Yummybud924

I've seen Boxsters listed on craiglist and elswhere for pretty cheap 15-20k cdn even as low as 12k. And it seems pretty tempting getting a newer porsche for that money.

After I graduate from university in fall i plan on working for a year or two until I can get into lawschool somwhere. Anyways I've been thinking about selling my 944 which I really like and saving up for a Boxster. My 944 should be really reliable now I'd say it's in excellent mechanical condition now and all maintenance is done.

Anyways anyone here have a Boxster and a 944. With a 944 I can pretty much fix anything that goes wrong with it now but I don't think I'd be able to do much repairs on a Boxster other than oil changes.

what do you guys think? I'd also really like to get a 951 or 968.

would a 951 or 968 be more reliable or cheaper to maintain?

I've read some stuff about boxsters and heard about their engines grenading around 100k miles.


maybe I should post this in teh Boxster forum....


thanks.

J Berk

ask Marc G...he's had several 944/951's and a boxster before his 996

Erzengal

Depends on the year of the Boxster. If you can get a 02+, great. If not, just make sure it is in the best condition you can afford. There are a lot of really poor condition Boxsters out there. I have seen a lot of very abused '97's, that would take thousands and thousands of dollars to bring back to life.
As usual, "There is no such thing as a cheap Porsche"

The 986 is a great fun car to toss around. The 2.5L Boxster is reaaaally slow though. So try to get a 2.7L or 3.2L. They are well balanced, and drive very well.

Parts and Labor are going to be a lot more then you are used to.

Check if the car has had the RMS/Intermediate replaced, as well as the Top Transmissions. Also, ensure you get at least 2 Keys.

whalebird

I would highly suggest a Boxster. It has to be one of the best kept secrets in the car world. They have lots of naysayers. I have not owned one, but have driven hundreds-literally, as well as disassembled every nut and bolt including track time. I like them very much. State of the art climate control, safety,fuel managment and brakes. It is a wonderfully balanced dancing partner. It is a chassis/momentum car, not a gas pedal car. And it has to be one of the best open-cars out there.
It took me a little while to cozy up to the 996, but the boxster had me from hello. It is a perfect segeway into the modern era for Porsche and it is the perfect example of Porsche's minimalist design-like the early s/rs, 924S,356 etc. Forget the turbos and wood grain interior, P-cars are the quintessential"less is more" automobile. Go for a 986 "S" and you will perma-grin.

smlporsche

I have an '03 Boxster S and love it.
Probably the best handleing Porsche under 100K that you can buy. The brakes are fantastic and the engine is quite strong too (258HP).

It is tough to work on due to it's mid engine configuration but fortuantely nothing has gone wrong and all I've had to do is oil changes and tire replacements..

Yummybud924

boxsters just have a reputation as being a "chicks" car and I do in fact mostly see middle age women driving boxsters lol but I don't care.

I really don't like convertible porsches. The 996 cab for example looks like crap to me so do the old 911 targas.

I think the boxster in black with black top and nice wheels can look pretty nice.

looking at the specs online the 2.5l seems pretty lame in performance for a late 90s porsche. It's still quicker than a 944 na though.

Boxster S performance is pretty close to the 996 but they cost a bit more obviously.

I wonder how much more boxster prices will go down.

Tom R.

does your university offer any economics classes? How about accounting classes?

I suggest you take a few of them before embarking on your law studies.

Far from being the expert, I believe that as a vehicles price goes down, the maintenance and repair costs go up. I also believe there is an algorithm that confirms the more expensive the car was relative to other cars when new, the more expensive repairs will be when the car is old.

just some food for thought.

now back to your regulary scheduled dreaming.

That new camaro with 304hp in base six cylinder secretary car form looks pretty good for mid 20s.

Oh, and search is your friend.

Mark944na86

It's this aspect alone that keeps me away from the Boxsters... relying on a P-car garage to do repairs and maintenace would make _any_ Porsche unaffordable for me, unfortunately.

Otherwise, everything I've read and heard from owners (of the later models) is that they are superb vehicles -- "chick car" reputation notwithstanding!

BTW, there are some very "hard to beat" competitors in club meetings that drive Boxsters -- I don't think they're worrired what people think as they are schooling some of the drivers in their 911s...

JimV8

I got to drive around in a 07 S and was mightily impressed. I go with one at the drop of a hat.

CPR

The S is fun to drive....until someone sees you

Kind of like mopeds and fat chicks...unfortunately.

schwank

See my avatar. It's only a natural leap.

The early S models can be had pretty damn cheap. I daily mine and have grown to love driving it... I do not baby it but make sure to give it a good run every time. Never had a drop top before and it can be very pleasurable to take a nice evening drive on some backroads with the open air. The ladies love it.

If you can afford it, be sure to research the common issues and get a PPI. I'm in the same boat as smlporsche in that I do all the work on the 944 but not too much on the boxster. I did the brakes but that is about it. Mine has been pretty reliable as well. It is an 01 with 62K currently.

papasmurf

The people complaining about the performance are also the people driving the 944 NA's....not exactly a rocket there either. The 2.5's are decent and I am sure have a higher power to weight ratio than just about any NA 944 (201hp 2700 lbs.) Also there is really no reason to purchase an 02 model over an earlier model if all have a decent number of miles on them. The later glass rear window models are certainly more desireable but from a reliability standpoint there is not much to be gained over an earlier 2.7 or even most 2.5's. With a nice set of 18's on them, the car's are anything but chick cars IMO....and I love 944's too!

marky522

Working on a Boxster is no harder than working on a 944. I work on them day in and day out, just be ready to see higher parts prices, Air oil sperators, ignition switches, RMS if it hasnt gotten the updated part, wheel bearings, clutches, leaky spark plug tubes, leaky cam covers (you would need special tools for that one) Granted you would be doing the majority of the work on the ground as most of it is accessed fron underneath, but it really isnt any "harder" just different. I saw go for it they really are a ton of fun, just as was noted above avoid the 2.5 it really is a dog.

Mark

PorscheDoc

If it has a catastrophic failure such as a slipped cylinder lining, or an intermediate shaft failure (which unlike the internet will lead you to believe is fairly rare), could you afford the $15k+ to fix it? If you couldn't, then it isn't the car for you. Typically boxsters don't need much other than oil changes, Maf sensors, o2 sensors, and the occasional wheel bearing, but there have been some known issues mentioned above, in addition to the catastrophic convertible top failures.

2.5L boxsters may be slow in a straight line, but you might want to check the results of PCA club races to see where the spec boxsters finish in relation to the E class 944 turbo, the results will probably surprise you.

944obscene

lol This is so funny because when I worked at a Porsche dealer, I always had chicks yelling at me when I was in a Boxster, with the top down. They loved it. This is reason enough to get one.