alynch

I am looking at potentially my first Porsche at the weekend. It's a 1988 Boxster with 121,000 miles. I've wanted a Porsche since I was 5 years old and now that all the kids have moved out I can finally satisfy my lifelong dream.

From the outside everything looks good and it has a new top, new brakes, new tires, and recently had the waterpump replaced. I've done some research and believe the IMS issue doesn't apply to this engine.

Can someone suggest items to which I should pay particular attention? I'm fairly mechanically inclined and usually perform all my own maintenance however as I said above I'm new to the Porsche family. Any suggestions would be very welcome.

Stephen Tinker

There are a couple of good resources on buying Boxsters - this one you have already found, another is by an experienced Boxster owner Mike Focke < mikesporscheboxsterwebpages > (he might see this and offer some more help) and for more general details & technical info, log onto < 986forum.com >.
There are many pitfalls when trying to purchase an older water cooled Porsche, and to let the heart rule the head can be fraught with danger. Buy with your eyes and mind open and you will have a great car for the money, ignore the pitfalls and you will pay dearly.
Use the search function and you will be rewarded with some very clever people willing to help prospective buyers like you.
Best of luck....
PS: no M96 engine Boxster or Carrera is exempt from the IMS issue (until 2009 models which removed the intermediate shaft completely) including the 1998 car you are interested in.


Below is a reply from a long term contributer on the 986forum.com called Perfectlap - he pretty well sums up a request from another person in the same situation to yourself - I could not have said it better myself.

(I hope you don't mind PL).....



1996-1999 basically the same car "986.1"
2000-2004 basically the same car "986.2"
2005-2008 Basically the same car "987.1"
2009-20011 Basically the same car "987.2"
2012-2015 Basically the same car "981.1"

Sure the above have some options standard over others, but most of these can be added in the aftermarket and really are not the main thing to look out for, which is the engine.

Now I'm going to get really specific. Maybe too specific, but whatever.
First, try to find a car from Southern California (preferably in suburban areas and not cars that have been idling in traffic most of their lives -- not good for the engine). These are mostly cars driven year-round. A good thing. Cars that have been stored during winter need to be stored properly (fresh oil immediately before going in the garage). You want a car that was driven for more than five minutes each time it went out for a spin. Long stints help burn off the buildup.

Secondly, you want cars that have low miles. It's better to have a 2000 car with 30K miles than a 2004 car with 60K miles. Especially if the cars were driven in climates where there are extremes heat or cold. Those very expensive parts start to go in such conditions at around the 70K mile mark in my experience. I had almost no repairs for the first 70K miles of my car, and once I crossed that line it was one thing after another that went without warning along with the known Boxster weak spots.

Third, you want a car that is sold by a private seller with a solid history and records. These are most common if they are enthusiast-owned. Check all the Porsche forums, a lot, there's no middle man or website fee to pay. Cars with murky or no service history should be priced accordingly -- higher risk, don't overpay. Also, private sellers are more flexible with negotiating a sale price.

If I were buying now, and even if you are handy with the tool box, I'd still look in the forums for cars that have already had the IMS replaced, along with the clutch and flywheel. Preferably a dual row IMS bearing as these last longer than single row bearings -- dual row bearings will last until at least the next clutch job (ie typical mileage). A single row bearing replacement should not be kept in for more than 50K miles according to the experts on this matter. Make sure the car has recorded at least, oh say 1k miles since the IMS was replaced, more is better. This means that the old bearing was still in good shape and didn't start imploding before the owner tried to cover his tracks and slip in a new bearing. If the bearing begins to fail before it's swapped, the engine will need to be rebuilt otherwise its a big roll of the dice as all those little fragments get stuck in areas that can take down the engine. The next thing I would look for would be a 2000-2002 S model, these have stronger cylinder walls, while the 2003-2004 engine changes make certain types of lifter failures more likely (flame suit on) than in 2000-2002 cars.
I would avoid any high mileage car that has not had suspension work, it can get VERY expensive quickly unless you have the space, tools and time to DIY, which it sounds like you are. But to those that aren't DIY, at independent shop rates a suspension overhaul can run $4-5K. But a worn out suspension left on a car for too long can wear down a bunch of other things. Do the motor mounts once you get the car, it makes a big difference, especially if the gear change makes a racket. . Also, Extra points to an owner who proactively replaced the water pump after it was at least five years old. And extra points for someone who at least replaced the coolant cap with the last version (2004). That little $20 cap can do a lot of damage if its not holding enough pressure. An owner who took the time to replace it, probably takes the time to do many other things before they break. If the coolant was flushed in preparation for sale, definitely make sure the cap has been updated. Each time an old 10+ year old cap is unscrewed it will probably hold less pressure, which can lead to cracking of original coolant tank which is probably brittle with age. The AOS is another weak spot, if this hasn't been replaced yet, it may let go soon.
These are all parts that should be proactively attended to because they can all take down the engine.

Outside, check the rear tires. If the tread is past it, offer less money because tires for this car are not cheap and you don't want cheap tires on this car, what's the point... And check the paint, because once a body shop sees a Porsche coming they see dollar signs. The soft top will cost you about $1500 to replace if its been worn out, you can add glass this way if its pre-2003. And when you do the PPI, I would ask for a leak down and compression test to make sure the car is even worth buying in the first place (see wisdom of changing water pump proactively every 5 years). Bad numbers on this testing can signal big issues. I did none of these things..... but then again my car only had 9K miles when I bought it.

Giller

What Steve said. Well put and very thorough.
My advice is get a full PPI done on the car by a trusted and knowledgeable Porsche Mechanic. Get the deviations measured.
Parts on these cars can be costly - specifically the suspension, and a ride with 121,000 miles will most likely need suspension work if it hasn't been done. Very costly.
The 98 is susceptible to IMS carnage....but very low chance.

Good luck! They are certainly a fun car to drive, they can just be a challenging one to own.

alynch

Thank you so much for the invaluable feedback. It helped tremendously.

I drove the car earlier this morning. I have never driven a Porsche before and it definitely didn't disappoint! The tachometer would reach 4000 rpm and it felt as if it was a sprinter just released from the starting blocks. Although I've wanted a Porsche for years I deliberately didn't drive one until I was in a position to own one for fear of having to have one. Well, based on this morning's experience, I have to have one!

Sadly, the car was not to be. The owner had replaced the top, the brakes, and the water pump as well as repainting the car. The engine felt and sounded good but the suspension was in need of significant attention. There were also no previous maintenance records. The owner mentioned that the car had been leaking coolant slowly but after seeing all the coolant on the garage floor one morning he decided to have the waterpump replaced. That sent up a big red flag.

On the positive side I talked to a local independent who services Porsche, Ferrari, Mercedes, and BMW. He is well respected locally and not usually open at the weekend. He was only in the workshop working on his 911 race car. I mentioned that I was looking for an early Boxster and one of his customers has a 2001 Boxster S for sale. The body has high miles but has been repainted. The owner of the shop personally rebuilt the engine in this car one year ago and installed the LN Engineering IMS bearing plus a new clutch. I hope to arrange a test drive next week.

Again, many, many thanks for the advice.

mikefocke

A contrarian view. I'd rather have a well maintained high mileage '99 than a no-records no-maintenance 30k later model. These cars are getting on in age and you have to keep up with things. Simple things like plastic and rubber parts, cables, and wear items, etc are all sources of money drain. Or time as you said you intend to self maintain. Cars used every day for reasonable runs are generally maintained to be reliable, ones that sit around, not so much. There are exceptions.

Wonderful cars, don't let my comments discourage. But there is a difference between a good car and a not-so good one in the future cost and pleasure. Buying a good car can be less expensive in the long run.

Seek out one from a fanatic. See the receipts. Pay some more for it.

I'm sure you meant '98 Boxster as there was no '88 model.

All pre-2005.5 models have IMSs. The most vulnerable are in the 2000-2004.5 era.

Macster

Personally I do not like cars that have been repainted. This always raises two big flags to me. One is why? And the second is how good is the repaint?

On the engine rebuild this also raises a flag. Unless the rebuilder has a nationwide rep for Porsche engine rebuilding I'd be very leery of the rebuild.

What warranty does the engine rebuild have? Since it was done just a year ago there should be I think some warranty. Porsche backs a 2 year 24K mile warranty on any work one of its authorized dealers performs.

Up to you but I think you can find a suitable car that has not been repainted or had its engine rebuilt. You can always after you buy the car have the IMS bearing upgraded if you feel that a necessity.

cairo94507

The most important thing you can do is to become, if not already, an educated buyer. You need to know enough to know what you are looking for and at. Next, don't be an impulse buyer unless you are in the above class and come across tat perfect car and know it. Have a good budget in mind and leave another $4-5K available so once you find and buy the right car you can perform any needed maintenance, work, etc., that may pop up.

Tons of these cars available, be patient and get the right car for you.