Seeking advice on purchase of '01

[clickman]

You should get a PPI (pre-purchase inspection) by a knowledgable tech (not necessarily at a Porsche dealership). Ask around your city.

When I bought my '01 3 years ago, being as anal as I am, I used this to separate the chaff before spending $hundreds on the PPI:

http://www.911secrets.com/Boxster.html

[ston57]

Thanks to all for the input.
Didn't spot any oil where the car is always parked (garage). Would IMS - RMS problems leave a sign under the car?
Any other things I can look for myself before taking it to a Porsche mechanic?

[husker boxster]

The RMS will leave a spot of oil. Since this car was driven by a lady, is it a Tiptronic trans (no offense to all the gear-shifting female forum members)? If so, the Tips seem to have fewer RMS failures.

Something you should ask for are maintenance records. Check to see how often the oil was changed. With that low of mileage, the oil should have been changed at least once per year. Not changing oil often enough is believed to contribute to IMS failure (along with a poor design). Speaking of the dreaded IMS, there's not really a way to externally determine its condition, so a PPI could give the car a clean bill of health and the IMS could shoot craps 5 mi down the road. No way to know unless the engine is torn apart.

Check the maintenance records for brake fluid changes (every 2 yrs), antifreeze changes (4-5 yrs), and look for documentation on replacement window regulators and rear wheel bearings. These are a few of the items that wear out on 01s. If the owner doesn't have documentation, you may want to think about spending good money on a PPI. Porsches are expensive and if you get one that's neglected normal maintenance, you could end up spending a fortune getting it back up to snuff. Porsche is VERY proud of their replacement parts - they're generally about 4x normal cost. Let the previous owner pay the maintenance bills, not you.

Good luck with your find, but don't feel like you like have to jump on this particular car. You're only 3hrs away from a source of many other options (Dallas). Take your time. Boxsters aren't hot property in winter. It's a buyer's mkt. Use this to your advantage.

[ston57]

Husker, thanks for the info. All good advice and it helps alot. Owner doesn't seem to know anything about cars in general. This Boxster was a second vechicle for her, hence the low miles. But with all the good input offered on this forum, I bet it would be best for me to get a PPI. Thanks again to all. Porsche owners seem to be a great group to assoc. with.