Newbee here, 99 Boxster, 800 mile journey, can use some help

[99BoxsterATL]

Well hello! I just picked up a '99 Boxster with only 38K miles on, well 38K after my 800 mile journey after flying out to Dallas from Atlanta to pick it up. Took a flight for 120 bucks to dallas and bought my new car from an ebayer and drove it 800 miles home back to atlanta, all within 21 hours and no stops for rest, just gas! I must say, I did a very ballsy move. First buying a car from ebay with out seeing it in person and then assuming all is good to make it all the way back home! Whew... glad it's over.

So far I am very excited to have the car. I got a great deal on it so I justified the trip. There are a couple things wrong with it though. The passenger windshield wiper works when it wants to. I read in another thread there is a bolt to tighten somewhere. Can someone help me here?

The other item is that the horn does not work. I believe there is a short as putting a new fuse only frys it. It may be the relay if I am lucky. So far I tried to pull the relay out and it's a sunuma******************** to get out. Wasn't able to. Is there a technique to this. I mean, I'm no pussy, it just won't come out!

Anyways, hope I can find some help out there and wanted to introduce myself to the group. I am excited to be a porsche owner now.

Oh yeah! one last thing. I click on someone thread title, and I can't read their original post, just all the responses. Am I doing something wrong here?

[djomlas]

a 99 with low miles is a ballsy move...those are the cars prone to engine failures.
did u get a PPI?

[99BoxsterATL]

It came with a 72 month/ 72 thousand mile aftermarket warranty that started in '03. It just had the seal replaced b/t engine and trnasmission picked up by previous owner, as well as all fluids drained and replaced, new oil plug and threads for the plug. It was close to $2,800 previous owner paid for. Other receipts show that there was a slight weld break in the exhaust that was fixed. As far as PPI, I do not know what that stands for, but then again it could be everything I just stated that came with the car. Personal Protection Insurance? Fill me in here.

[wvicary]

First all congrads on the car and second, to repair the wiper just pop off the little black cap where the wiper arm meets the shaft... you'll then see a nut- I thinks it's 13mm in size- and snug it up.

Be carefull not to over tighten it as people have damaged or broken the shaft in the past and take the time to rest the wiper blade/arm in it's correct position on the window before tightening.

As for the relays, they can a bugger to pull out of the relay box.... carefully wiggle the relay slightly back and forth while pulling. Thats always worked in the past for me. I've also heard that the horns are of very poor quality so you might have more then one problem.

[vijen6]

Almost the same thing I did.

Bought a 01 S off ebay from LA, so 600+ miles for me.

Flight from SJC -> LAX $90 (for two ppl)
Taxi cab ride $60
Two tanks of gas $80
Misc food on the way $40
Two front tires $350
Alignment $200

3 month of trouble free perma-grin .. priceless

*knock on wood*

[djomlas]

PPI is pre purchase inspection done at either the dealer or a different mechanic that has no affiliation/benefit if the car sells or not

[z12358]

Originally Posted by 99BoxsterATL

It came with a 72 month/ 72 thousand mile aftermarket warranty that started in '03. It just had the seal replaced b/t engine and trnasmission picked up by previous owner, as well as all fluids drained and replaced, new oil plug and threads for the plug. It was close to $2,800 previous owner paid for. Other receipts show that there was a slight weld break in the exhaust that was fixed. As far as PPI, I do not know what that stands for, but then again it could be everything I just stated that came with the car. Personal Protection Insurance? Fill me in here.

Congrats on the Box and welcome.
PPI = Pre-Purchase Inspection . Most everyone here wouldn't think of buying a used Porsche without one.

Regarding your problem reading posts. Could it be that you are clicking on to the last page of a thread? To get to the beginning of a thread click on page 1.

[boxsterx]

congratulations on the purchase! welcome to the club!

[unklekraker]

wohoo...welcome to the forum! defintely a ballsy move buying it without seeing it first we have the same MY '99 Arena REd
don't worry too much about the issues that you are going to run into...have fun and enjoy your car first

BTW...wheres the pix ? j/k!

[djomlas]

if sht breaks...fix it. otherwise enjoy it.

[smagerstein]

Enjoy enjoy enjoy,

Thats all I can say.

Have had my 02 Box for 5 weeks now and man.......shame its about to snow here (no snow tyres).

Everytime I get into it it just like heaven. Havnt seen my wife in daylight hours now for a month!!

Enjoy it for what it is. If something goes wrong then you will just have to fix it.

Cheers,

Steven

[djomlas]

ooo nice man, headlights and markers look nice.

nice color combo as well.

and once again, enjoy it, and hopefully u make it to one of our chicago meets once the weather clears up.

[Bavarian Motorist]

The last page, final reply, shows the OP's post. Don't know why lol.

CONGRATS! How do you like it so far???

[99BoxsterATL]

Thanks for all the feedback, How do I post a picture up here??? Do I have to hyper link or can I just attach it to a message?

So far my thoughts on the car... well I am scared ****************less to drive it too much as every comment I get on the porsche is in reponse to how I will have problems with it. Last thing I want is to feel like I am skating on ice with it. My transmission light blinks in Drive, and no lights in the 1-5 gears, then it will get in 5 gear at higher speeds and the D will stop blinking, then allowing me to go to Manual or stay in Drive and all lights adjust (1-5) at the corresponding speeds. (I have tiptronic) Otherwise if the D is blinking I cannot put it in Manual until it's reach a 4th or 5th gear. Manual says the transmission is confused in what mode it is in and to bring it to Porsche. I don't want to do this!! I have tried switching b/t the two to make it figure itself out, but seams it only does at high speeds. Is there any easy way to fix this? reset button --> on/off/left/right/ up/ down/ start/ start/ reset twice and load back up?

I tried fixing my horn, but as soon as I put a new fuse in and hit the horn, it blew for a few seconds and then the fuse blew up and sparked. I need to replace the relay and hope that works.

As far as the performance goes... not bad. Handles well, my new set of tires will allow me to get grip around the turns as right now the car will keep going straight and not grab enough. I purchased a new set shipping into Discount Tire right now. Last owner had put the upgraded S wheels 17" or correct me if I am wrong if it's part of the Sport Package which is on my car.

I have a body shop behind my house that just looked at it and we decided to swap services in order for me to get a couple dings out and get a couple scratches painted. Other than that this car is like brand freaking new. It looks fantastic. It really does!

I can't come up with why the prices on these cars are so low. I look at ebay where I got it, and barely anyone is bidding on these (97-2001) $7K-15K. That's what scares me. Do people know something about these cars that I am just learning about?

This won't be a daily driver, and I can justify keeping it w/ my extended warranty on it, but from what I see, to use as a daily driver will hit you hard in the pocket book. Please disagree with me if you would like. I want more confidence in my purchase.

And tell me about posting pics!

[MNBoxster]

Originally Posted by 99BoxsterATL

Thanks for all the feedback, How do I post a picture up here??? Do I have to hyper link or can I just attach it to a message?

So far my thoughts on the car... well I am scared ****************less to drive it too much as every comment I get on the porsche is in reponse to how I will have problems with it. Last thing I want is to feel like I am skating on ice with it. My transmission light blinks in Drive, and no lights in the 1-5 gears, then it will get in 5 gear at higher speeds and the D will stop blinking, then allowing me to go to Manual or stay in Drive and all lights adjust (1-5) at the corresponding speeds. (I have tiptronic) Otherwise if the D is blinking I cannot put it in Manual until it's reach a 4th or 5th gear. Manual says the transmission is confused in what mode it is in and to bring it to Porsche. I don't want to do this!! I have tried switching b/t the two to make it figure itself out, but seams it only does at high speeds. Is there any easy way to fix this? reset button --> on/off/left/right/ up/ down/ start/ start/ reset twice and load back up?

I tried fixing my horn, but as soon as I put a new fuse in and hit the horn, it blew for a few seconds and then the fuse blew up and sparked. I need to replace the relay and hope that works.

As far as the performance goes... not bad. Handles well, my new set of tires will allow me to get grip around the turns as right now the car will keep going straight and not grab enough. I purchased a new set shipping into Discount Tire right now. Last owner had put the upgraded S wheels 17" or correct me if I am wrong if it's part of the Sport Package which is on my car.

I have a body shop behind my house that just looked at it and we decided to swap services in order for me to get a couple dings out and get a couple scratches painted. Other than that this car is like brand freaking new. It looks fantastic. It really does!

I can't come up with why the prices on these cars are so low. I look at ebay where I got it, and barely anyone is bidding on these (97-2001) $7K-15K. That's what scares me. Do people know something about these cars that I am just learning about?

This won't be a daily driver, and I can justify keeping it w/ my extended warranty on it, but from what I see, to use as a daily driver will hit you hard in the pocket book. Please disagree with me if you would like. I want more confidence in my purchase.

And tell me about posting pics!

Hi,

The issue you're having with the Tiptronic is most likely a misaligned switch at the tranny, or a 'gunked up' shift linkage mechanism. I had the same issue with mine when I 1st purchased it.

The Dealer (not where I bought it) pulled the linkage and cleaned and tightened it and the problem was solved. 2 Years later, problem has not returned. As I review the invoice I see they charged me $168 for this and retrieving the radio code. They may have thrown the Radio code in for free I don't know. If they did, expect the bill to be slightly lower. Hope this helps...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

[leify01]

Lets see bought 2003 Box S, after 3 days of fun, car would not start on 7th day of sitting in garage.... It was simply the fuel pump (as per dealership).. any who, other then that I'm looking forward to driving it once again... It black with an almost jade color interior.. has anyone seen this color or can tell me what it is called?

[IMG]c:\my documents\My pictures\Car\inside.jpg[/IMG]

[djomlas]

go to www.tinypic.com and upload a picture, and it will tell u how to post it up

[unklekraker]

or go to photobucket.com and use the img. link instead of the url or tag when posting pix here. just make sure that it won't cover the whole screen or thread thru experience why i'm sharing it, dj would know why...ahahahahaha!

[99BoxsterATL]

let's try this here...

[IMG][/IMG]

[99BoxsterATL]

Tinypic.com I believe is the easiest way to post a pic! Thanks for the help. Here's the new car. I am having a local body shop repair all dings and scratches so it will look brand spanking new when done.
[IMG][/IMG]