986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners - View Single Post - Buying my first Porsche

husker boxster · 07-25-2009, 05:12 PM

Ahh, the seductive call of the siren that is a "cheap" Boxster. Many a new owner has crashed onto the rocks chasing her voice.

Mr K, I would be very wary of what you're thinking of doing. Buying a Porsche is entry into the Big Boys Club. Maintence is definitely included as part of that membership fee. Everything on a Porsche is expensive - parts are typically 4X normal cost and who knows what the labor cost can be. If you're mechanically inclined, Boxsters are relatively easy to work on and you can save some $$$ (sorry, don't have a Euro sign) that way. But if you're on a budget and scraping up every cent to buy a questionable Boxster, you're going to be very disappointed when you can't afford the maintenance. And if you have to have someone else do the work, be ready to pay through the nose. Boxster S' in the vintage you're looking at have a history of needing window regulators, rear wheel bearings, and front suspension pieces replaced. Plus 4 tires cost $800-$1200.

I call this Boxster questionable because if the owner has the nerve to present it with a CEL on, what else is he hiding? And as Brucelee says, how do you know it's the O2 sensor? Boxsters can throw CELs for several reasons. IF you have the stones to buy this car and you don't have a Porsche mechanic look at it, you're getting a cat in the sack. Based on the description you gave of its condition, it doesn't sound like it was well maintained. There are probably lots of problems lurking, just waiting for the next owner.

Which leads me to my next topic. I don't suppose there's a Porsche dealership on your island? Derek Warwick may have been a cracker F1 driver and a stand up owner of a Honda dealership, but the key point is can his dealership work on Porsches? Or is there a good independant Porsche mechanic on the island? If the answer is 'no' to all 3 questions, then owning a Porsche could become very expensive, regardless of whether you buy the one you're looking at or a garage queen. Even garage queens have the problems I listed above. Not sure how you tow a car from island to island.

You mentioned a friend who has a 996TT. Did he buy it new or was it a garage queen? Comparing a new or well maintained Porsche vs a poorly maintained one is not a valid comparison. A poorly maintained example will always cost more in order to catch up to a maintained one. The good news is you can pick his brain on how he handles maintenance and get some idea from him on the high costs associated with Porsches. Use this key reference that's at your disposal.

If you've already decided to buy it, there's probably nothing we can tell you that will alter your decision. Just go into the deal with your mind doing the thinking, not your heart. Remember, you don't HAVE to buy this car. My dad used to say there's always another car around the corner (I've found this is true about women, too).

I hope you make a sound decision. Best of luck.

Husker

07-25-2009, 05:12 PM	#8
husker boxster Registered User Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Omaha Posts: 2,870	Ahh, the seductive call of the siren that is a "cheap" Boxster. Many a new owner has crashed onto the rocks chasing her voice. Mr K, I would be very wary of what you're thinking of doing. Buying a Porsche is entry into the Big Boys Club. Maintence is definitely included as part of that membership fee. Everything on a Porsche is expensive - parts are typically 4X normal cost and who knows what the labor cost can be. If you're mechanically inclined, Boxsters are relatively easy to work on and you can save some $$$ (sorry, don't have a Euro sign) that way. But if you're on a budget and scraping up every cent to buy a questionable Boxster, you're going to be very disappointed when you can't afford the maintenance. And if you have to have someone else do the work, be ready to pay through the nose. Boxster S' in the vintage you're looking at have a history of needing window regulators, rear wheel bearings, and front suspension pieces replaced. Plus 4 tires cost $800-$1200. I call this Boxster questionable because if the owner has the nerve to present it with a CEL on, what else is he hiding? And as Brucelee says, how do you know it's the O2 sensor? Boxsters can throw CELs for several reasons. IF you have the stones to buy this car and you don't have a Porsche mechanic look at it, you're getting a cat in the sack. Based on the description you gave of its condition, it doesn't sound like it was well maintained. There are probably lots of problems lurking, just waiting for the next owner. Which leads me to my next topic. I don't suppose there's a Porsche dealership on your island? Derek Warwick may have been a cracker F1 driver and a stand up owner of a Honda dealership, but the key point is can his dealership work on Porsches? Or is there a good independant Porsche mechanic on the island? If the answer is 'no' to all 3 questions, then owning a Porsche could become very expensive, regardless of whether you buy the one you're looking at or a garage queen. Even garage queens have the problems I listed above. Not sure how you tow a car from island to island. You mentioned a friend who has a 996TT. Did he buy it new or was it a garage queen? Comparing a new or well maintained Porsche vs a poorly maintained one is not a valid comparison. A poorly maintained example will always cost more in order to catch up to a maintained one. The good news is you can pick his brain on how he handles maintenance and get some idea from him on the high costs associated with Porsches. Use this key reference that's at your disposal. If you've already decided to buy it, there's probably nothing we can tell you that will alter your decision. Just go into the deal with your mind doing the thinking, not your heart. Remember, you don't HAVE to buy this car. My dad used to say there's always another car around the corner (I've found this is true about women, too). I hope you make a sound decision. Best of luck. Husker __________________ GPRPCA Chief Driving Instructor 2008 Boxster S Limited Edition #005 2008 Cayman S Sport - Signal Green 1989 928 S4 5 spd - black 1987 928 S4 - Granite Green Metallic (Felsengrun) Last edited by husker boxster; 07-25-2009 at 05:34 PM.