Dang, Jake! That sucks! I hope you can get to the least painful resolution. And you can still drive your g/f’s Box, right?


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Milky coolant.
 

Lol talk about a catastrophic failure. Jake Raby (nor her psychiatrist) could spend hours upon hours and ever find every fatal flaw in that one!

You’d never know how much I enjoy cruising in the new girls Camry instead.

That's what I get for posting so early in the morning! LOL.

Well, good luck with that Camry and girl!

Sorry Dude...
First off, take a breath and weigh your options. Other than your need for transportation at some point, the value of the Boxster, or its cost to repair is not going to change. You'll figure out the best path. Don't worry about what you drive while in college...nobody cares!

I've got two boys still in college studying engineering (1 electrical, 1 aerospace) at UCF (you know, home of the national champions!). Both boys have nice, older cars with lots of miles that they bought with their own money. On occasion, Both send me links to nice, newer cars for sale. My response it the typically the same.

"Great looking car! Imagine how much cheaper it'll be in a couple years when you graduate!"

In the mean time, I help them both to ensure that their cars are mechanically safe and sound for trips to and from home. Other than that, it doesn't really matter as the cars sit quite a bit while at school. Both dudes rely heavily on the university bus system due to it being a PIA to park on campus. In the evening, its long boards, walking or Uber if alcohol is involved...

Best of luck and concentrate on what's important.

Sorry to see this.

Everyone has their own unique financial situation, vehicle desires, and transportation needs. You know enough to weigh all of the options and chart a path forward.

Wishing you the best. Let us know how it turns out.

While I know it is a total bummer Jake you really have to keep things in perspective.....How many other guys here can say they had two different Porsches while in High School?

As others have suggested, get a reliable beater to get you through school and worry about another P-Car after graduation when you are gainfully employed. Boring but smart.....:cheers:

...Its like you have lots of Dads!!

Thank you guys! The support is always really welcome. Sorry for the slow updates I’ve been an economics confrence in Atlanta all weekend. Really ritzy and nice. 4 star hotel and all the goodies. Keeps my mind off of the car haha.

Toyota? Kia? My 16 yr old kid paid 4500 for a 2001 bmw 335i coupe. I own 5 nice cars and after the box that car is next in line. E46 platform bmw bulletproof when maintained. I see a ton of young people driving GTI VW that are badass and reliable....lots of people own Miata....look alot of cars including the box are reliable but upkeep is more on some than others but damn a KIA!

Okay, first, I'm 66 years old and retired. So color your opinion with that. I am in the latter stages of putting a newer, better 2.7 in my 01 Box/base. So I'm not your average old codger. Hurts when I get up in the morning, but I'm out there working on it by 9 am.

As I understand it, time and money are constraints that are keeping you from fixing your Boxster. You are in college & that should be your first (probably only) priority.

Depending on how close you are to graduating, you should either walk away and sell it as a project car, or get a car cover and put it away for later. In the meantime, there are lots of older cars to choose from. As you can see from my signature, I have a couple of 1st gen Prius's and a 96 Dakota 4x4 (250,000 mi. and going strong.) The Pri's have the distinction of not looking like 04 and later Prius, but are more a sporty 4 door sedan. Look nice, and the Prius is more stealthy than the later ones (which I'll agree are butt ugly.)

I guess, in a father's tone, I'd suggest you get something that's fairly reliable, easy to fix, and affordable. I worked on a neighbor's 2000 Camry yesterday and it would fill the bill and doesn't scream inexpensive or old. Don't know your finances but something under $3K would be worth looking for--good maintenance helps, but look for something that looks nice and then have it inspected by someone you trust. I probably would default to Toyota, their build quality is quite impressive.:cheers:

It could be the oil cooler. A small project to replace that.

+1 ... Check the seals on the oil cooler, it's easy to get to and remove.

The oil cooler is a good spot to check for failure, We dad this in our Box but it was very slight milky stuff on the cap and we could see oil floating in the water. Remove it, fill 1 part with water and pressurize the other side with air. Easy to do and if it's bad, the bubbles will be very visible.

The BIG issue is the oil filter. Water and main bearing/rod bearings don't mix. It really does look like the engine is toast....

My main constraint is that I have zero time for a project. Money isn’t too tight but in order to repair at a shop I’m sure it’ll be 3 or 4K minimum and I’ve seen quotes way higher. These cars simply aren’t worth that much money to repair sadly. A car worth 10k if I ever sell it isn’t worth the 4 to 10 investment in repairs. Keeping a box with intermix on the road if it isn’t just the oil cooler isn’t economically viable if you arnt doing the work yourself.

I’ll get the oil cooler checked at some point when I have time and if it’s fine I’m going to be looking to likely sell the vehicle as is and take that money and put it into either something rear wheel drive and cheap (think Volvo 240 or Mercedes 190e) or I may get something new under 25 and start working to make payments.

Out of the pot and into the kettle...........Think Honda or Toyota.

Jake,
Heres a car to consider....
I've bought two 2002 Toyota 4Runners. Both cars were 2-owner cars that were well used but cared for. I've owned both for over two years. One has 265K miles. One has 185K miles. Paid $4,200 for the one with 185K (150k when purchased). Paid $3,650 for the one 265K (238K when purchased.

Both cars have been amazing! Parts are cheap and the cars have been 100% reliable.

Best part is, I'd bet I could sell either for about what I paid for them. This may be a great placeholder for you as opposed to other options. You can use it now and get your money back when you're ready. Check prices on CL...The asking price on a decent Gen 3 4Runner is still $4-6K! You'll see more in the higher end than any you'd see under $4K.

Take a look...the cars sell for much more than explorers or other SUV's but seem to be more than worth it.

Thanks for the suggestions. The best bet right now does seem to be a “place holder” car. Something to drive for a bit and be able to sell for what I bought it for.

Does anyone have any suggestions for selling the box? The missus wants me to keep it and fix it when I finish up college. However selling it and getting it in the right hands is probably best for me and the car. I just am not sure who the right hands are or for what purpose would be right.

Listen to the wife for crying out loud.

Do you like the car? Do you really want to keep it? Can you afford to cover it and wait until you're able to afford the repair? Do you enjoy performing your own repairs? Can you hardly wait until you're able to get back under the hood?

I get the entire "Don't want to put into the car money for which it isn't worth" rhetoric, but doesn't anyone who owns a Porsche give less than TF about the resale value, right now? Doesn't anyone just own the car... drive it... work on it... buy parts once in awhile without worrying about the resale value, if ever that happens?

Go purchase a beater... drive to school... graduate... and when you go to sell the beater again cast aside those TF... do the per-mile-per-dollar analysis for feelings... repair the car... then resuming life.

No? Sounds like a slam dunk.

Hey Starter Jake is not married, but his GF is definitely a keeper.. :)

And regarding your comments, hopefully Jake will be able to sort out this issue and keep his car.

My daughter is now 25 and still driving the 1996 4Runner I gave her in high school. Has over 250k miles now and still going strong.