Do I Walk Away or Buy It & Fix It?

[V-Rod]

Ok, I heard back from the seller/dealer and they are going to cover sending the car over to the Porsche dealer to have 5 new coils and six new spark plugs installed.

They will not budge on the condensers.

I am OK with this deal and I will be picking up the car on Monday or Tuesday next week.

BTW, spoke with the Porsche service manager and this car already had the serpentine belt done in Sept. along with oil change and filter. So I should be in pretty good shape, since I do not need the air conditioning for a while. I will tackle the IMS bearing, clutch and condensers in late February.

Beelzy; Good catch. I am not sure. I bet the car had been sitting their idling for a while. Anyone else care to comment on this?

[thstone]

Temp is a bit high but not alarmingly so. Car could have been driven around and then photographed while idling for quite a while. Monitor the temps after you pick up the car and go from there.

[Fluellen]

I have never seen my temp gauge show this high, even after long idling in 90 degree weather. Note the outside temp in the picture is 56 degrees.

May want to ask if the powertrain warranty covers the cooling system.

Caveat emptor!

[recycledsixtie]

If it was me I would have walked by now and would be looking elsewhere. I must admit I am not a wrencher and this car has too many issues - air cond., coil packs etc to name a few. It sounds like u want to work on it. Perhaps you have already put $$$ down on it and feel committed. Even if I was a wrencher I would walk. PPI is mandatory. If u insist on getting it a poster above suggests $8k. There are too many issues with this car.

[Ghostrider 310]

That evaporator behind the dash story would be enough for me to head for the exits.

[thom4782]

The odds of the evaporator leaking are really low especially because the dye test showed leakage in the condenser.

I suggested a 'sniffer' test because the evaporator is in a sealed box where one cannot see dye directly. A sniffer test there would reveal a leak.

If a sniffer test was done in the evaporator area when the dye test was, then the evaporator should be OK.

[Eric G]

My two cents worth, Porsche cars are very dependable when given good care. With that said, nothing on a Porsche is cheap except the air in the tires, so the old adage is true "you have to pay to play".

This is not a car that is designed to be used as a large cargo hauler, family mini van or anything other than to take two people and and some kit on an adventure. It is in short, a luxury item, a car you buy because you want what it can deliver. IF you are spending an uncomfortable amount of money to buy this, and repairs scare you it may not be the car for you.

My 98 had 20K more miles than this car and was running at the same level as yours is today. I put close to $8000.00 in parts alone into the car to make sure I could trust the operation where ever I went. I did the work so there was no labor costs added in. In short, I wanted the car for what it offers, top down crisp enjoyable driving experience and it was a treat to me for the reason I work.

Personally, I would have no problem buying a car in this condition. Good luck with your decision.

[papasmurf]

IMO, I think the dealer has been pretty accommodating with you so far. I have no doubt they have much less in the car than what they are asking as car's with that mileage and year model sell for 9-11k all the time where I live but that does not necessarily mean they are in as good of condition either. Having some form of service history means a lot to me. The water temp looks fine...mine stays around that range all the time. People that have no interest in working on a car run from a car like this I guess...if you do not mind getting your hands dirty and are getting a good deal you can save plenty of money taking care of the issues you have mentioned yourself. I would not let them scare you away as some of them would only feel secure with the warranty and peace of mind a brand new car would provide and that is their choice.

[jbs986]

Price on this 99 Is Way,Way too high. last year I bought it 2002 Boxster with 61,000 miles on it for $9,000 previous owner had more than $6000 repair receipts for the car. car drove and looked like new and is a great color black on black with tan interior.

My old 99 Boxster that I purchased over 4 years ago from a dealership I paid $9400 for out the door. I would definitely pass on this one certainly much cheaper boxers out there or at least get a much newer one for the same price.

Good luck finding a Porsche it is a buyers market out there.

[Ghostrider 310]

In fairness Novi might not be the norm in prices, when I lived in Michigan the ill feelings toward imports was almost palpable. I bought a 280ZX near Novi and it wasn't like there was a waiting line to purchase it.

[V-Rod]

Yes geography definitely effects price. When I searched for a Boxster nationally, I was able to find my preferred color and options at a bit better price but had to take into consideration that I would have to pay to have it shipped and that would be after I flew out there and drove it. Then what if I did have an issue that I needed to go back to the seller. Too much hassle for me. The positive things like locally owned and serviced by the original dealer, 100% service records available to me anytime far outweighed the negatives. So when I pick it up on Tuesday, the ONLY actual problem with the car is the condensers. I am fine with that!

One of the best vehicles I ever owned was a 1986 Mercedes 300E. I paid 6K for it with 92K miles. It looked great, but needed a heap of work. I sunk 6K into it and everyone laughed at me saying "ha-ha you spent $12,000 for an '86 Benz with 100K miles". Well I drove that car for 8 years and sold it for $2000 with 266K miles. I drove this car 20K miles a year and loved it. I only sold it because my wife and I had twins after my daughter and the car was just not suited as a family vehicle.

As far as my enjoying working on my own vehicles (toy vehicles only) goes back to my British sports car days. With those you had better like to get dirty. Heck I used to carry a complete kit of condensers, points, lights switches, etc. but I loved those cars. So now I am getting the German roadster and I will have a lot of good times with it!

[mistermac99]

Originally Posted by Beelzy

Is it just me, or does the Temp. on the gauge show a little on the high side?

I would budget for a water pump as well.

I have a 99, and when it get's warmed up, it always tops out about where his temp. gauge is. Looks like about 185?
What should be the top out temperature if this is too hot?

I have owned mine now for about three months, and love it.
I think I'm due for a clutch, since it engages approximately 2-3 inches from the top.
Figure that's a good time to get the IMS retrofit. It currently has around 74,000 miles. Don't have any idea what's been done, since there were no good service records. But I figure it's the factory clutch.

The last two times I have had it out, I have smelled, a slight sweet, antifreeze odor. (but my passenger did not. May have actually been the passenger, haha...) It does not, and never has leaked in my garage. Maybe it's leaking somewhere so slightly that it burns up prior to parking?

Any ideas?

[kjc2050]

Maybe check the rear trunk? Could the coolant tank be leaking??

[BYprodriver]

[QUOTE=V-Rod;315376]rayner@r2specracing,

I am paying $12,400. which includes the $400 3yr. Powertrain Warranty.

I am trying to get them to pickup the replacement of the coils and condensers.

I am not thinking that they will pick up the condensers but I bet they come back with an offer to take care of 5 new coils and plugs.

I have looked at a bunch, but I was specifically looking for a dark blue with tan interior. I have always preferred tan or beige interiors in all my vehicles. I even make that criteria when I rent vehicles (which I do as much as drive my own).

Why are there so few with this color combination?[/QUOTE]

$12K is alot for a 99 Box

As far as the color rarity, it may have been the 1st year the color was offered, so little publicity & optional paint colors start at about $800 & go to $3,000+

[mistermac99]

Originally Posted by kjc2050

Maybe check the rear trunk? Could the coolant tank be leaking??

Just checked, and everything is dry.
Do I need to take out the carpet looking protectant to check further?
When I first opened the rear trunk, I noticed a very slight hint of antifreeze.
You may be onto something.

[Meir]

Originally Posted by mistermac99

Just checked, and everything is dry.
Do I need to take out the carpet looking protectant to check further?
When I first opened the rear trunk, I noticed a very slight hint of antifreeze.
You may be onto something.

Yes.
If the tank is cracked and leaking, the coolant will go under the carpet.
Very common issue in our cars.

[mistermac99]

Thanks, I will take a look under the carpet this weekend.