Purchase Opinion please
 

Iam thinking about buying a 02' Boxster ( sadly not a S ) Has 80 K miles,seems to have a lot of options only missing rear defrost I think, has PSM, Trip computer, Cruise C., heated seats , Pwr seats , Bose system, and the last owner spent very near 9K, on new clutch, new AOS, new MAF , 1 window regulator, and a few other misc items,.In a year and a half time frame,they ONLY did the intermediate shaft PLATE. and RMS, the shop said owner did not want to do the IMS bearing,therefore is was not done,and they said it could not be checked without pulling it,..the cam deviation test would not have revealed anything with said bearing. car is selling for 9500.00 ?? looks nice in the pics,.take the plunge,.. I have seen the invoices ?? Thanks !

I would suggest getting a qoute for installing an IMS kit add that to price of car and decide if its worth it to you! You know do you just have to have that one, there are plenty around. Also check the going sales prices for similiar cars in your area. Just strange to me the owner would do all that work and not have IMS installed too. But smarter guys on this forum than me will have good advice.

Don't fret too much between an S and Base. There is not that much difference between the two other than some low end torque. In the medium to high rev range one's as quick as the other. Buy the best condition boxster you can. I also agree to add in the ims cost in your negotiations if you think that is something you will seriously do.

40hp on a 200 something hp car is not nothing. Power difference is for sure noticeable

You say "sadly not an S..." well will you regret not having an 'S'? There are differences
Not sure where you are geographically but $9500- $10500 US would get you an 'S'. $9k without IMSB seems like a lot $$$ but you may find this car fits the bill for you.

My opinion, negotiate a lower price, 9.5K is too high for an 80K mileage non-S.

. . .or just keep looking.

The S is not the most important thing to me,I like all the options and the fact that it had a lot of work done on the car, I to dont understand why the IMS wasnt replaced ,and it will be a pain to do all that work to replace it..for sure.but its the first car ive run across that has ppwk,..and yes a cheaper price would not hurt..!!

plus what is the intermediate shaft plate,..and why replace just that.?

NADA books it with options @ $10,775 clean retail in CO. Price is in the ballpark. Not sure I would sweat the IMS at that mileage, but tough call. The “plate” is the cover of the bearing. You still want to get a PPI regardless. Check cam deviations, etc.

agree. lowball too much and you'll negotiate yourself out of the deal

KBB shows $6462-$9859 (between private parties)

well this is on a corner car lot in Phx,az...and the reason iam considering it is because I have copies of those receipts and the previous owners phone number,.I just havent spoken with him yet..hoping I can soon

Man, you need to come to other parts of the country where prices are reasonable. That being said, given the car is on a 'corner lot', I'd suggest that the dealer isn't even into the car for $6K. Negotiate the heck out of it if its what you want.

The transaction isn't personal. No seller will be 'insulted' with any offer. That's just stupid.

The S in Colorado with its mountains and altitude may be more important to you than to us flatlanders at 200 feet. To me it wasn't as the base meant I could keep my foot on the right hand pedal longer. Owned both. And at least that base is a 2.7 and thus 26 HP more than my 2.5 was.

Is the top original? The '03-'04 would have the glass window. How clear are the headlights?

I don't like the sound of the "cam deviation wouldn't reveal". Any warranty since it is not a private sale? Will they allow a PPI?

I collect Porsche Acronyms. PPWS = ?

As it turns out I spoke with the owner and in the last 6 month's ..he has done about 11000.00 worth of maint.work,..clutch and flywheel, RMS ,only the IMshaft plate,new MAF,new AOS,new coolant tank,new top with glass window,new tires,also re-upholstered the seats in leather,new windshield, he also owned it for 5 yrs,and said it does NOT use oil. ,lot offered it at 9K. So I hope to purchase next week..!!if it all checks out.

and mikefocke the PPWK,...means paper work,.sorry for that confusion,...Frank

Kinda to good to be true,.but I do have receipts for all the mechanical work,.he has all the other paper work he said he could prove it all..?? we shall see.Thanks

Get a PPI done by a shop. That should help worth your decision.

With all the work that has been done, the price is not too bad. I bet you could negotiate a price between $8500 and $9000. Parts and labor for replacing the IMSB alone should be $1500-$1800. You're unlikely to find a good example with a new IMSB for under $10k.

You cant totally figure in a return for doing normal maintenance that was done on a car. Yes well maintained ect... will help price but in the end the car is only worth what book value of similiar milage cars are going plus a bump in condition.

Since its on a car lot makes me wonder why, with all that work put into it. Seems to me cars taken well care move between enthusiast more often than being traded in. Whiever traded to a big hit in value to get out from under it.

As luck would have it,..I buy the car for 9K, The good news,..Interior is very nice its clean no rips Etc,Exterior also nice a very dings (you notice if you look),Runs great ,I think the 2.7 Ltr after 3K RPM pulls fine test drove about a half hr before purchase Hot dogged it pretty hard,.no issues (on Sat).Go for a drive last night,Hot dogged it again ran great ,.got fuel got in the driveway about a 20 min drive and CHECK ENGINE Light is ON and still on,.gas cap secure, damn,. Ideas... Thanks Frank

We need to know what code(s) is prompting the CEL. Once you get a scanner on it, we can help more.

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Cunningr,..I was told the PO fixed it up for a friend to purchase,then the friend backed out,I was shocked to find on a corner lot( PO just sold it to them ) which I have never and would never buy from,But, I got the invoice's from the salesperson,called people about it,..it all checked out So I purchased it,..it had 9800.00 in very recent receipts Oct, Nov 2018 plus new top with defrost feature on a glass window update,new brigstone tire's and even misc work done on it 6 months ago,.o2 sensor,new belt tentioner,rear brakes' just unbelievable,..I'am buying the PO,...several lunches for his Kindness !!,..BUT expect possible issue's with check engine lite,..79.525 miles,..Maybe,..Just 80 K service lite,.LOL Ive been lucky enough so far..So we shall see..Iam sure my streak is over !

No automated "just time for service" light. Gotta know the codes to have any idea. Blinking or just solid? Blinking? Get flatbedded. Solid, ok but just to someone who can read the code, With any luck, a generic code reader will pick it up and then you can post here and people will help. But some systems only a special Porsche aware computer can read and those are usually at good Porsche specializing shops or Dealers. Durametric, PST2 or PIWIS.

So Far a solid light no blinking,.

Enjoy, I love mine! I am just a leary shopper, my Dad sold used cars! Lol

LOL,..Yea me to.. I wanted to buy 2 others before this car,..but they got sold after being on those lots for several months, I get interested and they sold them both within a day or so of my decision to buy,So this time with all the info its either buy it or wave good bye So I bought it,..!!

results are kinda in on the PPI,..I had done today,..Solid check engine light,.is 02 sensors,.it just passed emissions a week prior, bad motor and tranny mounts or will be soon and I have a smokey oil smell or burnt oil smell,they said spark plug tubes are leaking on exhaust. ??
:confused:

O2 sensors and Spark Plug Tubes are easy and relatively cheap fixes. You should be doing a happy dance if those are the only significant findings ! :dance:
Enjoy the car and post a photo or two! Congrats!

And both are common at the age of these cars. One little thing to keep in mind if you do the tubes yourself (plugs too while you’re there) is the old tubs can be brittle and crack/break. Just be a little careful removing. There are several threads on tool hacks to get it done. It’s quite easy, and make sure you do all of them + o-rings.

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General wisdom says do not buy a Boxster in Colorado, they're horribly overpriced in this state - like most car brands are (for some reason cars are just $1,000-5,000 more to buy here than elsewhere for the same miles and condition).

I bought mine in California and road tripped it back because it was about $3,000 cheaper, even counting the cost of flights, fuel, food, and a good shop to inspect the car. I was able to get a well-optioned 2000 Boxster S with full maintenance records and a 2005 3.4L Cayman S engine swap done in 2005 with 100,000/54,000 (chassis/engine) miles on it for $8,000. Heated sport seats, heated glass rear window, M030 suspension, Litronic headlights, sport classic wheels, and the full navigation package.

Here is one data point of anecdotal evidence about used car prices in Colorado. I sold my 2012 Acura TL on Craigslist here in NJ 30 minutes after I listed it. The buyer was a used car dealer. He told me the bulk of his main business was buying used cars here and shipping them west to resell them for more money, and that is what he would do with my car. My car was fairly clean but not perfect by any means and had 128.000 miles on it. I was looking to get on the lower end of KBB private sale and got the KBB trade-in price, and I was a happy camper selling my car in one day.

Yea,..that is a sweet buy for sure,..This car was a SoCal-AZ car from the start

and yes,.I do intend on doing the mounts ,tubes ,Etc myself. If I decided to do the IMS solution is that something I can do myself,.or is it smart to let the approved vendor shop install it,I may also look for a low mileage engine and then do it,..and let the original engine just run until something happens.80 K on current engine,..??