Hunting for my first Porsche: 987 vs. 981 - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

JDanMan · 07-12-2015, 12:22 PM

I am new to the forum. I am hunting for my first Porsche. I am requesting opinions from experienced Porsche owners concerning the differences and advantages/disadvantages of purchasing the 987 version vs. the newer 981 Boxsters.

Thanks in advance for your input.

Timco · 07-12-2015, 12:37 PM

Well, there are a couple 987 owners here, but not many. This is the 986 forums.

Rennlist may be a better place for you to try.

thstone · 07-12-2015, 01:19 PM

Buy the newest, least mileage car you can afford. If you can swing a 981, by all means buy one. They have quite a few improvements over the 987.

Porsche9 · 07-12-2015, 02:10 PM

What's your budget? If you can get into a 981 it's a much improved car over the 987. Remember the basic underlying car dates ha k to 1997.

If you go with a 987 go for a 2009 or newer as they had a new engine design that's a big improvement over the last riot engine design.

BIGJake111 · 07-12-2015, 03:09 PM

If you have the budget get a 2009 or newer, 987 or 981. Just make sure it's 09 or newer.

As others have stated the 981 is a large improvement over the 987 which is essentially little different from the 5k 986s you can find on craiglist.

If you would like a classic a late model 986 (03, 04) with a few reliability upgrades and performance modes can be extremely good value.

My suggestion is that you try and get your hands on a 987 boxster spyder, it's a lot more depreciation proof then a base 981 and also an outstanding car!

Try and get an S no matter what, remember that a 981 base isn't really any faster than a 2000 boxster S that can be had for far less.

Fintro11 · 07-12-2015, 03:56 PM

I have driven a few 981's and my mom has a 987.

Personal preference I would go for the 981. I think the styling difference will help with the resale value in the future also.

new2bxstr · 07-13-2015, 10:24 AM

I have a 987 and think the 981 are so much better looking on the outside and inside. Never liked how the 987 looked with the top up from the side - but the 981 looks good actually with the top up even though I drive with the top down every chance I get.

But you're going to pay roughly twice as much or so for a 981, depending on year/mileage.