986 as a future classic

[grc0456]

My 986 is a classic to me every time I start it up. It ticks nearly all of my boxes (hey, a pun). I'm in for the long haul and I plan on keeping road worthy as long as I can. If it some day starts to be worth a little money then great, but either way I am happy.


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[DWBOX2000]

I have enjoyed reading the various opinions. I do think they are beautiful cars, especially the S's with the red calipers poking through the twists. As far as collectibility or being a classic, I am not sure the car will ever overcome the stigma. It was the porsche community that unfortunately attacked the car upon release. Did the same to the 996. Dam shame in my opinion. I have my guesses why. Though as the porsche community was bashing these cars, all the car reviews at the time these were introduced were very, very favorable. The writers had no vested interest in protecting the 911 so I think they wrote as they believed. I believe when the S came out in 2000 it knocked the vette and the z3 off car and drivers top ten. Pretty amazing feat considering it was stigmatized as the "hair dressers" car.

[SignalRed]

First post here. Now over a decade since this thread was started.

How are we feeling about collectibility now? There were some strong opinions in 2013.

[Rob175]

A 10 year old thread! I wouldn't be surprised if many of the responders aren't Boxster owners anymore.
Personally, I don't care about my 98's value or if it will ever become collectible....it could be worth $0 and I'd still keep it and drive with a big smile on my face.

[PeterNL]

I own a 993 and a 986, both from 1997 and in Artic Silver.
The 986 is relatively cheap to maintain and still easy to get used parts. Added the silver door pulls, rings on the dails, GT-wheels, handbrake & shifter, 3-spoke steering wheel, 2-din audio, upgraded sound, salt&pepper PSE, replaced all dummies with real use switches. All original or stealth. I enjoy it, drive and park it anywhere. Will never sell, so don’t care if it increases in value or not.
The 993 is much more expensive and parts are rare, hence very costly. But every investment would potentially come back through its appreciation. Nice on paper, but I drive and enjoy it, and will never sell.

[Rob175]

Never have I purchased a car thinking that someday it will ever be worth more than I paid for it.....I just assume that it's a losing proposition. But that's probably because I'm a "driver" not a "collector".....

My 98' is more "car" than "computer". The new Boxsters (like most all other cars) are way to complicated, maintenance intensive, expensive and lack the feel of my 98'.....but that's just me....lol

And, if or when they ever go all electric I'll definitely NOT be interested!

[10/10ths]

…..just ask Porsche, the 986 is now covered under “Porsche Classic” with full parts support forever.

As far as money is concerned, who cares? She’s my forever car.

Now forgive me, I gotta go for a drive.

[Dog'sLife]

I think the 986 has more appeal than a 924 or 944. They strayed from their timeless formula with those yet the boxster has the gentle curves of a pronounced front wheel well, the rear hips in back. The original thread was started when the general distaste of the head lamps was still palpable, but we're beyond that and the intent of invoking the 917 is clear.

The 986, particularly the ones with the most analogue features, like manual trunk releases, will become treasures. They are gorgeous cars with a true Porsche timestamp.

[S50Sinner]

I don't think Boxsters will become classics in the same vein as the air-cooled 911's or the first-generation Mustangs, but I think they're well on their way to being classics now. They were many people's first Porsche, whether purchased brand-new by upwardly-mobile professionals during the dot-com boom or used by mechanically-adventurous teenagers when they were valueless.

Speaking of that, they were once worth very little, and that made them disposable. Lots of Boxsters that could've been fixed for less than they're worth now were parted out or scrapped during that time, and their numbers have dwindled somewhat. They're still relatively cheap and being bought by people like me, who drive they year-round and flog them at the track. As much as I love my car, I acknowledge that my lifestyle isn't the best way of preserving it. That's fine for me, as I don't intend to sell it. Attrition rate definitely helps to create classics, look at what happened to the 180SX and what's happening to Miatas, for example.

But what makes the most sense to me is that every time a new Porsche is reviewed, they lament the absence of a naturally aspirated flat-6, the increased size, the numbness of electric power steering and the unusable gear ratios in the manual transmissions. The only way to get an N/A engine in a new Porsche anymore is to get a GT3/4.

Of course, the preferred way of doing that is an air-cooled model, but those are exorbitantly expensive to the point where many would rather get a Lotus, and air-cooled engines are no longer acceptable by many buyers' standards. The lightest, shortest-geared Porsche with the best steering to feature a water-cooled flat-6 is the 986, and by quite a margin. I think that sets it apart in pretty important metrics as far as the driving experience is concerned.