Please help me in making an educated choice

[Perfectlap]

If you intend to own a Porsche well past the warranty, always go for the manual.

[Topless]

AJR,

If I were shopping for an 82 911sc I would only choose a stick.

Shopping for a 2011 Boxster? Pounce on the PDK... It is that good and $35K sounds pretty sweet.

[AJR]

Originally Posted by Topless

AJR,

If I were shopping for an 82 911sc I would only choose a stick.

Shopping for a 2011 Boxster? Pounce on the PDK... It is that good and $35K sounds pretty sweet.

Thanks Topless! This is the first time I have seen a car where the price is under NADA, KBB and Edmunds estimates. Most cars I have looked at in past 6 months would have two or all three of the estimates much lower than the quoted price by the seller.

Sorry about this rant but sometimes private sellers seem to be in denial about depreciation and what the car is worth 5 years after being driven of the lot. I can't count the number of ads which claim "only model in North America with so and so option..." or "the best optioned Porsche stateside...". The first four or five months of my search, I was only focused on private sellers - I'm not really sure a lot of them end up selling cars at what they expect. There have been a few cars listed on Autotrader for many months. In the last couple months I figured I would start looking at dealers as well. It's been a surprising pleasant experience so far. Hope it ends on a pleasant note as well.

~AJR

[cfos]

Originally Posted by AJR

Sorry about this rant but sometimes private sellers seem to be in denial about depreciation and what the car is worth 5 years after being driven of the lot. I can't count the number of ads which claim "only model in North America with so and so option..." or "the best optioned Porsche stateside...".

Careful now, of all the forums I've been too, this is one of the few (BMW forums excluded ) that feel their cars appreciate in value. Anyway, for your investigative nature, I often rely on Rennlist: http://forums.rennlist.com/rennforums/997-forum/458591-pdk-clutch-replacement-costs-maybe-5000-6000-15-000-miles-3.html

I also go to Planet-9, on occasion. Here is what they had to say:
http://www.planet-9.com/987-cayman-boxster-service-tech/51264-official-facts-regarding-pdk.html
http://www.planet-9.com/987-cayman-boxster-chat/47193-pdk-durability.html

I guess, I fall into the camp of -- Do I really expect to have a completely worry free car for my entire life? No. Is it likely that something will happen to the pdk that causes the NYSE, NASDAQ, and the Nikkei to plunge? Or a Walking Dead Scenario where we worry about what the Governor is up to? Well, do a search on "cost of pdk repair" on Google and see if you get any results. My guess is there is plenty more on the Governor.

[AJR]

Hi Perfectlap,

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

If you intend to own a Porsche well past the warranty, always go for the manual.

Could you please elaborate your views on the durability of the PDK? I have spoken to a few Tiptronic owners and all of them loved it - I assume these are people who prefer automatic transmissions. I have briefly read about the issues and the cost associated with replacing/repairing the PDK. I would be thankful if you would share your wisdom on it.

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

^ $35K for 2011 DFI with only 10K miles? sounds like a typo somewhere.

I rounded the figure down - its 35,500 but I'm hoping to nail it at 35 even and the mileage is 8,450. The only notable options I could see were PDK and Navigation. But I thought it was the perfect car for me. :>)

~AJR

[Perfectlap]

Originally Posted by AJR

Hi Perfectlap,
Could you please elaborate your views on the durability of the PDK? I have spoken to a few Tiptronic owners and all of them loved it - I assume these are people who prefer automatic transmissions. I have briefly read about the issues and the cost associated with replacing/repairing the PDK. I would be thankful if you would share your wisdom on it.

Well I haven't spoken to anyone that even knows how to fix a PDK transmission.
It's a whole new ball game -- one I wouldn't touch with a 100 foot pole out of warranty. If you go for one, make sure you negotiate a FACTORY warranty extension (as in any other kind of warranty is a no go). I can't even imagine what a PDK repair would run at a dealership. I was quoted nearly $12K just for clutch and shocks on year, and those are easy repairs. For a very labor-intensive repair, I doubt any experienced independent specialist is going to dive into one of these without giving you quiet a bill. And you certainly don't want any non-experienced mechanic in there.
Which all ends up sounding like a situation where you just buy a whole new reman unit from Porsche... $$$$. Most don't worry about this because, as with the Tiptronics, the owner is usually out of the car by the time these issues come up. But the old school Porsche autos are a known quantity at this point. The PDKs are only now coming out of warranty so we'll see... Unless you really hate rowing gears I'd keep it simple. Which also happens to be the more fun way to drive (out of warranty).
In warranty those matched downshifts in Speed Racer mode are violently cool. Just don't give me the bill when that wear adds up.

[Perfectlap]

^ $35K for 2011 DFI with only 10K miles? sounds like a typo somewhere.

[thstone]

Be SURE that you want an automatic before you buy a PDK...

[AJR]

Originally Posted by thstone

Be SURE that you want an automatic before you buy a PDK...

Hi Tom! This is a difficult one - I loved driving the manual Boxsters which I have test driven, the PDK was a little different as I was too conscious about it and trying to hard. It wasn't a bad feeling but I'm sure I will take time to develop a liking or to dislike it. Having said that, I most certainly would get Brownie points from the missus for having an Auto. I will decide on this soon.

One of the things I have failed to do in my due diligence is to read up and understand the shortcomings of the PDK apart from the experience factor. I read a couple posts on the forum about how it is very expensive to fix or replace but I haven't figured out the durability of the parts. I would appreciate if you would share your views on it. I have my Wednesday afternoon blocked for reading up on this. :>)

Thanks again for your time!

~AJR