Hoping to have a Boxster soon

[Mr Flat Six]

Hey guys my name is Nick and I'd like to say thanks for allowing me to join this wonderful forum. I've been looking through here for about the past week and gathering information to help prepare me to buy a Porsche Boxster.

Since this is my first post I'll tell you guys a little about myself. I'm 23 years old and currently work as an automotive detailer. I love detailing cars and find it very rewarding transforming a dirty scratched up car into a fresh, clean and beautiful car. I have owned three different Motorcycles and love bikes more than just about anything. That being said I've been wanting a car to have fun with and enjoy.

I've looked at Miata's, S2000's, 350z's, Mustangs, and so many more. I've always loved Porsches and that has definitely helped sway my interest to the Boxster. I also really like convertibles. The only thing that has made me somewhat hesitant was the maintenance. Well after looking on this forum, I am far less concerned about that. While it still needs a lot of maintenance, it is a lot less than what some people make it out to be. In other words, I'm glad I looked into it a lot more.

Now that I'm sure I want a Boxster, I've been searching all over. Recently I found a 1999 Boxster with 109k miles. The guy is the second owner and has all the maintenance records from when he owned the car starting in 2003. It was just recently serviced and has speed humps(didn't know what these were at first but they look pretty cool). Everything works as it should and he's asking $6,800. I'm hoping to go take a look at it sometime in the next week and see how it looks. I will also be having a nearby Porsche shop do a PPI if I'm completely interested in buying the car.

[Anker]

Well done, Nick,

Sounds like you are on the right track!

Good luck with the purchase!

[Mr Flat Six]

Well today I went and test drove the car. Somehow the condition was not exactly what I was expecting. While the paint was in good condition the car did seem "weathered". It wasn't bad at all though. When I sat in the car I began adjusting things after asking the owners permission. Thats when I noticed the steering wheel wasn't able to be adjusted. It seemed stuck and he did say he just had it serviced due to the airbag light.

On to the driving part. The car seems to drive pretty good but does have squeaks and rattles which I expected. I thought the power was pretty decent and the steering felt great. Mechanically the car seems well sorted.

Unfortunately I do have some concerns. When the owner demonstrated the A/C working the car felt almost like it was about to stall. RPM's had dropped to 500 for a second and then shot back up and it happened again. Is this normal? I know A/C draws power from the engine but this does not seem normal in my experience with many other cars. He also had a new plastic window attached by some vinyl guy and I'm not so sure it was done the best.

The owner didn't seem like much of an enthusiast and even admitted he just gets it serviced when the shop says to. I'm awaiting the maintenance records but my gut is telling me this is not the one. This is the first Boxster I've looked at and I think I need to see some more and gain more exposure before making a decision.

[steved0x]

Originally Posted by Mr Flat Six

Thats when I noticed the steering wheel wasn't able to be adjusted. It seemed stuck and he did say he just had it serviced due to the airbag light.

The steering wheel telescopes forward and backwards but there is no tilt adjustment, so that may be what you felt?

[Mr Flat Six]

Originally Posted by steved0x

The steering wheel telescopes forward and backwards but there is no tilt adjustment, so that may be what you felt?

Ah okay that makes sense. Nonetheless I did see if it was telescoping as well and could not get it to budge.

[RandallNeighbour]

$6800 isn't bad for this car with this mileage and considering he had it serviced when the shop told him it needed to be serviced... which means they probably did more stuff to the car than necessary to bleed him of his hard earned cash.

Just because he's not an enthusiast doesn't mean you shouldn't buy this car. However, you should look at 2-3 others in the same age/mileage range to get a feel for condition and wear and tear.

Because these convertibles sit in the hot sun year after year with the top down, the interior gets faded and beat up by UV rays. It will cause rubber and plastic to fall apart or wear out faster than a hard top vehicle.

At 109k, there's a number of suspension parts that are likely worn out and should have been replaced or you'll have to replace them sooner than later. This includes tie rods, control arms, struts, and wheel bearings. Not cheap. A full replacement of these will set you back $2-3k if a shop does it.

Check my web site below for the normal stuff that goes out on 97-99 boxsters....

[Mr Flat Six]

Originally Posted by RandallNeighbour

$6800 isn't bad for this car with this mileage and considering he had it serviced when the shop told him it needed to be serviced... which means they probably did more stuff to the car than necessary to bleed him of his hard earned cash.

Just because he's not an enthusiast doesn't mean you shouldn't buy this car. However, you should look at 2-3 others in the same age/mileage range to get a feel for condition and wear and tear.

Because these convertibles sit in the hot sun year after year with the top down, the interior gets faded and beat up by UV rays. It will cause rubber and plastic to fall apart or wear out faster than a hard top vehicle.

At 109k, there's a number of suspension parts that are likely worn out and should have been replaced or you'll have to replace them sooner than later. This includes tie rods, control arms, struts, and wheel bearings. Not cheap. A full replacement of these will set you back $2-3k if a shop does it.

Check my web site below for the normal stuff that goes out on 97-99 boxsters....

Thanks for your input. I am definitely still considering the car but I do want to look at a few more. You are right, $6,800 is pretty cheap. I still want to have a shop look at it and get their input as well. I'll let you guys know how things go as they unfold.

[algiorda]

Hi Nick,

Congrats on your search and have fun with it. I just did the same search you did. However, I opted to spend a bit more to get a really nice specimen. I searched the same type of cars you did before looking into the Boxster. I had always felt Porsche was out of my league. That is until I test drove one. I was blown away by the fun factor.

When I found the one I purchased, it was love at first sight/drive and I suppose you will also go through the same. If you have reservations pass on it and find a better specimen. You really want good bones as a foundation and then update/maintain to make it your own.

Just make a list of items which are really important to you; i.e performance, well maintained, paint, color, interior, IMS, cost, reliability, service records, Carfax, etc and then go from there.

Good luck and since you found this site, your already on the winning track!

[Luccia at Pelican Parts]

Welcome to the 986 community, Nick. Be sure to take a look at our 986 articles here: Porsche Boxster 986/987 (1997-2004) Technical Articles | Pelican Parts for some great info and tips about them. A PPI is a great idea to insure you know what may or may not need attention before you purchase it. Good luck with the purchase!

[Mr Flat Six]

Originally Posted by Luccia at Pelican Parts

Welcome to the 986 community, Nick. Be sure to take a look at our 986 articles here: Porsche Boxster 986/987 (1997-2004) Technical Articles | Pelican Parts for some great info and tips about them. A PPI is a great idea to insure you know what may or may not need attention before you purchase it. Good luck with the purchase!

Thanks! I've been looking at those articles for almost the last week trying to do as much research as possible. I found another cleaner 986 1997 model that I'm planning to go look at this weekend. I also found a MY 2000 base that looked pretty decent that I might look at as well. I appreciate the advice and input from you guys!

[BrantyB]

My opinion is to hold out. Having just gone through a parallel search myself: for a couple grand more you should be able to find a well sorted base with roughly half the miles. Patience and diligence is everything. But if things unfold well with this particular car, thats ok too

[oldskool73]

The telescoping was frozen in mine when I got it. A bit of wd40 and persuasion on the locking plunger (easily accessible by removing the air channel in the footwell area) freed it up.

I have a 97, but if I did it again with what know now I'd keep looking around for a later one.

[Mr Flat Six]

Hey guys I posted another thread about the car I ended up purchasing. It is a 1999 base with 83k miles that I picked up for $6,500. It came with maintenance records and I had a PPI performed before the purchase. I feel that I got a decent deal on the car. So far I'm loving it!

[Anker]

A couple of suggestions on where to look:

PCA classifieds. You will need a friend who is a member to let you see the listings. Prices tend to be high, but cars well looked after.

The local PCA chapters magazines and web sites. Same as above.

PCA Boxster Register. Same as above.

Cargurus.com has worked very well for me. Edmunds and Kelly's less so. Cargurus has customer reviews of the sellers. Only buy from one that has many positive reviews.

The Forsche forums: 986forum.com, Pedrosboard.com.

Try visiting your local Porsche indie. That's where I bought my Boxster S. He may also know of well maintained Boxsters for sale.

Craigs list is a crap shoot. You have to be very careful buying from private sellers. Dealers are better.

In all cases a PPI and/or a warranty is mandatory.

Good luck!

[dmwehlmann]

Hi, my name is Dustin and I am in the Denver area. I found this post helpful. I am going to look at a 2002 Boxster S tomorrow. The car has 96k miles on it. Im nervous buying one of these cars due to the IMS bearing issue. Any help out there as to weather or not I should buy one of these cars would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

[Mr Flat Six]

I've owned my Boxster for 2 months and it has been so much fun. I've already put over 3k miles on it and that was in cooler weather. I'm so happy I picked this car over the others I was looking at and would make the same decision again. Although with higher mileage some things may be worn out like suspension and what not so I would definitely get a PPI performed by a reputable shop just so you know what you'll have to invest in the car in the future. I'm honestly not too worried about the IMS issue and hope that never bites me in the ass but you could always get it replaced. Overall I highly recommend getting a Porsche Boxster.

[McHeinzky]

Originally Posted by Anker

A couple of suggestions on where to look:

PCA classifieds. You will need a friend who is a member to let you see the listings. Prices tend to be high, but cars well looked after.

The local PCA chapters magazines and web sites. Same as above.

PCA Boxster Register. Same as above.

Cargurus.com has worked very well for me. Edmunds and Kelly's less so. Cargurus has customer reviews of the sellers. Only buy from one that has many positive reviews.

The Forsche forums: 986forum.com, Pedrosboard.com.

Try visiting your local Porsche indie. That's where I bought my Boxster S. He may also know of well maintained Boxsters for sale.

Craigs list is a crap shoot. You have to be very careful buying from private sellers. Dealers are better.

In all cases a PPI and/or a warranty is mandatory.

Good luck!

This is very helpful. I've been searching Craigslist and have not been having much luck.