1st Boxster purchase
 

Hi 986'rs
I have had many Porsche in my life time
From 944 T to 930
I now have a CLK55 and a Maserati Coupe
I am looking for a convertible and the 986 is tempting
The issue is that I find pricing lately way above KBB
As well I find manual driving fun on a weekend but as everyday driver not so much
Does anybody have a 986 with an automatic and actually like it?
Also I know the Boxster is low HP but does the automatic seem slower?

Where do you live? Go for the “S” version.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Use Cargurus.com, their price analysis is pretty accurate.

You have two choices that I would consider: Either an early 1998/99 2.5l or a 2003/04 S. The first if you are looking for a classic and not concerned about acceleration, the latter if you want the best acceleration and a glove box. Try both before you decide.

Early Boxsters are simply the best value in sports cars.

And then, off course, have a thorough PPI. Don't fall in love until you know what you are looking at. The bodies will normally be in terrific shape because all the steel is galvanized, but looks can be deceiving.

Good luck!

Price on 986s can be depend greatly on how much maintenance has been done or needs to be done. The price guides just average them out.

My usual DD is a '99 Tip'. I've had a couple '99 Tiptronics and the transmission control is biased more to fuel economy and smooth driving. For an easy drive to work, it will typically shift to a high gear than I want, and keep the rpms around 1800-2200. Not sporty. I have read that if you drive it hard in auto-mode, it will sense it and change to a sportier program, but I find that it quickly reverts back to dull.

The same cars, driven in manual mode are a different animal. For a fun drive, you can put it in (M) and take over control. High revs and sharp shifting up and down with no worry of over-revving. Take one out for a test drive and (possibly terrify the owner) put it in (M) at a stop and FLOOR the gas. ***Make sure the car has been warmed up first*** The car will run up through the gears, shifting at redline. From speed, downshift repeatedly for a hard deceleration. This is not abusing the car, it's a 'function check'.

My '01 Tip', behaves a little differently than the '99s. It naturally revs higher and feels sportier in normal driving. I think the TCMs in the '00 and later have better programming. I still miss the tactile feel of a shifter. The only way to manually change gears is with the +/- on the steering wheel. I wish they had a +/- stick like many other cars. Still my favorite weekend driver is my '99 manual.

Owned a '99 TIP and a '01S TIP. Preferred the latter as you could downshift without having to move the shifter knob to manual. Drove it 97% of the time in auto mode in drive to work traffic and on trips but nice to be able to control downshifts when passing or on hills. My prior sportscar background was in Alfas and a 914 so I had lots of stick experience. But I now lived in a congested area and the commute was more relaxed with an auto and I wasn't going to out stoplight anyone with the traffic we had. On the weekends in the twisties, I'd go manual and have fun. Trouble free for me but those cars are now aged, like me.

I have a 97/Tip and really enjoy it. My legs are too long to use a clutch in this layout. I usually drive it in auto unless I am going uphill. Then I put it in manual to keep the revs up. First gear is really low and I rarely use it. I use manual in the twisty's and keep it between 3500-4500. The car only has +/- 200 HP to start with and I have ZERO complaints about it's performance. If anything, I'm the weak link. I really need to take a HPDE course this year.

I have a 2003 tip and really love it.

The shifting is crisp and fast. You can be in the auto mode and downshift any time.

I have a 2.7 and it is really a pleasant drive. The traction control shifts down if it feel side loads and or braking going into a corner.

I thought I would not like it, but it was a big surprise how good it is.

I recently acquired a 986 with a Tip to use as a daily driver. I also own a 964 C4 with a 5 speed manual. There is no denying a manual is more fun under the right conditions, but I find the Tip to be much more comfortable in stop and go traffic and city driving. Using the Tip in manual mode with the paddle shifters is great for the times when you can/want to do some "spirited" driving.
Either way you will find the 986 a fun and relatively inexpensive toy.

The manual is much more durable than the tip. I constantly get request for tiptronic transmissions. I'd go for the manual on that reason alone. Performance wise the tip isn't too bad though. My wife's 03 has a tip and it's kind of fun in it's own way. Of course it has some shifting issues that I'm trying to diagnose. If you have your heart set on a base model tip, go with the 03/04 as Porsche upgraded the coolant tubes to the larger S coolant tubes. All 2000-04 S boxsters have larger cooling tubes

I remember a while ago, we discussed the cooling for the Tiptronic transmissions being the weak point. I have seen many VW Passats and Audi A4s with the same transmission often getting well into 200k miles and have the engine fail with the transmission still good. Better cooling? I think that hot climates, that see normal summer temps of > 38C/100F, the "lifetime" fluid should be changed every few years.

If it wasn't clear in my earlier post, I do enjoy using my 1999 tip as a daily driver, otherwise, I'd drive another. Great around town and easy in traffic.