1998 boxster S?

[boxeroadster]

Ive been shopping for boxsters around and I found a 1998 boxster at a used car dealer near me claimed to be an S. The back just has the S letter offset to the right like it would be on an S car. It has a redish interior and some different looking multi-spoke wheels. Here is a picture.



I dont know boxsters all the well but I dont recall a 98 S. Something up here?

[IowaS]

the S model was not out until 2000.....

Dealer was lying, its a 2.5 NON S the S came out in 2000

[blue2000s]

Originally Posted by boxeroadster

Ive been shopping for boxsters around and I found a 1998 boxster at a used car dealer near me claimed to be an S. The back just has the S letter offset to the right like it would be on an S car. It has a redish interior and some different looking multi-spoke wheels. Here is a picture.



I dont know boxsters all the well but I dont recall a 98 S. Something up here?

Run a VIN check to see if it's actually an S or actually a 98, it can't be both.

[boxeroadster]

I dont think the dealer knows. Im going to go tomorrow and see whats up. Its a 98 75k miles for 13.5. Sounds like an ok deal regardless.

[jwilson95]

No chance this is an S.

That dealer is full of it.

[rick3000]

It is probably not an S since they only had the Sport Classic II 17" as an option in 1998, as far as I know. And for 13.5K it is a deal especially with those rims, there a pain to clean but look great.

[tboyer]

Like already mentioned, S model arrived in 2000

S model has slight differences than the base. The front bumper has an extra cooling cut-out, brake calipers are red, and the S has a dual exhaust. On the interior, look for the Boxster S batwing in the console and S door sills. Another dead give away is the shifter, S has 6 gears. Finally, let's not forget the S has a 3.2 L 250 HP engine, a personal fav of mine.

13.5 is a nice deal, however, starting off with some deception is a bad sign. Get a PPI!

[saaber]

The clamshell on that car does not fit right. It has probably been in an accident or they had some major issues with the top. If you look close at every gap between body panels I bet some will not look right. This is a sure sign of bad bodywork.

I would not even consider this car based on the dealer deception. If you do consider it please get a pre purchase inspection and have them look for any signs of damage especially in the back. I would run away from this car.

[Tool Pants]

I found it. VIN is WPOCA2982WU620509, so it is a 1998 2.5 made in Finland. As others said the 3.2 liter S model did not come out until 2000.

http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=21&pageNumber=1&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=ascending&sortfield=YEAR+ascending%2CYEAR+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7CE-%7CM-_41_%7CD-_391_%7CN-N%7CR-10000%7CI-1%7CP-YEAR+ascending%2CYEAR+descending%7CQ-ascending%7CZ-95121&aff=national&paId=135139281&recnum=76&leadExists=true

http://www.autotrader.com/dealers/dda/inventory.jsp?dealership_view_name=staffordautosal esva&dealer_id=100010628&advanced=&result_car_id=null&make=POR&make2=&model=BOXSTE&start_year=1981&end_year=2008&min_price=&max_price=&search_type=both&transmission=&engine=&drive=&doors=&fuel=&max_mileage=&color=&keywordsrep=&keywordsfyc=&keywords_display=&sort_type=priceDESC&suppressStyle=null&x=88&y=7

Check out the burnt headlights.

[tboyer]

Originally Posted by Tool Pants

VIN = WPOCA2982WU620509

Carfax returns clean (4 what it's worth), you'd be the 4th owner, appears to have been owned in NJ and MD, only 1 service record reported.

1998 PORSCHE BOXSTER
WP0CA2982WU620509
CONVERTIBLE
2.5L H6 FI DOHC 24V / REAR WHEEL DRIVE

[j.fro]

that burn in the headlight is from someone switching to a bulb that's too hot...most likely trying to get the Litronics look with out actually spending the money to switch. Replacement for that light, whether to Litronics or to halogens, won't be cheap.
13.5 isn't a bad price, but you should be able to negotiate a better price. A plus for that car is that it's one of the lightest Boxsters built. Nice track candidate

I can see the condensation in the corner triangles, I love my Boxster but that one piece is really poorly executed and conceived. I bought brand new ones that leaked, I finally sealed them myself with a thin silicone barrier.

[Jeph]

If a friend showed me this car, I would advise against them buying it, regardless of price (unless it was like $5k or something). No reason to do a PPO, just move on to another car.

Good call on the clam shell not fitting properly.
Same for the hood lining up to the front bumper.
The headlights will also need replacing.
It even looks like there is some rust just of the left of the driver side head light.
I noticed some curb rash too.

CarFax is good for knowing if/where a car has been registered or inspected. That's about it. Its ability to determine whether or not a car has been in an accident is IFFY at best.

I see a previous owner upgraded the shifter though in addition to the poser "S" badge. Mod your car all you want to look newer... but the second you put deceptive inscription on a car, you're posing.

And honestly, I bet the dealership has no idea that it's not an "S." They'll just read what's on the car. I find at least 90% of the car salesmen I've ever talked to know very little about cars.

[Dr. Kill]

Ditto on the avoidance of this one. These cars are by no means rare, and clean less shady examples can be found at a good price if you look around.

[Tool Pants]

You guys are picky.

The headlights, condensation, and curb rash are typical. Also has worn radio buttons, but that is typical, as are the rusty wheel bolts. The S logo on the trunk means nothing. I have seen every type of logo you can think of, put on by owners. Maybe that S logo confused the dealer.

The clamshell does looked tweaked, but it could be the pictures. If it is tweaked then that is typical for a 1997-1999 with a top problem, and just about all 1997-1999 had top problems.

Someone already pointed out that the 2.5 shift knob has been replaced with the silver 2.7 version. I see that some of the interior plastic trim has been painted silver. These are typical changes an owner does.

The gap in the front trunk lid looks to me it is because the lid is not closed all the way.

It has traction control.

I see a 10 year old car with 77,000 miles for $13,500. Typical.

From one of the links looks like seller is a used car place with many different brands of vehicles for sale. I doubt if any salesperson there knows anything other than what is on the inventory sticker. This is not a Porsche dealership.

I have been Boxstering for almost 9 years and have spent a lot of time at my local Porsche dealership. I look at the used cars on the lot once in a while. In California certain stickers have to be put on the door window when a used car is offered for sale. I see mistakes on the stickers, for cars at my Porsche dealership, and they only sell Porsches. Why, because they use an outside company to print the stickers.

Bruce Lee should be able to tell you more about California requirements.

[turbo23dog]

That dealership is one of those smallish privately owned lots on Route 1 in Stafford, VA not too far from the Quantico Marine Corps Base. I"m not sure they would know much about Boxsters, or P-cars in general.

[Dr. Kill]

Why are we assuming that the dealer just made an honest mistake? They bought that car from someone or somewhere. If a Boxster is an S, it is worth more, hence they would have had to pay more for it. Does the dealer not do homework when they buy a car? Would they not have even looked up the bluebook on it and realized that there is no listing because that car never existed in the first place? I find that hard to believe. Does that mean that I can glue an S emblem on my deck lid, replace my shift knob, and then get a couple of extra grand when I go trade it in? Also, anyone who has been in the military can tell you that a typical “smallish, privately owned lot” next to base is not a paragon of integrity.

[porsche986spyder]

Move onto another Boxster. To many things wrong with it that raise suspicion. For that year and millage you don't know what you are getting your self into. 4 different owners before you sounds like the car may have had some issues.

[Brucelee]

The dealer lied to you about the model of the car.

How much more evidence do you need.

Move on. Plenty of nice Boxes out there.


Be careful out there.