Not another novice kicking the tires!

[TWODAN]

Pre
Purchase
Inspection

[thstone]

Find a local independent Porsche shop and make arrangements to have them do a Pre-Purchcase Inspection on the car. They will know what to look for and will give you a list of issues with the car and items that need repair/replacement. They will also check the computer and see if there are any error codes stored in the memory. Expect to pay about $200-$300 for this service but it will be the best investment you could make.

The top cables are easy to replace yourself using a book or an online guide.

Tires have been discussed on this forum many, many times. Do some searches and you'll read some wide ranges of opinion but it should be easy for you to find a tire that is quiet and somewhat affordable. I have Michelin Pilot Sport 2's (PS2's) on my car that handle extremely well and are very quiet - however they aren't exactly cheap.

Remember that there are no cheap Porsche's. A 10-yr old car with a top that doesn't work and that hasn't had the 60K service probably needs a few other things as well (and thus the need for the PPI so you know what you're getting into). If you can do the 60K service yourself, expect to pay ~$300-$400 for the parts alone. This is why shops will charge $800 and up.

Just don't be surprised if you need to put $2K into the car in the first 6-months to get things working and catch up all of the maintanence.

But in the end, you will absolutely love the car as much as the rest of us do.

[peterbrown77]

Thanks for all the info.

The tires are the Sumitomo HTR ZII - which are pretty cheap at TireRack, and it shows....also complaints there about the noise.

I kinda live in the sticks though I did have a shop recommended to me by someone who has a 968 but they said it would only take an hour for the PPI, so it's going to be like $100.... sounds too cheap. Any kind of accredation of Porsche mechanics I can look at to find someone independent AND close? I did see the thread here about repair shops but when I searched it for "Connecticut" only one result was returned, and it was pretty far away. The rest of the stuff I find are actual Porsche dealers, and they're going to tell me the car needs a body-off.

TIA.

[tonycarreon]

Originally Posted by peterbrown77

The tires are the Sumitomo HTR ZII

i had bridgestone potenza so2-a when i bought the car and was quite happy with them. replaced with the HTR ZIII and can't complain too much about the noise but they are quite spongey. i won't get them again.

[jmatta]

Tires are your least concern. Not only have a PPI performed, but try to determine how diligent the owner was with oil services, as lack of maintenance can cause some very expensive issues. If the car did not have regular changes in the 5 to 6k mile range, I would probably take a pass. Read all you can on this and the other Boxster forums; these cars can be a blast or a nightmare.

[peterbrown77]

Thanks for all the help everyone, I'm still haggling on a price with the guy. He wanted $21,200 but he's going to let me have it for $16,700. He just doesn't know it yet. And I have a PPI to do first as well.

RE: the tires - yeah, I saw the ZIII photos and the tread appears a quieter design than the arcs on the ZII's.

Also, said he did Mobil 1 every 3,500 miles. Seems to be a fastidious guy, beautifully kept house, a couple of nice cars included a 330ci that also looked pristine.

I'm trying to figure out if the car has an option package like the Sport or Touring. It has the 18" turbo-look wheels and red calipers (maybe standard is red?). Does that give a clue?

TIA

[kpm]

Originally Posted by peterbrown77

He wanted $21,200 but he's going to let me have it for $16,700.

Start at 15,000 and without the 60,000 mi service that's high.

And thstone is right. Expect to drop a grand or 2 .

That being said, I really could kick myself for waiting so long to buy one.

Good Luck and have fun !!

[fatmike]

Originally Posted by peterbrown77

I'm trying to figure out if the car has an option package like the Sport or Touring. It has the 18" turbo-look wheels and red calipers (maybe standard is red?). Does that give a clue?

TIA

Red calipers are typical for an "S" model.


I'd love to be able to sell my car for $20K+...but the truth is that low to mid teens is about right. The later model '02s had some improvements including PSAM (Porsche Stability) and Xenon Headlights (Litronics). Those are very desireable options. My car, an '02 1/2 has them, but not all '02 cars do. The plastic wind deflectors are also great to have (and expensive to buy after the fact).


The goal of the PPI is to have a mechanic who knows there way around Porsches look at all of the likely trouble areas. Boxsters have a few things that are known to go wrong sometimes (air-oil separator, rear main seal, etc.), so you may as well look before you buy and be informed.



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