... Am I setting myself up for a lot of headaches and an empty wallet or is there some logic to this train of thought?
Totally logical in my opinion. I've bought 3 Boxsters. Never had a PPI done.
The first one, a 2000 base, I had a 10 minute road test and bought it for $6500 CAN. I have put a lot of time into it plus about $3000 in parts and another $1000 in maintenance. I now runs great and is a joy to drive.
The second one, another 2000 base, supposedly had an overheating problem and had been sitting for 2 years. It wasn't licensed so I could not even drive it. I got it running and bought it for $5000, put a lot of time and about $1300 in parts into it and sold it to a friend for a slight profit (I calculated my labor as a learning experience).
The third one, a 2000 S, was a roller with a seized engine, but the seller told me that "it didn't need anything (other than the engine)". Ya, right. I paid $6000, (put a lot of time and) about $1800 for repairs and maintenance on the car and $5400 for a used engine and necessary maintenance on the engine. A little over $13000 all in, which is a bit more than I had planned on. But it is an S with the SportDesign package interior, which includes Sports seats.
None of these cars had any documentation with them. I think I was a bit lucky but Boxsters are tough little cars as long as they get a minimum of attention.
I have a lot of respect for 78F350's opinions, he may be from Oklahoma, but as far as Boxsters are concerned I think that I'm more of a cowboy than he is
__________________
Grant
Arctic Silver 2000 Boxster S - bought with a broken engine, back on the road with the engine replaced
Green 2000 Boxster 5-speed and 1978 928 auto
1987 924S 5-speed (Sold) - Blue 2000 Boxster 5 spd (Sold)
Last edited by elgyqc; 09-06-2023 at 08:19 PM.
Reason: added info
I have a lot of respect for 78F350's opinions, he may be from Oklahoma, but as far as Boxsters are concerned I think that I'm more of a cowboy than he is
Personally I have never had a PPI done or paid more than $5,000 for any of the twenty or so 986s I've bought. I pay cash and enjoy taking the risk. I would not advise a stranger to do what I have done.
'Flood Car" before I bought it:
After spending some time on it:
__________________ I am not an attorney, mechanic, or member of the clergy. Following any advice given in my posts is done at your own peril.
Do you have a write-up I can read on this car? Doing some light off-roading is (probably) in my boxster's future (mostly forest access roads and the like) and I'd love to learn more about what does and doesn't work.
Do you have a write-up I can read on this car? Doing some light off-roading is (probably) in my boxster's future (mostly forest access roads and the like) and I'd love to learn more about what does and doesn't work.
The info for that car is spread around a bit. It has evolved quite a lot over the years. If I have a quiet night at work tonight or tomorrow, I'll post some of the details. Pics https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjAButx
and if I was local I'd try a $2k offer on this considering parts value: https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/3037764579865666/? *Parting out a 986 can take a lot of time and effort, but if you need parts for yourself a parts car is a great option.
__________________ I am not an attorney, mechanic, or member of the clergy. Following any advice given in my posts is done at your own peril.
I've seen this one and it is my front-runner of "fix it up" options. Here is the list of things that I took note of when I took a look.
Creaking suspension
Strange noise on startup
Both side mirror motors do not work
The windshield is cracked and needs replacing
One of the headlight sprayers is missing
The convertible motor is slow and sounds tired. May need replacing soon
The front bumper seems misaligned
The plastic undertray on the front bumper is partially disconnected and scrapes on the ground occasionally, particularly when reversing
The rear bumper is cracked
The driver's seat is torn and needs repair or replacing
The clear coat is peeling, there are hail dents and lots of scratches and scrapes. Just about every panel has some kind of damage
The battery was disconnected when we arrived, no idea what that means
Bottle of antifreeze in the trunk
The plastic trim by the windshield has hail damage and needs replacing
The clear coat is peeling on all four wheels
All of the Porsche crest center caps are damaged in some way
Most of the lug nuts are rusty
Rubber gaskets around headlights look dry-rotted
Two tire brands: Michelin Pilot Sport All Season and Cooper RS3-G1, all from 2021
And I'm probably missing other stuff.
When I drove it the car seemed fine, but I remember either the gas or brake had a lot of dead space at the beginning. It shifted through all the gears fine and seemed to drive well. I neglected to test the wipers and turn signals, and probably a few other things. There are no reliable records of any kind of service done. Also, the seat was a massive pain to adjust.
With the exception of the strange startup noise and windshield, these mostly sound like things I could theoretically take care of myself or just live with. Safelight will install a new windshield for $520, but the strange startup noise is what is giving me pause. It could be nothing, or it could be a serious concern. The bodywork makes it a 20-foot car at best and it's probably more money to get all of that repaired than the car would be worth with half the miles.
Honestly, this is the car that I'm debating making an offer on, I'm just not sure what kind of an offer would make it worth all of the known and unknown work. Beyond that, it just seems like a lot of little things and even though I feel like I've done a decent job of searching for all the replacement parts I would need from eBay, I'm sure I'm forgetting things, and the dollar signs are quickly adding up.
I already own the book "101 Projects for Your Porsche Boxster" and between that, the Youtube channel "Help Me DIY", and this forum it's giving me confidence that any problem I might encounter I will at least have a guide to get me through, but this would still be my first project car and it's intimidating.
I'd like to think that I'm reasonably mechanically minded, but I lack experience doing anything beyond oil changes, air filters, and swapping between winter and summer tires. I'd love to believe that I can tackle anything that gets thrown at me, but I also want to be realistic with my abilities. Tutorials are one thing, but they are no substitution for experience.
So yeah, hope that wall of text didn't put you to sleep, lol.
I've seen this one and it is my front-runner of "fix it up" options. Here is the list of things that I took note of when I took a look.
Creaking suspension
Strange noise on startup
Both side mirror motors do not work
The windshield is cracked and needs replacing
One of the headlight sprayers is missing
The convertible motor is slow and sounds tired. May need replacing soon
The front bumper seems misaligned
The plastic undertray on the front bumper is partially disconnected and scrapes on the ground occasionally, particularly when reversing
The rear bumper is cracked
The driver's seat is torn and needs repair or replacing
The clear coat is peeling, there are hail dents and lots of scratches and scrapes. Just about every panel has some kind of damage
The battery was disconnected when we arrived, no idea what that means
Bottle of antifreeze in the trunk
The plastic trim by the windshield has hail damage and needs replacing
The clear coat is peeling on all four wheels
All of the Porsche crest center caps are damaged in some way
Most of the lug nuts are rusty
Rubber gaskets around headlights look dry-rotted
Two tire brands: Michelin Pilot Sport All Season and Cooper RS3-G1, all from 2021
And I'm probably missing other stuff.
When I drove it the car seemed fine, but I remember either the gas or brake had a lot of dead space at the beginning. It shifted through all the gears fine and seemed to drive well. I neglected to test the wipers and turn signals, and probably a few other things. There are no reliable records of any kind of service done. Also, the seat was a massive pain to adjust.
With the exception of the strange startup noise and windshield, these mostly sound like things I could theoretically take care of myself or just live with. Safelight will install a new windshield for $520, but the strange startup noise is what is giving me pause. It could be nothing, or it could be a serious concern. The bodywork makes it a 20-foot car at best and it's probably more money to get all of that repaired than the car would be worth with half the miles.
Honestly, this is the car that I'm debating making an offer on, I'm just not sure what kind of an offer would make it worth all of the known and unknown work. Beyond that, it just seems like a lot of little things and even though I feel like I've done a decent job of searching for all the replacement parts I would need from eBay, I'm sure I'm forgetting things, and the dollar signs are quickly adding up.
I already own the book "101 Projects for Your Porsche Boxster" and between that, the Youtube channel "Help Me DIY", and this forum it's giving me confidence that any problem I might encounter I will at least have a guide to get me through, but this would still be my first project car and it's intimidating.
I'd like to think that I'm reasonably mechanically minded, but I lack experience doing anything beyond oil changes, air filters, and swapping between winter and summer tires. I'd love to believe that I can tackle anything that gets thrown at me, but I also want to be realistic with my abilities. Tutorials are one thing, but they are no substitution for experience.
So yeah, hope that wall of text didn't put you to sleep, lol.
That is quite a list! On the positive side they are things that are relatively simple to fix. And you can drive and enjoy the car while fixing it, with help from the forums and youtube.
Normally I am not put off by things that are purely appearance, but even I am struck by all the esthetic issues, that is not work that I enjoy... and I am not very good at it... but that's just me.
If you intend to do your own work you need tools and a place to work, most of the things on your list can be done in a driveway. Anything more complex may need a garage, do you have one or access to one for short (or medium or long, depending) periods of time? Include some money in your budget for tools beyond the standard ones or see if you can beg, borrow, rent or steal them locally. I have accumulated a lot tools.
Too bad you are so far away, I have decided to sell my 2000 base Boxster which I have done a lot of work on and which has the maintenance up to date. It is the first Boxster that I bought, as mentioned in my first post.
__________________
Grant
Arctic Silver 2000 Boxster S - bought with a broken engine, back on the road with the engine replaced
Green 2000 Boxster 5-speed and 1978 928 auto
1987 924S 5-speed (Sold) - Blue 2000 Boxster 5 spd (Sold)
That is quite a list! On the positive side they are things that are relatively simple to fix. And you can drive and enjoy the car while fixing it, with help from the forums and youtube.
Normally I am not put off by things that are purely appearance, but even I am struck by all the esthetic issues, that is not work that I enjoy... and I am not very good at it... but that's just me.
If you intend to do your own work you need tools and a place to work, most of the things on your list can be done in a driveway. Anything more complex may need a garage, do you have one or access to one for short (or medium or long, depending) periods of time? Include some money in your budget for tools beyond the standard ones or see if you can beg, borrow, rent or steal them locally. I have accumulated a lot tools.
Too bad you are so far away, I have decided to sell my 2000 base Boxster which I have done a lot of work on and which has the maintenance up to date. It is the first Boxster that I bought, as mentioned in my first post.
I've got a garage and some basic hand tools already. Jack, jack stands, ramps, socket set, stuff like that. I'm also within walking distance of two auto parts stores that offer free tool rentals as well so I have some options there.
Personally I have never had a PPI done or paid more than $5,000 for any of the twenty or so 986s I've bought. I pay cash and enjoy taking the risk. I would not advise a stranger to do what I have done.
OK, I apologize, I am NOT more of a cowboy than you and my cowboy hat is off to you.
I did not read through all of your links, in what I read I was struck by the comments of AAZCD... that guy knows his stuff.
Seriously, my comments were not meant as advice, rather as my experience as related to the question of buying a "questionable" Boxster. The way I look at it buying a 986 is like buying stocks or crypto currency, consider the possibility that the money is lost... and if it isn't so much the better!
__________________
Grant
Arctic Silver 2000 Boxster S - bought with a broken engine, back on the road with the engine replaced
Green 2000 Boxster 5-speed and 1978 928 auto
1987 924S 5-speed (Sold) - Blue 2000 Boxster 5 spd (Sold)
OK, I apologize, I am NOT more of a cowboy than you and my cowboy hat is off to you.
I did not read through all of your links, in what I read I was struck by the comments of AAZCD... that guy knows his stuff. ...
No apology necessary, I enjoy following along with your work on the 2000 S project. I just wanted to emphasize that what we do might be inappropriate for for the average first-time 986 buyer.
That AAZCD guy has obviously learned from experiencing a lot of mistakes.
__________________ I am not an attorney, mechanic, or member of the clergy. Following any advice given in my posts is done at your own peril.
Boxster
Parts Car, car parts
Honda Del Sol(s)
"Hers"
My Original '99
The 78 F350
This
That
The S 2.5
Other
Hybrid Mode
