2002 Boxster S for $18k, good deal?? A couple of Q's

[Viper5]

I picked my 2000 boxster s up for 12k. It has about 110k miles and is in great shape. Craigslist is a good place to look. I've had to replace water pump, throttle body, and i will be fixing an air leak in the near future (waiting on the new hose to arrive). I've spent about $550 total and it should be good as new after hose replacement.

[fatmike]

A couple of things on the '02:

There are a few very desireable options. Mid-year in '02 Porsche started making the Litronic headlights standard. This is a $1000(ish) option. They are Porsche's version of Xeon headlights and I highly recommend them. My car also came with the stability control system which I also recommend.

The '02 was the last year for the plastic rear window. How does it look? I am just in the process of replacing my top because of end-of-life on the plastic window.

I had my car inspected when it bought it (I paid a bit more than you, but not too much). I bought my car with 11K miles on it two years ago. It was a garage queen (not a scratch).

I would place a high emphasis on buying a car that has a clean inspection. If you search this forum, you'll find a list of common ailments. Have someone who knows what they are doing look at your potential purchase. Make a good decision. I would suggest a well cared for 7 year old car is better than a 4/5 year old one that hasn't been maintained...

Proof of oil changes? Proof of filters and fluid changes? Spark plugs? Other pseudo maintenance like O2 and MAF sensors? Tire condition? Figure on $1500 or so for a new set of performance rubber.

Also, expect to spend some money when you buy the car. You will.

That said, no regrets. An '02 Boxter S -- or any Boxster -- is a great car.

Good Luck.

"phat" Mike

[urban_legend]

But that is just part of the legend. Oh and my an p-car education from LB, Vath and others was free. How great is that?

[Banana S]

Just for reference, I watched the prices of 2000-2003 Boxster S's for three full years before I found my car last October. I paid $19,900 for my car with 39,900 miles on it, in excellent condition, in the color combination I wanted, with a thumbs-up from the local Porsche dealership after a PPI. (Incidentally, I bought it just five days after it went up for sale on the CarMax website... And I had it transferred from the Chicago CarMax location to the Indianapolis location within 12 hours of it appearing on the CarMax website, and before they even had all of the pictures of it uploaded! Mine! It's MINE! You cannot have it!!! )

When I pulled the trigger, that was the lowest price I had seen in three years for an S in this condition, nationwide. I still haven't seen a better price for a similar car since I bought mine (although, admittedly, I haven't been looking as hard lately). So if the one you're looking at passes a PPI and otherwise appears to be in good condition, I'd say it definitely is a good price for the car. Let us know what you decide!