Questions from a prospective Boxster owner

[EPIQTodd]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

today I went to the Porsche dealer and had
oil change and filter
air filter/cabin filter
all around look

cost? $400

But Its the only thing I did all year. I had 10,000 trouble free miles. knock on wood.

Get yourself at least a 2000 year model and tried to find a low mileage S.
In my opinion not buying an S will cost you money when you resell.
Bruce Lee says there is a ton of leases returns and lots of garage queens flooding the market now that the 2000's are at least 5 years old.

With the cost of maintenance of the easy stuff, many people choose to do it themselves. The oil change can be tough, though, unless you really have all the right tools and space and a place to dump the oil.

Air filter/cabin filter is easy, and stuff like short shift kits, wheels, brake pads - much of this is pretty easy to do yourself.

[Perfectlap]

yeah your right I definitely considered doint the air/cabin filter myself but with so little maintanance needed in the first 30,000 miles I want to give the next owner of my car service records that indicate it was all done by Porsche. That's got some value to it for sure considering the reputation of this car being expensive to repair and maintain.

I've always been leary of buying cars that have been maintained by weekend warriors since most are doing allot of these things for the first time.

[Finallygottaporsche]

i tried to answer all your questions to the best of my ability. im sure someone will say that im wrong about something, but i think most of this is right on.

1. late 98's / early 99's had a defect in the casting process of the block. the blocks were porous, so porsche installed cylinder liners to fix the problem. some of these liners have come loose leading to catastrophic engine failure. many people will say that most of these effected engines how now been replaced. As far as RMS, there is some chance of RMS problems in every boxster and watercooled 911 except the 911 turbo, gt3, and gt2. these cars use a different block.

2. No. There is no issue with Lokasil liners. the issue was with the engines mentioned above.

3. the mechanicals and cables of the top were upgraded on the 2000 model year. these have far fewer probs. 97-99 have more top probs. top problems are very expensive at the dealer. they would charge you 700.00 just to replace stretched cables. the cables are about 30 bucks. labor is high at the dealer. as far as condition, its all reletive to care. Now 2003 and newer will have a glass rear window.

4. every 15k miles or one year. the 15k service is oil change, pollen filter, air filter, and a supposed checklist that the techs go through. at a dealer this can easily be over 700.00. this is sometimes referred to the minor service. the major service is the same plus spark plugs, bleed the brakes, etc. that can easily cost 900.00 at a dealer. yes, you are right- many people unload these cars cause they dont want to pay for a scheduled service and they know the car is near needing a brake job too or some other major service.

5. you can easily change your air filter, oil and filter, spark plugs, and maybe the clutch. you have to lift the car to do the oil change or sparkplugs. the air filter can be done from inside the car. if you are mechanically inclined you can do the clutch, but it may be a good idea to let someone else do it and check and replace the RMS at the same time.

6. not sure about this, but porsche sells a car seat that when buckled in will turn off the airbag. everyone i know has let the dealer do this.

7. i do not think an "s" will cost much more to maintain at all. parts for break jobs may be a little more.

8. i dont think you can disable abs. car has excellent brakes. there is a weird feeling under extremely hard braking though

9. no the wheel doesnt tilt

10. the drivers side seat bolster usually shows alot of wear on older cars.

11. because....... there is no subsitute, thats why!

i really reccomend that you stay away from 5-6 year old cars that have only logged a few thousand miles per year. i would look at year 2000 and higher. a car with high mileage and a good service history could be a safer bet. also, if you can budget it find a 2003 with some warranty left. a high mileage 2003 with 15 months waranty left is better than a 99 with 15K miles. if you buy a 99 it may or may not have recieved a new engine. sometimes this can be hard to find out. porsche dealers will generally only tell you if the car has been serviced at their dealer. the best bet is a very clean car with a stack of reciepts for all service.

[RandallNeighbour]

Silly_me, you've been given some very good, sound advice from those who drive what you want to buy.

Newest S you can afford with some factory warranty remaining and a glass rear window and Bose Sound is my suggestion, just to reiterate what others have said.

If I had it all to do over again, I would have saved my money and bought an 2002 S... fine car with lots of improvements, a glass rear window and far quicker off the line than my 2.5 liter engine.

[Finallygottaporsche]

i agree w Randall. i have been doing car stereos for about 13 years and the boxster is the hardest car to put a good system in. go w the bose and leave it alone.

[Silly_me]

Originally Posted by RandallNeighbour

Silly_me, you've been given some very good, sound advice from those who drive what you want to buy.

Thanks again all, and Randall the information in your sig links are very helpful. I'll be looking at an '01 on my way home tonight.

[MNBoxster]

Hi,

My recommendation is to seriously look at all Model Years. There are some real CremePuff '98 and '99s (at Bargain Prices) while there are some real Dog '01 and '02s. There have not been that many Boxsters produced that you would have to check out 55+ Cars to find one in the shape and at the price you want. I doubt in your area there would be 10 Cars which you would seriously consider for one reason or another. And, there is some correlation between the amount of work you put in up front to the quality of Car you eventually buy. AND NO MATTER WHICH YOU CHOOSE, PAY $300+ FOR A PROPER PPI - EVEN ONE WHICH IS CERTIFIED!

All Porsches are expensive to own. None are particularly reliable, especially as compared to the 2Ks or MX-5s. The 'S' will cost the same to own and maintain as the Base Model, with the exception that you may drive it Harder and suffer the consequences of this.

If depreciation is an issue, stay away from Fun Cars altogether. In one form or another, they are all Black Holes! You can't Reason your way into a Porsche - it's gotta be a Love Affair, and one which will bring it's share of Love/Hate!

Don't be enamored by the Porsche Crest. A Miata will bring just as many smiles to most people at one third the cost.

I'm not trying to discourage you, I love my Boxster. But, in truth, I hate it much more than I imagined I would as well. I have had virtually no problems per se, but one carries a greater degree of anxiety than I ever have with any other Sports Car, even the stream of Lotus, which I have owned.

If you're still reading this, do your research and go out and find the best one you can for the money... then NEVER look back! Good Luck!...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

[Silly_me]

So..... I'm back. And let it be known that the garage full of motorbikes has nothing to do with the reason why I STILL don't own another Porsche

And my teeny little daughter is now... 16, and change, and has started the year as a senior in Highschool

And I find myself in a conundrum, as a soon-to-be empty nester with no need for jump seats, and still no Boxster in the garage, and a kid with a need for a reliable car for college......we must capitalize on this situation;

Scenario a) we buy a cheap used snore-o-matic for the kiddo.

Scenario b) we buy a late model 986 and give the kiddo wifey's snore-o-matic.

As much as it pains me I vote for option B. But, despite my previous research, and my well received responses below I have a few more questions:

-Was the engine sorted out in the late model 986? I recall Excellence stating that the issue wasn't really sorted until the 987... confirmation?

-Was the timing chain tensioner still an issue for the late model variants?

-If I were, oh I dunno, go and have a look at an 03 with 60k miles on it this coming weekend, what would I, hypothetically look for as a sign of trouble?

*note: it seems that the serpentine belt, spark plugs, and oil change seem fairly easy and shade tree possible..... what am I missing, what sort of issue is lurking for a 'routine' engine drop in order to get to?

Again, as previously, many many thanks folks

OT, wasn't this the guy from Doom -> :troll:

[dan.oneufer]

There is only so much you can see without dis-assembly, so aside from overall condition check the CV boots at the wheel if you can. I just looked at mine (which only has 32K miles) and both are torn. Also, lift the carpeting or reach under the seam to see or feel it there is any moisture (coolant) in the trunk.