Surely the 986 is a Future Classic. It's best to hold onto one and look after it well. It might become a collectors item one day and it's value will rise.

Nope, not gonna happen

Hard to speculate what will become a collectors car. I remember reading an article back in the 90's saying the Fiero will be a future collector's car. That didn't happen. I also remember when the air cooled 911's weren't worth anything. I paid $2000 for my 911sc. I don't see the 986 becoming anything special in the future for the same reasons as the 924,944 and 928. They're too expensive to maintain and too complicated for the average home mechanic to restore. I hope I'm wrong though.

As for being rare, I rarely see them on the road. Mostly new Porsches around here

Its already a collectors car. This community demonstrates it, and if you haven't noticed, the prices have plateaued. It probably won't be as hot a collectors car as the early 911s, but for those of who love them and take care of them they will be precious.

I just did a quick search on Craigslist for SF and Bay Area and surrounding cities. It showed 139 986 for sale at this time. There are duplicates but even if you cut the results in half you still have around 70 986's for sale just in the Bay Area alone. Definitely not a rare breed at least for California. Maybe in 20 years when most of the 986 have been recycled where the values go up and it will be considered rare.
SF bay area cars & trucks - craigslist

Look at that! We have a psychic on the forum! What are next weeks winning lottery numbers?
:p



I just did the same thing for Des Moines, Omaha and Kansas City (all within 100 miles of me)...I found 4. One was parts only. ;)

I don't think the Boxster will ever be a high value rare collector car. I agree with Woody that it'll be more like the 924/944/928. Its problem with the IMS until 2009 model year when Porsche did away with it also will work against it. If you want to speculate with a Porsche, buy a 911...they are the iconic Porsche...not the Boxster. If you just want some fun for relatively cheap, go Boxster.

I bought mine in Los Angles. There must have been 25 to choose from and maybe 10 were S. Found my SE the last day I could stay. Drove home.

Seems like LA and Miami and similar big money cities have more because of the poser rich guy / girl crowd. It's a Porsche.

I see 4-5 around regularly.

986's a rare breed?
 

They are everywhere in Atlanta. I even see 2 other rain forest green ones driving to work


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Yes in that it is an anologue performance car with a modern feel and convenience along with a small footprint

Get into a 981 and you will see what I mean. I have long time Porsche guys telling me that the 986 S was the sweet spot.

Agreed. A car needs a certain cache to become a true collectors car. There are a ton of cars out there with similar stats to that of the Boxster....and we don't talk about them being a 'collectors car'. I cannot believe that a 'poor man's Porsche" will suddenly be worth a significant amount from Collectors.

But who know's. I'd rather spend my time driving it and enjoying it than locking it away just in case....

Its just logic. They built a ton of them, they are considered a step down (rightly or wrongly) from the 911, they have the same fried egg headlights that are widely derided, engines are iffy, and they are not particularly revolutionary in any way.

Don't get me wrong, they are fun cars, and they might ultimately hold their value or appreciate slightly in 20 years, but I don't see any reason they would become collectors items.

^ this is the reason I think clean Boxsters will at least do as well as the s2k does in future years.

Look at a first gen NSX, it's worth more than a equivalent Ferrari or Lamborghini of the day.

Not that boxsters are likely to ever skyrocket but the 986 will probably be pulled up ABOVE the 996 some day. I think the 996 while being a great bang for the buck similar as the boxster has a less chance to appreciate than boxsters.

I think in a few years when the 25th anniversary of the first Boxster rolls around (and likely when Porsche introduces the next gen update of the 718) you'll start to see some interest in older 986s from a collectors perspective. But just like with any 'collector' car, only very early or limited edition models might see some appreciation.

1997 Boxsters with less than 40,000 miles (in original, VG+ condition). Bonus for Silver w/red interior and a hardtop.
2004 550 SE's
And possibly some first year S models from 2000.

And just like with 911's, it will be low-mileage cars with full maintenance history that will be of interest, as they become few and far between over the years.

Do a nationwide Craigslist/Autotrader/etc search for a 97 Boxster with less than 50k miles. You won't find many.

I am just north of Boston, and see 1-2 on a recurring basis - but seeing one every time I take it out - definitely not. But, as mentioned, how many 12-20 year old cars do you see? Not too many. My 986 draws comments from many who see it, most typically "what year is it?" Followed by "wow, it looks much newer."


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I keep hearing this 'They built a Ton of them' or 'They build a S@#* load of them'
BUT I just don't see them. Once in a great while I'll see one. There is only 1 that I know of in the next town over.
Now South NJ is Not the the hot bed for Porsches, Though there is a dealer 3 miles from me.
Now a Camary, there is a car they built a ton of.

Their rare status will only come up from their attrition and what's left. I Think the next push on value is the 996. It seems many U-Tubers are pushing what an excellent value these 996's can be. So that may help suppress the 986's status, even though all us know that they have excellent value.

Time will only tell. As said, the Air cooled 911's weren't always sought after like now.

For that enormous market, if you filter out duplicates, and search for 2000-2002 S 6-speed (the original and best :D), you get about a dozen, half of which look rough. Hence the observation that original owner, carefully maintained, cherry 986 S's are already rare. I live in SoCal and work on a huge Navy base, and I regularly see one other 986 S. One. Oh, and I'm still waiting for a 718 sighting :dance:

This is my second Boxster 986, first one being a 99 base.
Yes, at first, I tried convincing myself I had a fairly low mileage 2002 Boxster S in great condition with a hardtop, and that it was a collector's car. But, when I tracked it the first time, well... let's just say it quickly turned into a weekend track car and occasional daily commute on Fridays... So, as far as being a collector's car, maybe not, but it sure is sexy and fun to drive;) This will most likely be my track car and I will get a 996 or 997 for civilized road driving;)

And yes, I also had to go to Los Angeles to get this one, as I did for my 99 base. There just aren't that many in AZ...

That's funny - I'm in Oklahoma and had to go to Arizona (one in Phoenix and one in Tucson) to get two of my Boxsters - both '99 base cars - one was a heavily optioned aerokit car, the other a heavily optioned Ocean Jade Metallic. Although not surprising, both are original California cars.

Scarcity is relative! :D

Actually Rick, there are plenty of Boxsters in Oklahoma. The problem is that most of them are kept by a few hoarders.

:cheers:

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