purchase choice - 2003 S or 2005 2.7?

[hjkim550]

Originally Posted by racer_d

Not to rain on all "550 Anniversary" fans, but it seems to me, over the years, the only Porsches that seem to "gain in value" in 20 years are those who have a genuine performance advantage vs the regular model.. and usually have a lighterweight (ie RSA, Clubsport, RS type models).

At this point in time, I would not buy ANY boxster with thoughts of value appreciation.

I agree racer_d,

I do not think that my 550 Anniversary will hold its value any more than any other 04 Boxster S. As you know, over a thousand of these were sold in the US in 2004, out of a production run of 1953. (not a very limited limited edition ) The difference between the stock Boxster S and the 550 Anniversary is so miniscule. 6 HP difference, spacers for a wider stance, short shifter and lowered ride height. The main reason why I bought mine was due to meticulous maintenance and right price.

Sloan..... looks like you are getting excellent cars for very nice prices. You know what I paid for mine. Make your purchase, get out there and post some pictures.

[mdex]

A little late to the thread, but some of my thoughts;

-You are allways best to buy the newest car you can afford in good condition.
-In the real world the base boxster (espesially the 987) is very quick and unless your a hp junkie you will not feel let down
-Porsche never releases a worse version of a car, and the 987 is a step forward over the 986 in all areas

-all that said I would never trade my 986 's' for a base 987, but I am a track junkie and have done a lot of work to my car....

Marc

[Sloan]

Thank you all for your input. Let me briefly respond to a few specific comments (in no particular order).

Super66 - I did not mean to say the G35 and 987 interiors looked the same, only that, to my eye, the 986 felt/looked more Porsche, the 987 trending more to the Japanese style - not that there is anything inherently wrong with that, just that my preference was perhaps more 'old school'.

mikefocke - you have excellent options, almost all of which I agree with & would like to have (though I've used the heated seats in my current car only a handful of times - remember I'm in South Florida - the land of eternal heat). I had not heard that the Boxster's Bose system is so poor - the one in my current car is good (not great, but quite good) and I've learned from my own personal experiences that if I can avoid having to install a bunch of aftermarket stereo equipment, I'd like to. Is mikefocke's rather negative opinion of the Bose system widely held? Anyone else want to weigh-in on that?

racer_d - I would not buy the Anniversary edition with any fantasy that it would actually appreciate in value, I do like them though (asthetics and standard 'options') and would hope that if I did get one, it might not depreciate as much as a 'standard' car over the 6-8 years I am likely to own it. That said, I have not found any on the market right now that are under consideration, and neither car I want to see this coming weekend is the special edition.

Finally, a clarification addressing the price comments - I am not seriously looking at any 986 S' for $35k or more (they are all less - like asking $32k and change) I just said I would spend that much or a bit more for my 'perfect' car, and I guess I meant a really exceptional 986 S or a 987, but as I mentioned, I've only seen one 987 S under $40k, and as of yesterday, a day after husker boxster gave me that lead, it's gone ...

[Pilot2519j]

I own a 2003S Box and by far is the sweetest driving machine I've ever had. Your query is very astute and reasonable. Similarities in body styling is a given and are looks are pretty much the same. The features that would sway me to the 2003S are the : the brakes, and the engine. In the S you get the brakes of the 911 which are fantastic and the engine is more powerful developing 260 hp. Being in the forum here has illustrated to me the cost of each hp you add to the car and it always seems to be outrageous. Therefore get the more powerful engine with the much better brakes.
Of course this goes without saying all things being equal. Cars of comparable wear and tear and similar condition. In any event good luck in your quest and welcome to our Group in the future.

[Hops]

Regarding the Bose system, I have one in my '05 987S. I am also a home theater junkie and have pretty nice gear in the basement. My goal in a car is to have a system that is good enough, and the Bose system is good enough.

As with most Bose products I've heard, there are some really bizarre gaps and hotspots in the frequency response. Specifically, the bass response of this system is odd. While the upper range and extreme lower range of the bass is a bit weak, there is a lower to mid part of the bass range that is overemphasized (driven by the subwoofer, I assume). I find that I have to mess with the bass level a lot (anywhere from +1 to +8) depending on the song.

Likewise, the treble comes off a bit hot in parts of the range, and it sounds a bit tinny. I rarely turn the treble level above zero and sometimes back it off a bit.

Those limitations aside, the system has a reasonably good front image (I fade to the rear by about three clicks for the best overall image) and it gets reasonably loud without distorting. On the whole it is better than the stock system in a few other cars I've owned, and given that I have the radio off over half the time anyway, it isn't worth a lot of money and tearing into the car to make it better.

[angman]

Welcome to the forum and I agree with Mikefocke on his options list as well. I would almost make litronics and PSM a must have though on my list as the litronics are an expensive retrofit and the PSM can't be added on after the purchase. When my frined bought his first Boxster S I told him to buy one with PSM. Unfortunatey he found a good deal on a mint car without the PSM option. Took him about a month before he totalled the car. Took him 3 weeks to buy another with the PSM option. These cars are good, and most likely performs beyond most of our abilities. Having the PSM can be a life and insurance saver.

I have a 97 and am very happy with its performance and reliability. I have driven many S models as well and usually find that in the city the performance difference is not that much. I must say that I do always "want" a S and people always ask me if I own a "S" though and it does bother me. I always want but I know I don't need. At least not at the price that it will cost me in order to sell my base model to upgrade to a newer model 986 S. I will hold on to my base 986 until I can afford to make the jump from it to a 987 S.

Good luck with the search

[Sloan]

Thanks Hops - that's just the kind of practical info. I was looking for. I'll also probably spend much of my time listening to the motor and not the stereo, so the 'good enough' Bose system will most likely suffice for me. I'll pay extra attention to it this weekend when I look at the 2003 S that has it (the guy with the 2004 will be in CA this weekend, so I'll have to wait to see that one).

Pilot - I'm a big fan of great brakes, and will confess to also loving the appearance of the drilled rotors and red calipers of the "S", so another point in the "S" column.

[Sloan]

Angman - I am finding very few used 986S' with PSM, so as much as I agree with your assessment, and as much as I would like to have it, I am coming to recognize that if I am only willing to buy a car with everything that I want, my search that has already been going on in earnest for about 9 months could just keep on going with no end in sight.

Unfortunately, I'm seeing litronics even less frequently than PSM. I know this will sound funny to many of you, but Fort Lauderdale (and almost all of South Florida, for that matter) is so built-up, and the area so light polluted, I don't think I can recall the last time I had to drive on a truly dark road. Accordingly, as much as I would like to have litronics, I don't think it should qualify as a 'must have' for me.

Note - the one and only 986S that I have found with almost all of the options that are being urged here is listed for $40k, and does not have the one option that I may move in to the 'must have' category, Tiptronic. I think fatmike is got the only one that fits the bill, and he says even $35k is too much to spend ...

[mikefocke]

the resale value of the Speed Yellow color of the car you are purchasing. It isn't generally thought to add to the resale value though with the year you are buying (and say you keep it a couple of years) the target buyer for your SY car may just be the younger type who likes that color.

My preference for your location would be tan interior, white exterior. With Arctic Silver being the next choice.

Look at the currently popular colors for cars (survey came out about a week ago with white the most popular taking over from silver). When you buy an unpopular color, you pay at resale time both in the price you get for it and in difficulty of selling. The difference can be over 20% between white or silver and green. I forget where yellow is but that would be good to know as it is an unusual color and might be far down on the list.

[Sloan]

mike - Do you know something I don't about my plans for the yellow 2003 S I am planning to look at this weekend? I did not say 'buy' - the plan is just to look / drive. I am taking a friend who is a Porsche fanatic (on his third now) to keep me in check, and from rushing in to a purchase. (and also because even though he does not own a Boxster, I'm sure he'll still have a better idea of what to look for than I do).

I had a white BMW for many years, and I think that will be my last white car - I love silver (particularly the GT Silver Metallic of the 550 Spyder special edition), and its on par with the Speed Yellow as my first choice. While I appreciate that the color choice will likely effect resale value, I am not so concerned about that as 1) I will keep the car a long time, so making sure I like it is my biggest concern and, 2) since I'm buying used, any impact in the color on the price should be built-in to what I pay, right?

renzop - thanks for that lead - I think I saw that car listed, but did not give it a lot of thought because the price seemed a bit high for a non-S, and because it does not have Tiptronic which, while not essential, is preferred. I will take another look though.

[Sloan]

Just had champagne toast to the new Speed Yellow beauty - details and photos to follow soon.

[hjkim550]

Good for you Sloan

I know you have been looking for a long, long time now. It must be nice to finally sit back and admire your Boxster in your garage.

Unlike me, you will be able to take your ride out and set her loose. I am still waiting for the warm weather to arrive in Chicago before I can take her out or even take some decent pics.

Have fun,