Looking to buy a 2000 Boxster

[morgal48]

After looking for a 987 for six months I stumbled on a 2000 "S" that came home with me. Second owner was selling after two years to buy a 944 turbo to race. Original owner drove 27k in 12 years. 2nd owner drove 8k in two years; and replaced IMS, RMS, plugs, tubes, oil, brake fluid, tires, AOS, and more - maybe $6k in all. During my two years it has a new motor mount and xmission mounts, water pump, trunk and frunk struts and speakers all around, along with other little things I can't not do. My contribution has been about $4k. I have all receipts (I think, based on mileage and date intervals from service records) from day 1, including window sticker, all manuals, radio code card (and both radio code stickers), and the Porsche sunglasses case that came in the owners manual binder. Documented, low mileage cars do exist. That said, the past four years - from 27k miles to 42k miles - has included over$10k in maintenance.

[mikefocke]

My experience was so different from morgal's.

I had a great PPI on a two owner 42K miles '01S. On purchase, it immediately got a 60k service just so I could be sure of where services stood. It also got a complete brake job. And an alignment. Bought a set of take-off wheels with almost new Michelins from a very-posh-neighborhood dealer, sold mine for $100 less than I paid. So my ownership began.

Once into the shop at my expense for the seat belt grounding issue at $150 labor. One O2 sensor at $120 and $25 labor at a muffler shop. One CEL that pointed to a possible air leak in the intake and an hour labor at $175 securing all hose ends cured the CEL. One battery just because it was getting old. One set of tires again just because they were old. Not sure most people would have done the last 2 and, if you eliminate them, my 5 year expense (omitting oil changes, registration, insurance, etc ) was less than $500! 3% of the depreciation expense.

6 years and ~20k later sold it.In 6 years it never absolutely had to go to the shop, get towed or anything like that. Very daily driver. A few 250 mile trips. It drove me 15 miles to work in all but the worst snow, and volunteered to get pizzas, etc. (I'll bet few of you know how well a super size Pizza box wedges in the rear trunk and how warm it keeps for a 15 mile dash to home.) That car is at 93k last I heard from its 5th owner.