For as Many Problems the Boxster has... - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

Dale_K · 12-23-2010, 04:02 AM

I'm new to Porsches, having bought a 100k Boxster S last week. The car was not expensive and I have no doubt it will be more expensive than a Miata as far as ownership costs go. I'm willing to take the risk because the car is fun to drive.

To the OP - you could seriously consider a Corvette as a daily driver with the expectation of low maintenance costs and good reliability. I have a C6 and have only spent about $400 in repairs over the course of 5 years (not counting tires). They are good solid cars and they are a lot of fun because they are powerful. They have no exclusivity but they're built well and parts are very reasonably priced.

SeaNile31 · 12-23-2010, 05:00 AM

Ironic that this thread has been started as I was just about to start a similar thread. What great cars but it comes with some very serious and expensive potential flaws. I can't help but to think how much fun I had in my first two Boxster cars, a 99 base followed by an 01 S. I had no idea of the issues, water pump, IMS or RMS or anything else that could have popped up. I drove both of the cars as fair weather DD and put over 40K on the 99 (did have to replace an alternator) and 35K on the 01S with zero issues. Now I am thinking of getting another S, 986 or 987 to be determined, and all I can think about is the dreaded IMS issue.

Wish I could go back to being naive and just drive the car with no worries!

Jake Raby · 12-23-2010, 05:04 AM

Another interesting fact...
Dean and I always ask those that our failure hotline if they are log time Porsche owners or if the watercooled Porsche is their first..

All year I have had ONE person that I have consulted with that answered that question by saying he's had Porsche other than the 996 that lost an IMS bearing on him.. Thats just one out of a whole year!

That could be due to the fact that these owners come from the aircooled world and know how to properly drive a Porsche, or because not many previous aircooled Porsche owners are impressed by what the watercooled cars offer to own one.

Personally I'd much drive my 76 912E than any of the watercooled Porsches that I own, except on days that its over 95F or below freezing. I drove that car 160,000 miles in 8 years and did not carry out a single repair.

Soetekouw · 12-23-2010, 05:20 AM

Good responses. I figured I would get flamed in the first go-around for being somewhat disloyal to Mr. Porsche. But, we all seem to agree that the Boxster is a fine car with issues that will require a second mortgage to keep going.

FYI. I do love my Porsche. All maintenances are performed ahead of schedule. It is spotlessly clean at ALL times. Very, very gently treated - to obsession.

To 'PlayersExpress'. Yes, the car has grown on me, that, although disappointed, I do not want to use it as trade in for my next car. It is a 'keeper', although sometimes that mystifies me.

To 'Jake'. I agree with you. Exclusive of the engine, the remainder of the car is so damn good. You mentioned that the 911 uses the same engine as a Boxster. Well, I guess upgrading to the next level would not work (unless Porsche puts in a Chevy, Toyota, or Honda engine in their chassis).

To 'Steve Tinker'. Good observations.

To 'Dale_K'. I am seriously thinking about a Corvette and currently have requests for quotes through several dealerships. I wouldn't be surprised if it doesn't join my other cars within the next 6 months.

SeaNile31 · 12-23-2010, 05:27 AM

Another thing while we are on the usual IMS discussion as it relates to the car and ownership. Although it is near impossible to figure out the actual failure rate, I am surprised how few Boxsters advertised for sale have new or replaced engines. Maybe I am not reading the ads close enough, but I am pretty sure in the past month or so of looking at cars online, looking country wide, I can only recall one Boxster for sale with a swapped engine due to failure. I think the car had/has 130K miles but new engine 30K miles ago. I would expect to find a lot more cars for sale with different engines.

FWIT, these same discussions go on and on over on the Fchat site. For those that have the courage to step up and say a Ferrari actually has a flaw, they do bring up good points. It applies to the Pcars as well. On one hand you spend all this money on a car and expect it to be flawless, yet it is a performance car that demands a little more care and service, etc. The discussion goes round and round....

stab1991 · 12-23-2010, 07:13 AM

I know on these boards we hear more dreaded stories than what the actual percentage of failures are, but it was a big factor for me getting an 09 or later boxster. Now lets see what failures we will get with these engines.....

At least porsche finally put some money in and redesigned the engine instead of trying to patch the problem with larger and multiple row IMS bearings. I think they just took way too long.

extanker · 12-23-2010, 07:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stab1991

I know on these boards we hear more dreaded stories than what the actual percentage of failures are, but it was a big factor for me getting an 09 or later boxster. Now lets see what failures we will get with these engines.....

At least porsche finally put some money in and redesigned the engine instead of trying to patch the problem with larger and multiple row IMS bearings. I think they just took way too long.

in another 5 years VW will have fixed the smoke on startup

Jake Raby · 12-23-2010, 07:33 AM

Quote:

At least porsche finally put some money in and redesigned the engine instead of trying to patch the problem with larger and multiple row IMS bearings. I think they just took way too long.

They did that on 2005, called it the M97.

The only failure call we've received this week (odd!) just came in.. 2005 Carrera with a failed M97 bearing... Pictures from this one are on the way!

stab1991 · 12-23-2010, 07:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jake Raby

They did that on 2005, called it the M97.

The only failure call we've received this week (odd!) just came in.. 2005 Carrera with a failed M97 bearing... Pictures from this one are on the way!

I wasnt talking about the m97, I was talking about finally making the N9A, I think thats the code for it.

Im sure you will be seeing more m97 failures as time goes. This was the patch upgrade I think.