I am instilled with confidence about buying a Boxster

[blue2000s]

About once a month or so someone's first post on the board is exactly the same as yours, they thought about buying a Boxster, read the forum, got scared, and looked for comfort from current owners. It's kind of amusing.

[Lucky]

PPI = pre-purchase inspection. This is a thorough going over by a qualified Porsche mechanic looking for accident repairs and any mechanical flaws.

As far as options go, there are many and they vary by year. Big ones are xenon headlights (litronics), updated stereos, 18" & 19" wheels, and full leather.

If you share your price target, we can guide you to the best years and options that fit your budget.

[sd_boxster]

I've had my '03 for 2 years (bought it certified pre owned from a dealership with 22K miles on it) and love it more than the day I bought it. I autocross it, drive it harder than most, and maintain it rigorously, and it's been trouble-free so far.

Maybe it'll last for 100K miles, maybe it'll grenade sooner than later, but either way, it's been worth it for me. I bought a $60K car for $25K, and I figure I've gotten $1K a month in fun out of it since, so everything from here on out is gravy!

[ekam]

At least he's not asking "Can I afford a boxster for $500 a month? Ok what about $600?"

Worse case scenario, have $10k in your bank account so if the engine blows you can get another one put in.

Or just have the IMS retrofit done.

[nasomi]

I was looking in the 20k range price-wise. However I don't like to put hard numbers on things, it sometimes makes you compromise on what you want, and I'm not a big fan of compromises.

Yeah, I have to have 10k set aside at any given time in case my truck engine grenades.

So the IMS retrofit solves the weak point in the engine making it much more reliable?

[harryrcb]

I'm surprised no one mentioned to get a Boxster "S" or did I miss it. I got an 04 S 2 years ago, have over 51k on it, track it every DE session drive really hard, take it to every Auto Cross, drive really hard, I think the secret is to drive it often, change your oil and filter often at least every 5k and you should not have problems, if you are really afraid you get the IMS (intermediate shaft) bearing changed
A friend of mine has the same year S and he tracks it with me only his has nearly 100k on it without an IMS upgrade
So I say go for it, the only options really worth anything are the litronic lights and the bose speaker system IMO. then you can go crazy like me and put on every mod ever made ( I also had 2 AOS failures but finally decided to go with the motorsport AOS) so far so good.

[nasomi]

I actually just discovered the boxster s. I think an 00+ boxster s is what i'm looking for. 00-01 is listed as 249hp and 02-04 is listed as 255hp, vs the 201-218hp of the non-s's through the years. I am gonna call a guy about an 01 6speed boxster s with 45k and 18" pirelli's. I'll let you know how i make out. For the record I'm not looking to auto-cross, i drive a mammoth vehicle every other day of hte week, I just want a spirited drive here and there. When I do drive, I drive hard though.