Your opinions please

[Jinx]

The boxster has 65500 miles on it. No major repairs done to it.
Runs fine. We have a change to purchase a 2007 Mercedes 280
SLK. For $19,800 dollars. Trade in value for the Boxster is $9,000.
Miles on the Mercedes is 21,063 miles.

Please give us your opinions on weather we should trade the
Boxster for the Mercedes.

Thanks,

Bill

[lkchris]

Take the Mercedes to a Mercedes dealer to learn whether its engine is in the group with the bad balancer shaft ($5000).

[Giller]

Why would you want to downgrade your PORSCHE for a lowly Merc? Drive them back to back, no comparison.

[Perfectlap]

65k was where my car had no major repairs too. I'm at 100k miles now and this year I had nearly $7k in repairs.
Last year it was $6k. And probably another $7k after doing the clutch/IMS/RMS, straightening and refinishing the wheels, new tires for summer and winter, and respraying the front and rear bumpers for the third or fourth time. And I still need to replace the soft top. Lol.

Yeah...so in retrospect selling my like new looking Boxster S at 65k would have been a good idea. BUT....I sure as hell would not have done it for a Mercedes. I fail to see how that would have been an improvement by any metric. There isn't a single thing I prefer on any of Merc roadsters and convertibles. The brakes compared to the Boxsters I especially found unacceptable. HUGE downgrade. The SlK felt very heavy to me and kind of bland. It's a nice car but just not a car I could even conceive of pouring tons of money into, not that this is ever a good idea, but the point being I had an irrational connection to the characteristics of Boxster which I still consider to be a sports car that checks nearly every box. And there's just something about these newer generation of Mercs that really don't age well in my eyes. Basically anything from the 1990's forward look dated. Although I really like the new styling of the CLAs.

I would suggest trading in for a CPO Porsche or lightly used 987 or 997 base. Or maybe a CPO 3 or 1 series convertible.

[thstone]

It really depends on your preferences.

The SLK will look and feel more refined. Styling is a personal preference, but I think that the SLK looks better than the Boxster. The SLK engine will have more low end torque but the car won't handle nearly as well.

The Boxster engine loves to rev and it handles like a sports car should.

Both cars are equally snobbish and relatively expensive to own/maintain.

At the end of the day, either car would be a fine choice. Let us know what you decide.

[rexcramer]

Hard to imagine winding the Mercedes revs up on a track day.

[bobbeck]

I sold my 2007 SLK and bought my Boxster. I miss the HK stereo, heated seats and Xenon lights... Not enough to give up my Boxster though. Greet long distance cruiser, especially if it comes with all options. As stated, the M272 engine has its own IMS like issue. Balance shafts went bad in the cars made in 2005-2006 and early 2007. There's a VIN range out there you can check. $19k is high for a 280 too, I'd be looking for a 350 with the AMG body kit or a 55 with some mileage in that price range.

[Gelbster]

JINX ,
I had an '07 SLK. It had 2 incurable defects for me YEMV:
1. Seats were excruciatingly uncomfortable after 1 hour.
2.Rear View Mirror is huge and very close to you because of the steeply raked windshield. In Europe where I first drove the SLK,the RV mirror is much smaller. The huge mirror creates a big blind spot at T junctions.
Much depends on your height & build. By contrast, I have no problem with a Boxster,any Miata, Jaguar or my 1993 Dodge diesel truck !
I sold the SLK to a short, fat woman who had no problems with the ergonomics.

[Porsche9]

An SLK for Boxster? I guess it depends on what you are looking for in a car. They are very different and not surprisingly this being a 986 forum not many are going to give a thumbs up.

If you leave us we"d be disappointed.

[Jinx]

I have to stop looking at cars.
Wasn't really looking to trade
The Boxster. The Mercedes is
At a local Audi dealership.
Anyway drove the cars back
To back. The Boxster felt light
Like a feather. The Mercedes
Rather heavy. I like the
21,000 mileage on the
Mercedes vs 65,000 on the
Boxster. I like the
Roundness of the Boxster body:dance:
Vs the flatness of the Mercedes.

Then we took it out for a test
Drive. To the horror of the
Salesgirl saleswoman? In
The Mercedes I turn off the
Radio telling her I don't
Listen to the radio or MX
Radio which it has. I listen
To the "Boxster " play. She
Didn't understand. So we
Take off for some twisty
Road I know.

My driving style has changed
In the time I owned the
Boxster. I love giving it
About 3/4 pedal from a
Stop light or passing slow
Traffic on the turnpike.
Did the twisters with the
Mercedes it did ok but
Was really heavy in the
Steering the brakes were
Not close to the Boxster.
At 3/4 pedal the
Mercedes song was
No where near that of
The Boxster.
After I told the salesgirl
I was keeping the Boxster
She asked who drives
Like that? I told her
Some Porsche Boxster
Owners. I offered to
Take her to a CCC at
The local track or
With the Porsche club
Next spring or a empty
Parking lot in the snow.
She said no thank you.
So anyway we still with
You guys.

Thank you for the insight
And advice.
Off to the track scheduled to
Work registration at a SCCA
Region event today.
Weather 65 degrees and sunny.
All is well.

Bill

[BYprodriver]

The SLK32 is not much better either. Attempting to drive a manual trans SLK makes me feel like I'm just learning how to drive.

[lkchris]

The Porsche is certainly more dynamic and has a useful spare tire, which the Merc does not.

The Merc top probably rattles and most of your trunk space goes away when it's down. Doesn't have as much trunk space as the Boxster to begin with, but then the engine is a LOT more accessible for maintenance.

The Merc interior is head/shoulders above the Porsche in terms of quality. The Porsche is pretty chintzy. The way you rationalize that is to note the Porsche has an aluminum jack while the Merc jack is steel. Porsche means to keep weight down and chintzy is some of the result. In a similar vein, everything is optional on a Porsche and most of it is standard equipment on a Merc. An outside temp gauge has been standard on most Mercs since the 1980s.

You can buy a "red" air cleaner box and the Merc engine will sound better, but it's hard to beat the Porsche sound next to your left ear.

The Porsche has a brake wear sensor in all 8 pads. The Merc has one front and one rear.

An AMG SLK will likely leave a Boxster in the dust. A 280 SLK probably won't.