Just drove past a house in the countryside with a P reg Boxster outside for sale. Spoke to the chap who took me for a drive in it, and garnered the folling info:
* Full Porsche SH (I verified) with approx 10k spent on the car in 10 years (!)
* Price was 10250 but he said he'd take 9800
* Tyres are all down to about 2-3mm
* No air-con
* Seats seemed to be part-leather
* Condition in & out seemed to be very good, a few very minor scuffs on alloys only
Two things concerned me though -
1 - I put the roof up and down a few times with no probs but 1 time I stopped half way & when I resumed, a bit of trim popped out (which he clipped back in, explaining that if you stopped the roof mechanism halfway through, it would pop out)
2 - 1 dash light didn't go out - for the rear spoiler, although web research shows that it may be possible to switch off using a switch by driver's left knee that activates the spoiler
Obviously I'm masively tempted with this, as I can sell my golf gti, and just add about 2-3k so the question is, with that many miles on, if it has been properly serviced it's whole life, is there a reasonable chance of it being good for another 30k miles in the next 2 years & stil be worth something at the end? Residuals on the older models like the 968 were good for many years. It's a real head / heart thing, as I do have some doubts but am also finding myself longing for the roar of that v6 & the sight of that beautiful body outside my house!
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Do a google search on Porsche RMS failures- usually not fatal to the engine but can wreck other ancilliaries like the clutch and is a general pain in the rear.
Also the Boxster doesn't have a V6 engine it's a flat 6.
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dont forget running costs.
Is there a *good* porsche indy near you ? Everything is expensive on a porsche.
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Not knowing much about these cars, but the price doesn't seem to be that special (considering mileage and condition).
Don't know where you live but found this on Autotrader,
tinyurl.com/32dzeo
£10,395 - 82K miles, full Porsche service history, black leather electric seats, private plate and Boxster car cover.
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It does seem sensible to spend say 1500 more to get one that has done 30-40k less miles...
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Buy it enjoy it - you obviously want it !
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* No air-con
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Hmmm !! Do you need it in an open top car?
Jacks
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I don't know much about these cars, but my neighbour has an older Boxster S which he says doesn't have any kind of traction control and is a real handful in the wet.
On the one mentioned in the original post, then clearly the tyres need instant replacement, and they're likely to be pretty expensive.
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You know how much these are likely to cost to run therefore a sub 10k price for one must be within your budget for a ickle bit of fun.
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Buy it enjoy it - you obviously want it !
ditto pugugly's opinion.
perleman - stop dithering and go and buy it. you have been thinking about changing cars since
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?v=e&t=16...6
I've fallen in love with the idea of getting a porsche 928.
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?v=e&t=24...4
I'm seriously tempted by a Ferrari 348.
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=49027&...f
18k to spend - speed & prestige needed. I've just got a new job & am looking to change my car. ..... will be in the next level up of performance, and want some prestige with it too ....
go on, buy it. it is much below your £18k budget from earlier this year. you know you always wanted one of them.
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I wouldn't worry about RMS if it's done that distance with no problems. Check that it's had no RMS work done, though. Beware costs of keeping in good nick, especially suspension and brake discs (that can go rusty - but using the car frequently lessens the problem). When lowering the hood stop half way and smoothe the plastic rear window; otherwise there's a risk of putting in a lasting crease. At that age/mileage I wouldn't worry about keeping an 'Official' PSH; use a good indie specialist.
Plenty of knowledge and advice at the PCGB forum www.porscheclubgbforum.com/
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* No air-con
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Hmmm !! Do you need it in an open top car?
You do in the weather we have just had. Small cabin cars with fabric roofs are notorious for steaming up - aircon stops the problem.
I sawa number of cars yesterday where I couldn't see in the car due to condensation. Some of these were modern cars too with aircon, so it shows people have no idea how useful it can be when its not 30 deg C.
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You could get a loverly Elise with 30k on it for that money. Longer term a better investement me thinks.
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What is RMS, please? Does it have no aircon or does it have aircon which is fitted but doesn't work?
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RMS is Rear Main Seal in the engine, their was a machining fault on a fair few which means the oil seal fails rapidly on some cars & never on others. Normally around £500 at an independant, other issues are catastrophic engine failure due to liner collapse or Intermediate shaft failure, although at that mileage you should be OK.
Aircon was an option on early cars & was relatively expensive so not spec'd. Porsches are very specification sensitive & poor spec even on an older car can make it a struggle to sell.
Please, Please get it inspected by a Porsche specialist or some one in the back of the Porsche mags, not the RAC or AN Other garage, these cars are very expensive & too specialist to fix if you buy a dog. Would suggest a visit to www.porsche-1.net & it's related club www.tipec.net & that's not because I'm a Regional Organiser & Vice Chairman as well ;-)
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I wouldn't worry about RMS if it's done that distance with no problems. Check that it's had no RMS work done though.
That's good advice re the RMS, if it hasn't shown problems now then it probably won't. As suggested though if it has needed RMS replacement then it's likely to fail again. The work doesn't fix the problem.
RMS is rear main seal and is a well known failure point on boxsters and 996's.
www.trustmymechanic.com/rear_seal.htm
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I must say that Elise is a more attractive option IMO. But watch for leaks on early cars and K series engine problems caused by people not keeping an eye on coolent levels!
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Problem with an elise is that it isn't a realistic day to day ownership/useable car in the same way a boxster is.
Fantastic cars but very compromised, plus if you are over 6 foot like me it's a serious squeeze to get in there.
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You're right, OH. You need more than a bit of agility to get in and out too.
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"10k spent on the car in 10 years (!)"
So that's just servicing, then... :-)
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"10k spent on the car in 10 years (!)" So that's just servicing then... :-)
Very unlikely, 996 & Boxster very cheap to service, one of my members pays much less on a 996 C4 that he does on his BMW!
The 10K presumably includes tyres etc.
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The car had been serviced by Porsche every year without fail since 1997. Every bill with an odd number year was £400-£800, and every bill with an even number year was £1200-£1650. There were also some additional bills that were shockingly expensive for minor repair work, such as 'replace membrane in door after poor fitting of speakers', £450. I have totally gone off the idea of Boxster ownership now as I simply can't afford £1500 for a service. I am looking at older SLKs, which cost about £500 for a major B service & make a more practical day-to-day car (I drive 50 motorway miles every day)
Thanks for all replies though, some useful info about RMS & sudden engine failure (that was the final nail in the coffin for me!)
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Sunday, 24th June: Obviously I'm masively tempted with this, as I can sell my golf gti, and just add about 2-3k blah, blah, blah.........
Tuesday, 26th June: I have totally gone off the idea of Boxster ownership now as I simply can't afford £1500 for a service.......
Strewth!
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Cut him some slack, I'm constantly on the brink of getting rid of one of my cars for something else. Yesterday I started thinking about chopping in the RS4 for an E39BMW and a speed boat. Today I'm looking at Mercedes SL55AMG's and tomorrow I'll probably have decided to keep it.
That said I'm not burdening the backroom with my automotive insanity so maybe you have a point.........
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No OH, you were right the first time.
If the OP is trusting and communicative enough to do his dithering in public and allow others to help with their two cents' worth, it is churlish to take him to task for being in two or several minds.
After all by your own admission you can dither all you like, make mistakes even, and still have a couple of entertaining motors in the shed. We should all be so lucky (or well-organised)!
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To be honest a Boxster service is around £250 especially with a decent independant, if it's incurred this level of bills then the OPC has been taking someone for a ride!
As for a Stuttgart Taxi SLK being a replacement for a Boxster then no way, the phrase chalk & cheese comes to mind.
50 mile commute is nothing & I'd rather do it in the Boxster than a Merc. My 944 used to be my daily driver & I regularly used to drive 5 hours to customers & around 250-300 miles.
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The problem with "shall I buy this car" questions is that you will inevitably get a load of responses which usually just end up confusing the original poster.
For example, I had a SLK320 followed by a Boxster S. The Porsche has been far more reliable and cost much less to run than the Merc (and been about 10 times better to drive as well) - does that mean the OP should discount the Merc he's now decided on? Not really, it is just one person's experience and one person's view.
£10k is about the bottom line for any decent Boxster. If you like the car it isn't going to lose money like a £10k Focus and if you use a good independent it'll never be cheap to run but maybe bearable. As long as you keep it through to next summer you're unlikely to lose much on it (don't buy now and sell in autumn!).
Worst case scenario is that if you're buying privately and avoiding a dealer's margin you can always flog it again if you don't like it.
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"it is churlish to take him to task for being in two or several minds"
Indeed. If everyone was sure about everything, this forum wouldn't exist!
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