The Boxster: A curioius contradiction

[Oldcarguy]

Originally Posted by j.fro

Time, patience, and the ability to hang on. In 1976, a new 914 was 5-6K. In the mid to late 80's running cars were under $500. Now, a decent 914 is $10-12K with the really nice ones fetching a lot more. The 986 will have it's day... in about 15-20 years.

+1 to what Jfro said. IMHO, we're still at least 10 years out to see any material appreciation in the 986.

I have a good friend who has been in the high end 'preowned' car business forever. His philosophy is that any car is worth what someone is willing to pay for it. Every once in a while, someone is looking for something really specific and is willing to pay for it (he gets a lot of specific search requests), but generally the market is what the market is, and there are simply too many 986s still on the road.

Decent E36 (92-97 MYs) M3s are firmly in the low-mid teens now with $7,000 low end cars and $25,000 high end outliers. A market about on par with the 986. I love my 986 but I'm realistic about what I own. It's a great driver that I enjoy and maintain without worrying about its value or perceived prestige.

Currently, the 986 still suffers from what I call the Lotus Esprit syndrome. A buyer seeking a 'prestige marque' snags one of the many low priced examples available (ooww, I can buy a 'Porch'), fails to maintain it (because they can't afford or don't care to) and runs it into the ground. The market will grind through this cycle until only real survivor (or resurrected) examples remain. Not until then will the 986 experience any appreciable gain in market value.

Man, I wish winter would give it up, I'm ready to drive

[78F350]

Originally Posted by Oldcarguy

+1 to what Jfro said. IMHO, we're still at least 10 years out to see any material appreciation in the 986. ...

... The market will grind through this cycle until only real survivor (or resurrected) examples remain. Not until then will the 986 experience any appreciable gain in market value. ...

+1. As the years go by, we who love to drive these cars, will continue to pay our +/- $2,000 a year subscription fee. That will make any later gains in value a bit moot unless you plan to warehouse your car(s) and not enjoy them. My hope is that they are around for as long as I drive. I will acquire, repair, modify, and part-out as needed in the mean time.

[paulofto]

Originally Posted by 78F350

+1. As the years go by, we who love to drive these cars, will continue to pay our +/- $2,000 a year subscription fee. That will make any later gains in value a bit moot unless you plan to warehouse your car(s) and not enjoy them. My hope is that they are around for as long as I drive. I will acquire, repair, modify, and part-out as needed in the mean time.

+1 to your +1

The cost to maintain is what it is. And calling it a subscription price is quite accurate.

PS. Mine comes out of hibernation on Friday this week. I've already paid part of this years 'subscription' by way of new brake pads, spark plugs and a couple of underbody plastic bits that needed replacing. Every penny worth it.