Starting my Box
 

Still getting to know my Boxster and have a couple of questions:

1. While it starts up beautifully and sounds great, it does emit a fairly large cloud of smoke (greyish) and has a heavy gas smell. Only lasts a second or two, idle feels smooth. Is this maybe normal for a higher performance vehicle? Or is it cause I have the roof down and I just notice it more?

2. As far as parking it in my garage - is it better, or does it matter, if it's parked with the top up or down? Better to close it to stretch it out and avoid lines in the top, but then I'm opening and closing it more and that will wear out the parts quicker. What's better? I usually only drive it with the top down.

Thanks

I noted your other post about a strong gas smell, as well as this one about seeing a cloud of grey smoke and a gas smell when the car starts. I would suggest hooking up a fuel pressure test gauge to the car, starting it and running it for a moment of two (note the running fuel pressure), then shutting it off (again noting the static fuel pressure a few moments after the car is shut off). Let the car sit for 30 min. to an hour, and check the non running static fuel pressure; if it has dropped, you have one or more leaking injectors, which is what is causing the smoke and gas smell.

What he said :)

How many miles are on the car?

It's an 02 with just over 140,000kms on it (approx. 87,000 miles?). I understood though if it was injector related, it would most likely cause some rough idling and possible misfires? Idles and runs smooth - although I have noticed the fuel economy is slightly low (computer shows 23.5 MPG) Expected slightly higher as it's mostly highway miles.

Not really, it depends upon how and when it leaks.