'04 Boxster S or '09 Boxster?

[Salt1972]

Hello all. I'm new to 986 Forum.

Have owned a number of German performance cars through the years. The latest was a 2017 M2. I now need the utility of an SUV day to day, but would like to add a second car. In order to justify 2 vehicles, I'll need to venture a bit older to get into the budget range.

I've found an '04 Boxster S with 41k miles and an '09 Boxster with 89k miles. Both are clean and have full service records and appear to be in good condition, accident free, etc. Both are similarly priced.

What wisdom would the experts here offer toward narrowing that decision and vetting pre-purchase?

Thanks in advance.

[rexcramer]

I had an 09 S PDK that was a very nice car. If the IMS issue is a concern for you, the 09 is the first year of a new engine design and does not have one. I sold it about 15 months ago for $24K with+/- 30k on the odo.

[flmont]

Its said,..there is less chance of engine issue's with the 09' engine's and ( IIRC ) No direct injection in that year either,.,.But my thought is lower mileage car's wont need new parts,.as soon as higher mileage cars will...Plus,. which car do you like to look at more !

[911monty]

Similarly Priced???? Either the 04 is way optimistic on price or the 09 is hiding something. Otherwise the 09 by a wide margin.

[husker boxster]

Performance-wise, they are similar.

The big question with the 04S is whether the IMS has been changed. $2500-3000 if not (incl IMS, clutch, & RMS).

The big question with the 09 base, if PDK, is whether the trans fluid has been flushed. This yr requires 6 yr / 60 mi service. $700-1000 at dealer if necessary.

Tires for either would be $800-1200. Brake pads ~ $300 for parts. Check oil intervals on the receipts - you want 5-8K mi btwn changes. Esp important for the 04S since at the time it was new, Porsche & Mobil had too long of intervals.

[NewArt]

I have an 04 S and a 2010 S. I know you're looking at the base but the 10 is a much more sophisticated car. The 986 gives a more raw experience. The 987.2 engine does give you more peace of mind

[Andy804]

Another thing to look out for is all the rubber bits like bushings, CV boots, motor mount, etc. Despite the lower mileage of the '04, these things may be deteriorating just due to age. The '09 similarly may be running into these problems but more because of the higher mileage. Obviously, for both cars, it would be more reassuring to me if more of these components have been replaced in the past few years.

And my opinion is that just because both have full service records I would still have a thorough inspection/PPI done since issues can come up after the last service inspection. In general, go with the one that is in better condition but if all that separates these two are minor issues, I would go with the '09.