What do you think?

[z12358]

"...by that point I should be in a position to purchase a new 997, which is what I really want."

So you'd be willing to spend $30k more for a 997 which has the same "issues" as 987 and 986? You are rightly forewarned that Porsche will cost more to maintain than a Nissan, but the same can be said about Ferrari, Aston Martin, and every other high-performance, high-precision car. Even regular maintenance will indeed cost more. Fixing a problem, indeed even more so.

Personally, I think Porsches are designed to lure their drivers into driving them hard. My Box rpm needle resides in the 4k+ area much more often then the needle in my Maxima. Still, there are no 30 year old Maxima's doing hard track laps at DE events (not that I've seen).

Nothing bad with playing it safe. But more often than not, it's only by taking some risk that you get an extraordinary reward.
Z.

[longislander1]

I'd go for the Infiniti now and trade up to a Porsche later. Also, as cars continue to get better and better, I'm not sure your next choice will be limited to a Porsche. As I read all of the stories about Porsche's spotty dealer service, problems such as RMS and other kinds of engine failures, and the secretiveness of the manufacturer, I'm not sure MY next car will be a Porsche. The problems seem to be pretty widespread for a manufacturer with such limited production. If you took all of these stories and replaced the brand with "Cadillac," you'd probably say, "Well, what do you expect from GM?" But when you're spending $60k from a manufacturer with a mythical reputation for engineering and you end up with a low-mileage engine failure (as I've read about here and on other boards a number of times), you have to think twice about Porsche.

As Porsche continues to expand its product line, while ignoring both manufacturing defects and its customers, other brands will start to look better. If I had my druthers today, I'd seriously consider a BMW 330i. The sticker is over $16K less than my '05 987S and you appear to get an awful lot more for your money, including free routine service (as opposed to Porsche's $250 oil changes). If BMW would produce a Z4M that had a higher quality interior and wasn't so weird looking, it, too, would be a much better value than a 987S.

My point is that you should go for the reliability and performance of the Infiniti, work your way up in the world and by the time you're ready for a Porsche, there will be many other choices.

[Perfectlap]

Its a good time to be Boxster buyer. I see you are in New York. Try and hire a car broker that is familiar with th Pennsylvania (Manheim) Porsche auctions. Try and find as low a mileage 2000 or newer BoxsterS. If you buy a 2nd hand boxster from dealer odds are he picked up his Boxster he's selling you as a trade in or at one of these auctions.
Tons of 03 and 04 Boxsters are coming back form leases so they send them to these auctions for Non-porsche dealers. I have lots of friends who lease their sports cars to reduce the deprecitation although either way they are putting out allot of money they won't be getting back. Meanwhile the dealer sells that well maintained lease returned sports car for a nice price to the 2nd owner. win win for them. Get your Boxster wholesale if you can, well worth the effort.