My car is turning out to be a disaster - need words of encouragement

[78F350]

Originally Posted by michael_J_brown

I purchased my 99' Boxster ...

The car had low miles... It's obviously been garaged for it's life.

... Mechanically it's turning out to be a disaster. It's becoming obvious that the 2 prior owners failed to repair anything and let issues pile up. ...

IMHO this has nothing to do with Boxsters/Porsches, It's about an 18 year old car that didn't see proper maintenance for a while, then sat on a car lot for a long time.
Honda, or Chevy, or whatever maintenance is going to have to be caught up or it will continue to have problems and failures.

Should you keep it? If you don't have time and ability to refresh it (DIY), or cash to drop it off at a shop for a $2k to $4k bill, get rid of it. If you like the car and have tools, space, and time, then get to work - keep it.

If you keep it:
Do not wait for things to fail, get a good assessment of the car and catch up on ALL the maintenance.
Clear all the drains. ($)
All fluids flushed/changed. ($$$)
Suspension inspected & replaced as needed plus alignment. ($$$$)
Brake rotors and pads. ($$$)
Tires - check the age and wear on the inner tread. ($$$)
Lube the top and door mechanisms. ($)
Inspect ALL hoses for proper attachment, rot, and bulges (??)
Remove the front bumper cover and clean the radiators ($)
Treat all the leather ($)
Engine:
A 1999 IMS is dual row. Personally, I do not lose sleep over dual row bearings. I replaced a dual row on my tiptronic car when the seal was leaking (about 130K miles) the bearing was good, but 'while I was in there...'
Clean the throttle body and MAF. Change the air filter.
I look at my oil filters about every 3-4 months. I change my oil once or twice a year depending on if I track the car (4 Boxsters). At least every 5k miles or annually.
AOS, water pump, belt, pulleys, vacuum hoses... they will all fail. If you don't have a maintenance history consider doing them now. At least give them a good check.
I assume that you have addressed the coolant tank and have a good coolant cap now..?

There's more. There's a lot that I don't know and I have bought 7 Boxsters (8 if you count the parts car that I completely stripped) in the last couple years and done lots of work on all of them. A PPI from a shop that knows Boxsters could still be helpful in your decision.

Good luck.

[michael_J_brown]

78F350 I've done a lot of this already, the car has come a long way. I have not checked the drains which I will do this weekend. I've done the brakes and just put new tires on it this past Saturday. I was planning on replacing the entire coolant tank as I'm not sure exactly where the leak is. I was able to get a camera under the unit and did see some buidup on the bottom. This is where I am assuming the leak is.

[78F350]

Originally Posted by michael_J_brown

78F350 I've done a lot of this already, the car has come a long way. I have not checked the drains which I will do this weekend. I've done the brakes and just put new tires on it this past Saturday. I was planning on replacing the entire coolant tank as I'm not sure exactly where the leak is. I was able to get a camera under the unit and did see some buidup on the bottom. This is where I am assuming the leak is.

Good stuff. Sounds like you are on track to keep it.
For the coolant tank, as with most parts 'Porsche brand' is the best one to get. The Only alternative that I'd trust is this one: Coolant Expansion Tank 99610614708Y - OE Supplier - 996-106-147-08-Y | Pelican Parts
There are a couple good DIYs that I referenced recently when I did the one in my beater/project car:
Another coolant tank replacement DIY
DIY Coolant Tank Replacement in Under 2 Hours

Also possible the coolant cap or the O-ring on the pressure valve could be the leak. If the tank is original and suspect, might as well replace it though.