Opinions welcome... - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

dghii · 02-25-2016, 08:29 AM

Local new/used car dealership has a 2010 Base on their lot that has me a bit intrigued.....

The car is a 6 speed, Black/Black/Black. 81,600 miles. Not a ton of options from what I can see.

I don't see any service history.

18in wheels (no rash). heated seats, no Nav or PSM. Michelin PS2 tires look new. Brake pads have lots of life and rotors not lipped.

The car looks very clean, no rock chips or dings. Clear headlights, interior is very clean with the exception of wear on the console. Even the radio and climate control switches look good.

I don't need this car but its price has me interested. I think it has winter time pricing which I'll share after hearing opinions...

Porsche9 · 02-25-2016, 08:46 AM

Does winter time pricing exsist in Florida?

For me no service history = not going to buy unless the price is compelling enough where all manintenance needed to be brought up to date is reflected plus some and then it still needs to pass a PPI.

Did you look at the Carfax? Sometime that will give you some indication of service done. It's not great but better then nothing.

dghii · 02-25-2016, 09:34 AM

All valid points of course.
Let's assume there are no surprises and maintenance is current.

Please don't take this as me willing to go in blind. I'm not.

Smallblock454 · 02-25-2016, 09:46 AM

Make shure it is the EU 2009 / USA 2010 model with the 2.9 litre engine / 255 HP. Which means no more IMS problems and also no problems with direct fuel injection, because the base engine of that model year doesn't have direct fuel injection.

Regards, Markus

Benitom · 02-25-2016, 09:46 AM

I like spending other people's money. So I say go for it!

thstone · 02-25-2016, 11:06 AM

What is the price?

Otherwise, all I can say is get a PPI.

dghii · 02-25-2016, 11:08 AM

Asking 21k

mikefocke · 02-25-2016, 11:35 AM

Black car in the Florida sun/heat! Shows dirt.

dghii · 02-25-2016, 12:13 PM

I know. I've lived here 34 years.
I'm retired. I have time to clean it!

dghii · 02-25-2016, 12:17 PM

I guess my point is that I have not seen a 2010 Boxster for 21K before. Not on cars.com, craigslist, or eBay,. Has anyone seen one around this price point?
A couple of months ago, I saw the car in the lot and they were asking $25k.

I know it's not low miles but the car shows very well.

Porsche9 · 02-25-2016, 12:26 PM

$21k is a good price. I have not seen any 2010 Boxsters at $21k. Sounds like the next thing for that car is the auction block if they can't sell it. Might be worth the risk. Curious if they well let you do a PPI.

dghii · 02-25-2016, 01:05 PM

There"s a very reputable Indy in town that I would trust to do a PPI.
I have not expressed any real interest at the dealership as I really don't need this car at all.
My 2000S has been a great car and still a blast. Don't know if I'd really get any extra enjoyment out of the newer car than I do my current one.

I haven't been in the market so I wasn't sure if this car was a cheap as I thought or prices have just fallen that much.

Giller · 02-25-2016, 01:40 PM

21K seems like a pretty good deal - dealer is certainly looking to move it. Dealers don't like to sit on cars for too long.
Have you taken it for a good, long drive? Lots of cosmetic differences between a 986 and 987.2 - but they also feel a bit different, at least to me.
The 987.2 feels more grownup, more serious. Whereas the 986 feels much lighter and wilder - doesn't take itself so seriously. But both amazing machines.

dghii · 02-25-2016, 05:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Giller

21K seems like a pretty good deal - dealer is certainly looking to move it. Dealers don't like to sit on cars for too long.
Have you taken it for a good, long drive? Lots of cosmetic differences between a 986 and 987.2 - but they also feel a bit different, at least to me.
The 987.2 feels more grownup, more serious. Whereas the 986 feels much lighter and wilder - doesn't take itself so seriously. But both amazing machines.

Thanks,
I haven't driven it or expressed any real interest other than a quick walk around and sit inside.

This is not a "gotta have it" thing. I just wonder if, with the end of the month coming, its worth shooting them an offer that I can't refuse.

They also have a 2001 911 cabriolet with 59K miles for $21K. Not crazy about the color combo....its burgundy with grey top and grey leather interior.

Timco · 02-25-2016, 06:09 PM

I pulled up to the dealer, saw the car. Test drive.

Listened to engine close. Listened to sound of car moving. Looked under.

Not a single service record offered. No problem. No PPI. Didn't want to miss this SE and others looking in it. Bought within 3 hours of first seeing it, no major issues. Needed brakes, clutch, AOS, tune up. Drives perfect.

Gave it my own PPI, knew I wanted it, rolled those dice, pulled that trigger. Never happier with a used vehicle purchase. Had 119k on the clock.

Don't let a good deal pass you by if it's really what you want. It isn't always someone's giant problem. Sometimes a great car needs some basic maintenance.

dghii · 02-25-2016, 07:06 PM

"Don't let a good deal pass you by if it's really what you want."
So there you go! Not really sure I want it or not. Just was surprised at the price.

My car as 130K miles, runs and drives great and doesn't have any of the Boxster horror stories I sometimes read about on the forums. It's got a few beauty marks but overall is pretty dang great for a 16 year old car. Its tempting to think I could get a 10 year newer car with all the nice stuff it offers but...
Hate the idea idea of giving up what I have and know for an unknown entity at more than twice the price of my car.

Timco · 02-25-2016, 09:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dghii

"Don't let a good deal pass you by if it's really what you want."
So there you go! Not really sure I want it or not. Just was surprised at the price.

My car as 130K miles, runs and drives great and doesn't have any of the Boxster horror stories I sometimes read about on the forums. It's got a few beauty marks but overall is pretty dang great for a 16 year old car. Its tempting to think I could get a 10 year newer car with all the nice stuff it offers but...
Hate the idea idea of giving up what I have and know for an unknown entity at more than twice the price of my car.

My Ranger had 250k on it and it dropped a cylinder in TN on my way down to FL a month ago. Buying a 36k mile 2013 F150 I was more worried about unknown issues than I was driving my Ranger. You get to know your car and its quirks and you get used to it. Now I want to do brakes even though they look ok just to know they're new like the Box and my Ranger.

Like I said, it would have to be what you're looking for. I shopped for a week in LA and bought that on the last day I was there. Drove home a happy guy....

dghii · 02-26-2016, 05:54 PM

Went back and looked at the car today with my Son. I'd put the car's condition as "Very Good" but not quite "Excellent"

The car has a couple of scratches and swirls but nothing that a good detail couldn't remedy,

Thing is, the car doesn't really make me ready to give up my current Boxster, In monetary terms, I don't think I'd like this car twice as much as my current car.

All that being said, I may have to walk in at the end of the month and offer them something just for the heck of it. If I could get the car in the high teens it would be pretty hard to say no.

dghii · 02-29-2016, 03:29 PM

As mentioned earlier, being the last day of the month, I paid the dealership a visit. My plan was to make an offer I couldn't turn down. It was a very pretty day and I wasn't really looking forward to spending hours on a great day doing the dealership dance but I was intrigued and interested enough to make the drive.

Prior to leaving, I checked the web site and found that the car was still available but their listing was pretty screwed up. The description was for the 2010 base car I'd looked at but the price was now listed at $25K. All the pictures were of a Lapis blue 2010 S tip with 20K miles that had been on the lot late last year. Weird!

Upon arriving, I went up to the office and requested the CARFAX. It turns out that the car had arrived in FL after originally being purchased in Utah. Besides FL, the car had also spent time in South Carolina and Virginia Beach. It had two previous owners and my guess was the last was a service member.

in 2011, the car had been involved in a a rear end collision that resulted in "damage greater than $1,000" (Duh!!) but no air bag deployment. Upon inspection, I could not see any sign of the damage or repair. CARFAX also noted many trips to dealerships for scheduled service but nothing else out of the ordinary.

When I was looking over the car, I noted that the convertible top side tension cables were outside of their track. CARFAX had noted multiple trips to dealer to 'Check top' but no other information or evidence that the top had been replaced. Other than one vlong scratch (could be buffed out) on drivers side quarter panel, the outside looked great.

Inside, the car was in great shape except a few scuffs on door jams and wear on the console and drivers door handle surround. The wear isn't the same as what I'm used to seeing on my 986 but items would still need to be replace to make the inside as new.

Now the drive....
Since the 2010 Base car is rated to have about 5 more HP than my 2000S and weighs about 50 lbs more, I expected similar performance. What I experienced was....yawn.

Nothing.

My 2000S still feels like a very hot go-cart when I drive it. It is an absolute blast every time and has been the entire time I've owned it.

The 2010 did not have the same feel at all. I know this is subjective but all in all, the car didn't feel quicker or more responsive or refined than what I'm used to. Certainly the experience was nowhere near enough to consider it as a replacement for my current car.

As far as a buy and resell, the previous accident and lack of detailed service records made me apprehensive about the certainty of success.

After returning from the test drive and being asked what I thought, I just said thank you but not interested in making an offer.

Sometimes you just have to trust your gut. I realized I just wasn't excited at all about the possibility of buying the car as a keeper or a flip. $20K plus cars are not always easy resales in our area , especially if they've got any sort of accident history.

BTW, the sales person was sticking to the idea that the asking price was $25K. Whatever.

Bottom line, time to move on!

dghii · 03-22-2016, 05:08 PM

Never did make an offer for this car but the current asking price is online is now $20,000.

Still seems very reasonable for a 2010!

End of the month is right around the corner. Might have to wait for a rainy day and go play the game and see if I can get this thing for $17-$18K.