What do you think is a fair price for my Boxster?

[Wonko The Sane]

Ello all,

I'm looking for an honest evaluation from you guys what my boxster is worth, based on my thread posted @ http://986forum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12125

I've brought my price down to $11,250 which I consider fair, but I'm trying to get a feel for what would make this car sell better. I know that a large part of the sale delay was starting out too high, as I was trying to feel out the market, but I haven't gotten any real solid hits, mostly from people who want to look, but can't swing the financing.

So I figure you guys may be able to help me out a bit.

Thanks!

That seems redonkulously low. I know if you parted it out on ebay you could get more than that. The below list will make you an extra hundred bucks, not including the millions of other pieces. If youve got the time, Id go that way, cause to see a box go for 11 grand is sad.

Bumper-300
Rear bumper-200
wheels-900
spare wheels-700
door-500x2
trunk lid-200
rear trunk lid-200
seats-1000
floor mats-30
engine-2,500
brake system-1000
fenders-200x2
carpets-maybe100
ebrake-60
shifter-60
center console-100
rear storage bin-200
speakers-200
amp-100
exhaust-50
transmission-2000

[edevlin]

I guess I dont know the market that well for a 97', but that seems very low, even with the mileage on the car. Best of luck with the sale,

Ed

[mikefocke]

It is getting cold in the area you are selling. Convertibles don't sell well then. Just a fact of life.

And in describing the car, put more stress on the features and fun and less on the maintenance history and problem areas. You don't want to be reminding the potential buyer the darn things need maintenance, especially with 102k miles on it. Nor focusing on the front bumper chips which may seem huge to you but not to the buyer. No one expects a 10 year old 100k+ miles car to be perfect, even a Porsche. Which isn't to say you don't mention well maintained, recent oil change and new top when the potential buyer calls you.

Blink should buy your car and 3.4 it. Give him a PM. Hed still be under 25 grand.

[Wonko The Sane]

Thanks for the great responses, guys.

Boggtown - I couldn't bear to part her out, it seems silly to part out a car that runs and drives perfectly fine, even if its' worth more dead than alive.

Mikefocke - Thanks for the ad ideas, I'll try to change it around a bit to shift focus. I realize that it's getting colder in PA, but I've been trying to sell it since July with no dice...

At least you guys seem to agree with my train of thought that it is already a great price on the car (probably too low for me!), that's what my concern was, that I was unrealistically high, somehow.

[NickCats]

Wonko,

I hate to say it, but I think your asking price is still just a little high. A 97 Boxster with 102k miles private party should go for around $10,825.

IMHO,

Nick

[Wonko The Sane]

Riiight, and how many cars have you bought that were face value?

[Burg Boxster]

three things, if I may, that I hope will help.......

1 - get some pictures of your car in bright sunlight so it's shiny. Yes it looks clean and reflects well, but not shiny. Bright sunlight and shiny will make it look FUN! Get that sun sparkling of the AS paint.

2 - scrub the tires and put some tire shine on there. Again shiny and eye catching......like a fishing lure . In your photos, your tires now look like you accidentally hit them w/ polish or wax from the buffer. Those not as fanatical about cars, might think it looks like you just repainted the whole thing carelessly for a quick sale...

3 - Try autotrader.com and spend the extra couple $ to include picture(s). The car's age and mileage w/out a picture is going to turn away more people than it will attract. Thus, IMNSHO, regular newspapers are a waste for high mile cars over $4K. FWIW, in Jan I sold my wife's '02 Volvo S80 w/ 95K on the clock thru autotrader. Guy who bought it loves higher mileage cars (b/c others like me already ate the depreciation). Anyhow, he told me he doesn't even call if there's no pic. Reasons being:
- seller is either asking way too much and just trying to get more for car than it's worth or what dealer would give them wholesale or
- seller didn't take good care of it and knows picture might hinder an interested party from looking at more closely

I just did a search on autotrader for 200 miles around St. College and only 8 showed up. Needless to say, your asking price (even w/ mileage) is below the lowest one out there: 97 w/ 107K asking $13,997 (at a dealer so take 10% off ask price)
Autotrader 97 Boxster Serach 200mi St. College

JM2C and hope it helps. And as Mike said, stress the positive and fun factor!

Good luck

[Dr. Kill]

Originally Posted by boggtown

Blink should buy your car and 3.4 it. Give him a PM. Hed still be under 25 grand.

This is actually a really good idea, and the car could stay within the family.

[Topless]

The guys are right. It's not the price. Get the car to really shine and take AMAZING pictures (DJlomas style). Tell the story, sell the sizzle not the steak. These cars are all about fun. Make it fun. What do you love about this car. Share your maintenance history only when they ask. Post this new package with pictures on every cheap or free website. Craigslist, Cars.com, Recycler.com etc. Local newspaper on Sat. if reasonable.

The calendar is against you right now and most Porsche roadster buyers have gone into hibernation for the winter. Be patient and a buyer will come. If you cannot wait you can always trade it or wholesale it to Carmax. Good luck.

[Wonko The Sane]

Thanks for all the great responses, guys! I should have asked this question in July when I posted it originally.. I just waxed it last weekend, so it's super shiny, I'll try to get out to do some "glamor" shots this weekend while the trees are still nice.

Nick - Thanks for doing all the checking around, I do feel better knowing that I'm asking a fair price.. I don't want anyone to get ripped off, but I also don't want to under-value my box...

[Padawan]

You may also want to consider having the front bumper repainted, even if it's inexpensively done. Regardless of the mileage and expected wear and tear, people generally don't want to read that the "new-to-them" Porsche they'll be buying has paint flaking off the front of it. A couple of hundred dollars invested in the paint could result in a better selling price and quicker sale.

[racer_d]

1) your ad is stale.. you posted back in the summer.. 4 months ago? Folks have seen the car, again and again. Fresh pictures is a start. Re-working the ad-copy may work too.
2) locale -sure you are located on the "www", but someone still has to GET to PA to see the car
3) mileage... 100K+ miles is a hard sell for any boxster. A 2000 S with that mileage is a $15K car. for 4K more, I would swing for an S
4) buyer demographics - at $11k, you are up against "no money down" for a new car or a 7-9% car loan for a 17-22 year old. Someone in a position to pay cash for your car, is likely not attracted to a) mileage and b) "first year production" concerns, whether valid or not. PERCEPTION is more important to a buyer than reality.
The "other" buyer is one who is looking for a nice "base" for a race car.
5) As asked before - why sell? It would seem that at some price point, it is "cheaper" to keep the car than to sell it
6) Time of year.. cold weather is arriving. Heated seats? if not, that hurts too in a cooler climate. Might be better off taking it "off the road" and selling in the spring as "convertible" season comes into play

Just a few thoughts...

[nola911]

Im with the fella above. Take it off the market for winter, paint the bumper, and sell it for 14 as soon as the spring warm snaps start.

After staring at Boxsters for years on ebay, I bought mine one night after a few coctails on the beach durring the first days of warm weather.

[rick3000]

I agree,
Fresh Pic's and a great description should help. People don't want to hear about your pile of receipts or how well it was maintained. They will get interested in that once there sold on buying. And they will get sold on buying it when you sell the image, of a Porsche. It sounds cheesy but it works, sell the Porsche image and top-down lifestyle, not the car.
If you can swing it financially I would just keep it as a weekend car, or make it into the ultimate track car.

[Wonko The Sane]

Thanks to you guys, as well.

A couple of general things, first: The main reason that I'm getting rid of it is that I'm getting married in 6 months, so I have to pay for that and a honeymoon and hopefully a house shortly after. When it comes down to it, I'd rather have a house than a Boxster. While I can swing keeping it, I can't really save a whole lot while I'm still paying for the box, so that's why I'm trying to get rid of it now. It'd be worth it to me to get rid of it @ 11k now instead of keeping it until April or May and sell it for 13.

Luckily it's getting some interest at the current price, I've gotten a couple of calls this week about it, so maybe it's just taking a while to aggregate at the current price.

Good points about me probably being too descriptive in my post, I wrote it as I would like to see it, and I realize now that I'm not a typical buyer.

Thanks to your guys' inputs in this thread, I'm going to go out and do a photoshoot this weekend, and I'll write up a new description.

I think I will try to get the front resprayed if I can work it into my schedule.

Unfortunately, I don't think there's much I can do about the locale, as I still have to go to work every day here in central PA

[Cloudsurfer]

Wonko-

I was with Aaron when we flew down from Rochester to meet you 2 weeks ago. The problems I see with your car are as follows, which is exactly why Aaron didn't buy it:

Lack of service history
Typical older Boxster maintenance issues
"Interesting" audio install
Most importantly, cosmetic condition. Unfortunately, every body panel on your car has some kind of damage to it, whether it be a chip, small rust spot, scratch, scrape, or ding. Front bumper is in very poor condition. Headlamps have burn/melt marks on them and are badly pitted. Either whoever buys your car accepts it as such and isn't bothered, or they have to spray the whole car and upgrade things like lights, etc. Interior is in OK condition.

Essentially, it is a car with a somewhat questionable past, that is not in the best of condition as it sits currently.

Essentially, your car would be a perfect candidate for a 3.4 swap, if it was in cleaner condition. To get the car up to better condition would be an easy $5k, and spending $5k more on a "better" car is a better use of money, by almost all accounts.

I could be wrong, but after seeing your car, I think you will find it difficult to find a buyer.

Just my $.02

Patrick

[Wonko The Sane]

Ello Patrick! How is his hunt going for a box? Has he called about that other one on the east coast (the one that he didn't like the color of?)

Due to the way it's written, it seems a rather harsh critique, so I'll respond to each segment individually:

[i]Lack of service history [i]
Unfortunately, not too much I'm going to be able to do about this one.

Typical older Boxster maintenance issues
I feel this is sort of implied with the 1997

"Interesting" audio install
Meh, it's rear speakers installed into the worthless leather pouch, can be undone with $20 (for a used worthless leather pouch) and unclipping the audio connector to them and the amplifier.

Most importantly, cosmetic condition. Unfortunately, every body panel on your car has some kind of damage to it, whether it be a chip, small rust spot, scratch, scrape, or ding. Front bumper is in very poor condition. Headlamps have burn/melt marks on them and are badly pitted. Either whoever buys your car accepts it as such and isn't bothered, or they have to spray the whole car and upgrade things like lights, etc. Interior is in OK condition.
I really don't think there's anything uncharacteristic of a 10 year old, 100k+ car. Most of the dings (with the exception of two) are the typical door-ding variety that measure less than 1/4" thick and 1" long, or minor pits/hits from rocks on the road. I'm not sure how a car is going to be actually driven for 100k and not aquire them, honestly. The headlights are definitely discolored though, as shown in the pictures. Aaron did mention the bumper, too, I'm honestly not sure what more he expecting of a car with a description of "due to a previous poor paint job, the front bumper is pitted and peeling"

Essentially, it is a car with a somewhat questionable past, that is not in the best of condition as it sits currently.
As I talked about above, most of Aarons' concerns were of the minor rock chips and stuff (that I'd consider normal for a 10 year old, 100k car), but he was talking about taking it on the track shortly... that kinda confused me. As far as the questionable past, I don't know how to extract history from nothing, so I only have the history as far back as I've owned the car. I work with what I have

Essentially, your car would be a perfect candidate for a 3.4 swap, if it was in cleaner condition. To get the car up to better condition would be an easy $5k, and spending $5k more on a "better" car is a better use of money, by almost all accounts.
I could be wrong, but after seeing your car, I think you will find it difficult to find a buyer.
Just my $.02
Patrick
I actually think the perfect candidate for the car is one of two people: Someone who wants a nice condition car that they can actually drive without worrying about it incessantly, or someone who is looking for a cheap track-sled to beat up and not worry about rock chips. This car is not meant to compete against the $15-16k cars on the market right now, if simply due to age and mileage alone. If I really thought it was worth the $14-15k that the other boxsters on cars.com are going for, I would have priced it there and held firm.

Obviously, my target audience is not a car collector or someone who is going to want a perfectly mint show-piece. Unfortunately for them, I don't think that they're going to find that in the sub-$12,000 range for a Porsche.

I wish Aaron luck with his hunt, but unless he gets lucky this winter sometime, I don't think he's going to find his dream mint-condition car for less than 12k Tell him I said Hi, though.

Thanks for the input, Patrick!

~Aaron

Edited due to annoying size caused by using the quote function

[pteam]

Man 11 grand for a porsche convertible in great shape, what a steal.