Should I go with a Boxster?
 

Well, I just registered with the site and have been reading and taking in as much info as possible. Ive been tossing around the idea of purchasing a 01 Boxster S model. Overall are they good realiable vehicles? How much am I going to be looking at for expensises. I just turned 24, and was lucky enough to land a great job out of college... Just wondering if this will be for me. The way I look at it is I have no kids, no wife and this will probably be the only time in my life where I can say a Boxster is "practical" :D

Any thoughts?

- Jeff -

get a Boxster S will low miles, whatever your last inexpensive car cost to maintain well at least double that.

You might be too young for a BoxsterS, I suggest getting a 911.

hey jeff...

I was in the exact same position 2 years ago.....went with the boxster and never looked back..

.I def would have considered the repairs, expenses, etc....for instance in these 2 years I have replaced tires, O2 sesnor, seatbelt buckle a yearly maintenance and a 15K mile maitenance, next stop is a 30K maintenance, also not to forget all the little upgrades that I went with: tail lights....

I also use it as a daily driver and it more practical than i expected it to be....

By the way I'm 25 now.....

Another guy in the same situation checking in. I bought my Boxster the week I graduated college at 22. Like you, I had just landed a great job with a wonderful company, and wanted to enjoy what could be my last car (or one of the last) before becoming an "adult" with responsibilities such as children and wives. I just turned 23, and I have not looked back.

The only downside is that I just bought a house, and the Boxster has thrown a couple kinks in that. One is that I am going to need an old truck in addition to the Box, as I have always been and will continue to be a home-improvement-junkie. The other is that I would have had a lot more cash going into the home buying process had I not bought this car. But the more I think about it, the more I realize that not having that extra cash kept me from going way overboard into a house that was too big and useless for my needs.

So yes -- enjoy your youth -- get the Boxster!

P.S. My dad owned quite a formidable list of Shelbies, Boss Mustangs, etc, in his youth, and after putting three kids through college, he now drives a Ford F150 and a Nissan Altima. So if that is any indication of things to come -- GET THE BOXSTER WHILE YOU STILL CAN!!

Yeah, I think im deffinatly going with the Boxster... Its just a matter of finding one with everything I want; and in nice shape. Good news is that I will be keeping my 96 Toy 4Runner as my beater (family owns 100+ acres in the country and I cant give up my off roading toy!) It will also be nice for those snowy days we are accustomed to here in Cincinnati...

I just hope that I get a Boxster that doesnt turn out to be a money pit.

Wow....I think we're all in the same boat. I am 26 now, and love my boxster. I was thinking about an s2000, but I mean come on......I now own a Porsche, not a Honda.

Exactly! I was also kicking around the idea of a New Infinity G35 Coupe... But in all honesty, I want some of that German styling rather than some Nissan; excuse me I mean Infinity.

If you are like me, and if you are reading this web site and considering a Boxster, you must be like me, I say Go For It!. In my case, I have always owned higher priced and/or higher performing cars than most of my friends and family. I consider it a motivator as well as a reward. After a long day at the office, or a night meeting, when I walk outside and see my car, i think that the effort I put in to my career is worth it. Do not worry about the money. In life, there are many more inprotant things than a few bucks. If worse comes to worst, you can always sell it.

I'm reporting you to the admin for spewing hate.

Good one!

Seriously, a nice clean 01 Box S makes a fine car. If it was and is treated nicely, it will return same.

Best of luck!

PS- I have a nice clean 01 Box S for sale in classified, but of course, I am not biased in any way!

:p

My choices were, Brand New G35 SEDAN (Manual), used Honda S2000, and Brand New Nissan 350Z, Subaru WRX and of coarse hardly used 2000 Porsche Boxster S with 32,000 miles on it.

I have NEVER looked back after purchasing my Boxster S.

KRZ

Listen, Kid, (this could be your father talking) get your Porsche, make like Christopher Columbus, and discover America...

Life really is short ;)

This thread should've been called "who is a twenty something and owns a boxster." lol, I just turned 25 two weeks ago. The boxster is the young man's Porsche lol or the poor man's...however you want to look at it.

2 thoughts
a. Get the Boxster! Youth is a great time, and should be savored and enjoyed. I still remember the first I drove my Triumph at 100 mph...
b. Boy do I feel old. Pure coincidence, but I saw in PCA mag last night that the average age of a 911 buyer is 49, avg. age for Box is 40 (BruceLee - did I get the numbers right, mind slips as the years go by :) ). Hat's off to all the 20 somethings for having the rare wisdom to to enjoy life when you get the chance. Took me a little longer, but the boxster really is a great car, and I can't wait to get it on the track in June.
(I test drove a new RX-8, new 350Z and a 2001 box. No comparison - get the Boxster)
2001 2.7, speed yellow

I believe you are correct on those numbers.

Perhaps price has something to do with that, no?

;)

I'm all for the "buy while you're young" argument, but of course, sometimes reality bites you in the ass.

I always used to go by the three hundred dollar rule--if the car payments would end up being over $300 a month, then the car was unaffordable for me as I had too many other things I wanted to do in life.

If the car keeps you from doing the other things you want to do, it's not worth it. So, just factor in maintenance, insurance, payments and decide for yourself.

Oh, but what's all this talk about enjoying the car before you get older and won't be able to!? There will always be time for sports cars, no matter what decade you're in--no need to make excuses! :cool:

another thing to consider is that this is not just a mode of transportation.
Your car is also an entertainment expense. For me its also a hobby.
I get out aggressions in autocross/HPDE and spend infinite numbers of hours
cleaning it the next day.
Oh and if you are a single guy man you can not miss with Porsche ownership in your 20's. All of my friends have VERY expensive cars and always used to think that women being impressed by cars was bunk. That was not at all a factor in choosing this car if it were I would have bought a Merc or something. But as it turns out Girls/Women LOVE this little car. I'm very surprised. Las Saturday my friend's girlfriend's friends started oohing and ahhing and jumped into the drivers seat talking about how her father had the Boxster S and that she didn't know anyone "our age" who had one. I let her drive (in Stilleto heels!) and it was the scariest 15 minute commute of my life.

See that's what I mean by entertainment factor.

boxster?
 

CincyFreeze, get the newest , lowest mileage boxster you can afford, preferably certified. If you don't like it (I doubt it) you can always sell it. But don't sweat the "kids" issue, I didn't get my car until my son was in college, you can always get a Porsche later.

"Should I go with a boxster?"

Jeff, isn't that kind of a silly question to pose on a BOXSTER Forum filled with hundreds of elated BOXSTER owners? :D

Yup, I was 29 when I got mine.

Whaddayaknow, I'm 29 right now and just got mine. I don't feel like the girls really care though--I live in San Diego and Boxsters are everywhere. Alas.

A Boxster can be very reliable and used as a daily driver if maintained properly. The maintenance is more expensive than most cars $200 oil changes, more expenive parts, tires, etc. There were some engine issues and RMS issues, but those are mostly found on older Boxsters.

Here's the twist, I do recommend getting one, but save up the money first and then buy it outright with cash. Buy it debt free (unless you have good debt such as mortgage or education loan). Don't finance it - I don't recommend financing anything except a house (and education). My pops really wanted me to get a brand new merc or bmw or boxster right out of college when i scored my first job, and although i could have easily afforded a large payment, I am glad I didn't. I saved my money and invested (some of it wisely, some of it foolishly), and i finally bought a Boxster last year when I was 27. Too many of my friends are in cycles of revolving debt + car payments. If you do end up financing anyways, pay close attention to how easily you can afford the payment. If you would like information on a savings/budget plan or schedule, I'd be happy to make one up for you.

Sounds like you got a great job, congrats on that!

Peace,
Larez2

I guess I'll just add my name to the list of 20-somethings... except I don't have my Boxster. Yet. :)

larez22, can you expand upon the budget plan a bit? I imagine it's all specific to the individual but are there any general guidelines (don't spend more than x percent of your monthly income on car payments, etc.)? I'm new to this and don't want to break the bank and regret it years down the road.

WIVES???

Dude! Are you planning to get married in the future, or divorced and remarried over and over? I hope that was a typo or you're Mormon. :D

I've been married to the first wife (and my last wife, and only wife for that matter) for 18 years now, and I own a Boxster... won't be the only Porsche I own, that's for sure.

And I refuse to become an "adult", whatever you mean by that. I have a 12 year old boy trapped in a 43 year old body.

Yes, you can have a wife and family and a Porsche if you young men will only STAY OUT OF DEBT and start saving your money. That's what I did in my mid 20's, and now at 43 I could fiesably retire, although at my age it would be boring and I couldn't do nearly as much fun stuff with my free time as I can now, albeit a lot less free time.

I bought my Boxster about a month ago, NO REGRETS! It's fun to drive and it's a Porsche! It has that awesome distinct sound to it. I'm 35, married with a kid. Don't sweat it, it's my daily car and of course my daugther enjoys it too. She rides shotgun with dad everyday to school. I bought her the Porsche Zoom child restraint seat. The only bummer is that I mommy gets left out. :mad: I told her maybe it's time for a Carrera :D She gave me the green light after xmas. :cheers: So Porsche + wife + kid = zen!! So don't think twice if you find a deal jump on it.

Hahaha, yes the "wives" was a typo. I'm scared enough about getting married once, but the financial aspect (not to mention others -- like mental health!) of getting divorced and remarried like so many people consider "normal" now scares me!!

But yeah, I'm working on that whole "stay out of debt" thing right now. Just out of college 6 months ago, so I'm doing some catching up right now, but hey -- I just bought a house for 20% under value, and my roommates are paying my mortgage for me! So I would think I'm on the right track... :-)

7 days and counting....
 

What a great posting - some awesome stories!!

I'm 30, married, with no kids, and in one week, I will be the proud owner of a midnight blue 2000 2.7 Boxster that has done 30,000 miles. To me, owning a Boxster represents the following:
1. Rewarding my hard work, rewarding my past conservatism (Ford, Toyota, Ford, Jeep), with a quality german engineering
2. Becoming part of an elite club of individuals who take pleasure in driving some of the greatest produciton cars in the world
3. Creating a sense of identity - buying something that my friends and colleagues will identify me with.
4. This is my "diamond ring".

Come on - lets face it - there is no sensible justification to buy a Porsche - if we were all as conservative as I am, we'd be driving cheap Chevies our whole life. It is all about reward. I have worked hard through my career (graduated college young (20)), spent 10 years with a great company. I have yearned from a young age to own a Porsche (specifically a Boxster), saved and invested a lot of cash, and now have the cash to easliy afford this car, both to purchase, insure and maintain without impacting my lifestyle (giving up good wine for a porsche?.... no way!!).

To the young guns straight out of college wanting to get straight into heavy debt to buy this car to look "cool", I tend to side with Larez2 - buying any heavily depreciating item on credit just makes bad economic sense from whatever way you look at it. Buy something cheap and reliable that you can pay off quick and establish good credit, work for 5 years, save some money, then buy with outright cash. But if you are lucky enough to have the cash, make the decision to buy quality, realising that if you want to play in this game, you will also have to "pay" in this game (i.e. we don't want to hear your whimpers about $'000 services....). Go and read the technical forum, and just see how bad things can really get!!

Wish me luck folks - and to the site moderators - you are doing a fine job!!

The Kiwi in New Orleans (now in Houston).

My new Excuse
 

Well, here's how I am going to play it out......

1) Drive and love my boxster for a few years.

2) Wife and I have a kid in a couple years.

3) Well, sorry wife....I need a 997 S so the kid can sit in the back, sell the Boxster.


Looks like a solid plan to me.

KRZ

Good idea!!
 

That's my plan!! My wifes loves Porsches so there will be no problems there!!

Ah the wife loves Porches today, but tomorrow when a baby's room and lots of bills piling up for private school or daycare or whatever will make her like it a lot less and something else a lot more... bigger house, SUV or minivan, etc.

Life always gets in the way of fancy sports cars for some reason unless you're a guy like me without kids and without debt. Then Porsche ownership can be as important as the air I breathe.

But I applaud all you 20 somethings for doing well enough in your chosen careers to buy a new or used Boxster! Just don't hock your left nut to buy a rolling debt machine thinking, "If I don't get my Porsche now, I will never get it!"

That's short sighted thinking and all things come to those who wait. <--not a very popular statement for younger adults to read, but all you 40+ guys reading this know what I mean, huh?

21 when i bought my Boxster S Guards Red
 

I'm 22 now and i have an 03 Boxster S.

I love her dearly and have no regrets. To this day I only owe 11k on her, and am paying her off by end of year =)

I don't know if there is anything better then being young, free, successful and a women in society ;)

Oh yea and owning a beautiful car.

Good on you
 

Good on you Leslie!!!

Is there anything more attractive than a young, free, successful woman with the brains to understand what kind of a car the Boxster is? Talk about having the whole package. I think I'm in love!

30 and a boxster owner. No debt and no regrets. Randall hit the nail on the head...Save Save Save. Don't owe anyone a thing and Compound Interest is a lot more beautiful than
"being young, free, successful and a women in society"

Hmmmm...compound interest.

I'm com-pounded everyday =) I do agree on the save save, hense paying the car off by end of year! =)

Right one Leslie...Cheers!

OK, I am turning 31 and have a wife and 2 year old and I'm going to be getting a boxster next week. If you are getting the car in fear you won't be able to "enjoy life" later that's a bad idea. Yes it's good to get what you want, but remember, the more you can save now the better things will be later.
Had I gone by that philosiphy when I was 20 and put money away I could be buying a 911 next week instead. :)
Just do your best to get all the research done, not just the price of the car, and the price of maintenance, but consider the price of insurance as well. 21-30 is still a bad age for insurance regardless of discounts.
I did some research on maintenance and it seems this car will cost about the same, or less, than my 3000gt did. only $9.00 per spark plug compared to $14.00, only $260 for a clutch compared to $350 and up.. I'm pretty sure wear items aren't expensive, but the cost of labor is what is going to rip most people apart. If you are considering a high $$ car like this, think about picking up a service manual and learning a little bit about doing your own work, it saved me thousands upon thousands of $$ on my 3000gt...
:)
Good luck with the purchase though, if you decide to go that route. From everything I've read, and every car I test drove the boxster seems like it's the right choice for everyone.
Oh, and when it's time to have a wife or two and a kid or two you can always buy an old honda or something to toss the fam in. :)

Way to go Leslie. Right out of college/post grad - I purchased a Triumph Spitfire and drove a Toyota to work; in my late 20's I bought a BMW 325i and a house, in my 30's I had kids, upgraded to another house and recently bought (cash) a 2002 Boxster S (6 speed) ,send daughter to pvt school and son hangs out at home (too young). It can be done - totally agree that SAVING right out of college and investing wisely is a must. BTW I am a "chick" and love cars. So if you can do it early go for it. Also agree that all things come to those who wait. :cheers:

I'll add my story to this as well. Had a 99 Boxster when I was 29 and got engaged. Loved the car, bought new construction house, got married at 30, got pregnant, sold Boxster, bought Hummer H2, wife took H2 and I got the 01 325i, sold the H2, bought new X5, sold 325i and just bought 02 Boxster S. The boxster is a pretty practical car. I thought I wanted to buy a G35 coupe till I drove it (YUCK).

No one can make the financial decisions for you but I am sure that everyone will agree that saving is the way to go. Einstein said "man's greatest invention is compound interest."

Service isn't too bad to me.

Think Boxster's are expensive try boating!

--JK

Hey sweet ride Leslie. I couldn't have picked a better car myself lol! You beat me to the punch though, I was 23 when I got mine and now a ripe old 25.