your lesson from me and a couple of other forum members here!

Glass window is definitely a huge improvement. I've owned Boxster with and without the glass. This car is just a fun toy for me that I will take good care of and use in nice weather. Gotta draw the line somewhere with budget and the 02 S seems to fit my needs. Sure I'd like a 987.2 but don't want to spend the money.

You can always do what I did and buy a glass window replacement top later when you have some extra cash. Total cost for mine was around $1100 installed.

RN, thanks for your comment.

I agree having the a FACTORY glass window is nice because you have the same amount of access to the engine in the service position as plastic window top. But all other benefits of a glass top are easily attained by adding a $1,500 aftermarket glass top to a pre-2003 Boxster. So if you don't spend a lot of time doing your own wrenching in that area not a huge advantage for 2003 and 2004 cars. And after 10 years, those 03-04 glass tops are not so new looking anymore unless they were well looked after. Some people run these through car washes and that car wash soap detergent is the last thing that should go on it.

Also, I'm on my second plastic top but only because I was careless once in removing some ice and put a small cut in the plastic. Otherwise it was spotless after nearly 10 years and I never did the chop unless it was a little crisp outside (below 65F) and I haven't lowered the top in a while. Otherwise if you leave it alone, but watch it to make sure its bending neatly, after a certain number of bends it will form a crease as the right point. I think doing the chop every time keeps it from forming this crease on its own.

Otherwise a buyer should keep in mind that 97-99 is essentially the same car. As are 2000-2004, 2005-2008, and 2009 - 2012. Look for cars with the least amount of wear and tare within each of those ranges and if mileage is up there, ask what parts have been replaced. If suspension, cooling and clutch/IMS have not been addressed yet, slap at least $5-$8K on to the selling price of the car if you intend to drive it daily or regularly in climates that see extreme heat or cold. If you live where the temps are mild, roads are nice and you'll only be driving the car on Sundays, you can probably avoid most of the big repairs for a long while. If you look at the typical used Porsche buyer, a sizeable chunk are DIY'ers which tells you something about the costs to run these cars. People without the tools, space or know-how stay far away from out-of-warranty Porsches. Either way if you can wrench or not, the old Porsche rule of "pay now, or pay later but you will pay" still applies because the big expense in these cars is the parts not really the labor.

At your age best to invest that delta in something that doesn't depreciate, like cars which are just money pits/entertainment budget. Buy some Apple shares. I was on here in pre-iphone telling people to buy Apple. One young person I know did just that and can now say they have more money in the bank than any of their friends (and probably some of their parents). It's generally not a good idea to put more than 2% of your dough in a single company but when you aren't even old enough to buy a beer, you've got plenty of time to make back a loss. The real truth is that if you used that extra cash to buy shares of the S&P 500 through a Vanguard index fund, over any rolling 20 year period since 1970 you're doing no worse than between
7 - 18%. Point being the sooner you start learning all this and put it to work, the more likely it is that time will repay you handsomely. There are millionaires who give their cash to equally rich hedge fund managers, who as a class, can't outperform an 18 year old kid holding S&P 500 index shares. But for the love God don't dump more money into a car. You already hit the jack pot owning a Porsche at your age. If I had a dollar for every guy over 50 that told me I was too young to be driving THEIR dream car....

+1 Very well said. And while I might lean towards a nice dividend fund, your point is well put and I wish more young people would do this. I can only imagine how much better off I would be if I had started when I was 18 or 19.

Wow are asking prices high!!!!
 

Very well said, if there is anything any man wants more of its time, and youth provides you with a lot of it, and luckily few financial responsibilities. It takes money to make money and if you don't gather assets young, you'll fight to gain any older.

Think I am going to sit on the sidelines for a bit and see if winter brings the prices down. I'm just not looking to spend over 16K at this point.

Don't know if you looked at this one (I have no connection to the seller); the price seems reasonable and the car appears to be in VG condition. Porsche Boxster S