[husker boxster]

Welcome to the forum.

Porsche is kind of murky with their info. With a 2/05 build date, it should have the IMS that can be replaced. If not, it will have the larger IMS which has a 1% chance of breaking but cannot easily be replaced. If you already own (or owned) a 2000 996, why are you worried about buying another Porsche that could have the same problem? Your 996 also has an IMS. The smaller, replaceable IMS fails at approx a 10% rate and costs approx $2K to replace (clutch incl).

If you are worried about acceleration in the 987, why are you looking at a base model? The S will have more HP and better acceleration. If the base or S 987 do not meet your needs, don't buy them. You'll have to spend LOTS of $$$ to increase the HP by significant amts. You're better off spending the extra money to buy a 997 instead. Boxsters and Caymans are not about HP, they're about handling.

Factory wheels available on the 987 were 17, 18, and 19. Not sure if you could get 19s on a base but they were avail on the S.

I would recommend you do a LOT more research before you buy this car. It doesn't sound like it meets your needs and you may be making a mistake in buying it. Quick, impulsive decisions can come back to bite you in the arse.