im so torn

[gerrygug]

Originally Posted by EE3racing

Mr. Fred you sound excited and you should be these cars are very capable and fun to drive. One thing I would consider is a newer non S, many are available and @245 base hp they are comparable in output to earlier S models. Of course the six speed of the S would be nice to have, it's your call. I have the 2.5, slowest of the line and you still need to concentrate on not speeding with it.

+1 on the above.
Get the newest model you can afford.

[Perfectlap]

I could have opted for a Boxster S that was three or four years newer but the mileage was higher. So I decided to go for a just out of warranty four year old that barely avearged 2400 miles a year. I think I made the right call there.
A saw a few one or two year old cars had more than 10K annual miles and decided to skip a car that was a year round daily driver. I think these should go to the bottom of the list.

Some argue that the 2000-2002 intermediate shaft design was better than the revised version. Nobody really tracks when those fail (car catastrophe) but at one point Consumer Reports was recording consumer complaints and the 00-02's were receiving the lowest number of issues for the 97-2005 period. But who knows how accurate that is. I've put nearly 57K miles on my 2000S and have only had one repair that cost more than $200. Pretty amazing. It also depends how you drive. I always wait for the oil temp to go up before letting the the RPMs go over 2000. I try to use the brakes as little as possible by using the throttle smoothly. Since gas had its little trip into $5 territory I have learned to drive at the speed limit with the car in the 6th gear as soon as possible to go easy on the engine.

also, check the bodywork closely. Painting these cars the right way is not cheap.
I had my whole front end repainted and it was a real job to find a body shop that had enough high end cars but weren't charging high end rates. Fenders, hood and my GT3 bumper done for $1100. Most places wanted closer $2000-$2500 but I managed to get my way, the other partner at the bodyshop was pissed when I picked up the car

p.s.
In this economy get the S. They're practically giving it to you for no extra charge.
Also in my opine and after driving a 2.7 and a 3.2, a car of this curb weight comes "alive" out of corners at about the 240-206 hp mark. Drive an S2000 for comparison. If you can't find an S keep looking. This car should've had a 3.6 from the start because it's really a Carrera roadster in my book, but for political reasons at Porsche they decided to make it a 2.5 and give it a different name even though from the doors to the front bumper it's 99% a 99-01 Carrera.

[RandallNeighbour]

Please learn from my idiotic mistake.

Buy an S with some factory warranty on it that has been babied and loved.

If you cannot afford this car, keep saving your money until you can afford it.

Do not think that you can buy a high mileage, out of warranty boxster for cheap and not sink $2k or more PER YEAR into the car to keep it running.

[hookoo3]

It took me 14 months to buy my 2001 S with 47K. I test drove many different model years and transmission types. For the last 6 months of searching I was aware of the location of every Boxster in the US and Canada in the colour combination I wanted. I finally was able to find the combination of a one owner car with complete maintenance records. I paid fair market value and could not be happier with the car. I could have bought a 2008 but decided on the 2001 S and I am prepared for the anticipated repairs and maintenenace. It is a tough choice to know what you will be happy with however going into it prepared with all the info from this site and others it's hard not to balance it with the pure fun of driving the Boxster.