To 'S' or not to 'S'

[blinkwatt]

Go the S you won't regret it!

[rick3000]

It depends. If the car is going to be a daily driver, I would go with lower miles even if that means not having an S. But if it is going to be a weekend car I would spring for the S, because the high miles won't be as big a problem. It is up to you, both cars are great but if the HP is more important than almost 30k miles less on the car, go for it!

Tough decision, there is a great article about this very question on the commentary page of the February Excellence. The article opens with the sentence, "the most thrilling Porsche is not always the sweetest Porsche". I have always wanted the S, bigger brakes and a sixth gear would be nice. However, driven with spirit, my 2.5 will get you a ticket on every outing. Unless you are going to track the car the issue will be how fast do you want to be driving illegally. As someone else noted, when buying used, condition, warranty, options and mileage are more important factors.

[baseball]

Although this is a review of the 987/987S, it may give you some more insight:

http://www.windingroad.com/reviews-page/porsche-boxster-and-boxster-s/

"Over the road, it’s clear the bog-standard Boxster paired with the regular five-speed and seventeen-inch wheels is the enthusiast’s best buy. Not only does the optional six-speed Tiptronic S transmission cost $3210, it also occasionally second-guesses its driver. It’s not that the uplevel S is unreasonably priced—it’s just that standard model’s intrinsic goodness is so total that it’s obviously the best value. In most situations, the S’s horsepower simply isn’t missed, and the base model feels a bit lighter on its feet to boot. Just make sure to go for the DIY cogswapper."

Good luck with whatever you decide.

[dcporsche99]

Either an "S" or "non-S", whichever one you choose I'm quite certain you'll have a "perma-grin" in either case!

Good luck with your choice!

[Flyer]

Great info guys.

Seeing cars like Gary in BR and Randalls make me feel comfortable that a well maintained 986 will make it past 150k

This purchase is for a 3rd car in the family (along with a Ducati Monster) that I expect that will see approx 7k miles a year. I also plan on keeping it till it disolves (LOL) so resale value is not big to me.

I will start a new thread so as not to hijack this one. I am curious about your thoughts on this particular 01'-S

[RandallNeighbour]

Originally Posted by Flyer

Seeing cars like Gary in BR and Randalls make me feel comfortable that a well maintained 986 will make it past 150k

Me thinks you spoke too soon. Seen my thread about stripped out caliper bolt heads?

I wonder what my car would look like today if I had owned it brand new and kept it for ten years. A LOT better than it is today, that's for sure!

BTW, mine had a new engine put in it at 80k, just before I bought it. No idea why it was replaced, but it was brand new.

PS - GET AN S.

[Perfectlap]

ignore the "unles you are going to drive on the track" talk.
The extra oomph of the 3.2 comes in very handy in daily driving like when passing cars, merging on highway ramps and I'm a big proponent of having the best brakes available (that don't cost $10K to replace).

I could have bought a brand new 986S and a few higher mileage one or two year old S models when I was shopping around, but when I found an extremely low mileage 2000 S that was fresh out of warranty I thought this was a perfect match.
I'm a propenent of getting the lowest mileage S model that has a full service history and ideally one that comes with an extended engine/trans warranty.

[tboyer]

My first p-car was a non S, within three months I sold the non S and picked up an S. IMO, night and day between the two (power, interior upgrades, bigger brakes, suspension). Plus, car searches for used Boxster's seem to return many more non S's, so, from a resale perspective, the S is the way to go. Either way, you will love your Box, good luck!

[Topless]

You gotta get what you want.

From my perspective, I originally went shopping for a 2001 S. I drove several S and base models. All the S models I drove were pretty thrashed or had a bunch of cheesy boyracer mods. Then I found this car: older than I wanted but a pristine, one owner 98 base model. It had flawless service records and was garaged at home and at work. I have not been disappointed. For me car condition was more important than HP. If I found an S in such good condition I would have bought it though.

Side note: I do regularly track my car and have no trouble running right with the S models or 996's for that matter. The fastest 986 times are still being laid by a pair of stock base Boxsters in our area.

[jvmoney]

I went through this same decision a year ago. I test drove regular boxsters in my price range but I ended up coming across an 02 S a few states away. After the PPI, that decision was easy. I would recommend the S bc of many of the same reasons the others have stated...you're going to get the better suspension, the better brakes, the "S" emblem, and more power.

But overall, some other things to consider are things like does it have the right options; Litronics, upgraded sound system, etc. These are all costly things to upgrade if you decide to do it later so try to find one with as many of the options as possible. Whatever you end up with, i'm sure you'll be happy!

Just make sure to have some money left over in case of emergency repairs.

[c4s]

I've owned the box, box s 02 & 05, 911's, 99-996 (dog), 04 C4S rag top... Currently race a Box... single seat to spec... have the C4S... and the 05 BoxS...

By far the most fun car to drive is the Box S... handling, wind up & speed and no bad behavior... The C4S is a great car... but it's twice the price and half the fun... it will be gone soon... maybe a GT3 next... hopefully the same wife...