Originally Posted by sweinland

BUT I have heard that the car needs an alignment after you change the transmission fluid so figured I might change it anyway..

Originally Posted by sweinland

Thanks everybody for your input. In response to some comments....

Why alignment? - The steering wheel is 5% off center. I was initially concerned that this may reflect that the car had bumped a curb or something. I purchased the car from Carmax so don't know if it was on a car carrier or any of the history. I thought that alignment would be important to preserve tires - but with the number of folks telling me to change the tires I'm less concerned with the current set I guess. I haven't noticed any traction issues yet and it drives as if it was on rails. But noted and I'll work on replacing the current set.

Why not change all the fluids? Understand the sentiment here. I'd love to, but I'm not your stereotypical owner. I bought my Boxster from Carmax and don't have a lot of extra cash - so I'm trying to be frugal and not waste fluids that are perfectly ok and don't need changing. I'm a psychologist and not an engineer - but I also know that there are knowledgeable folks here - so I posted the initial question to the group with hopes of being educated. Mission accomplished - thank you everybody.

I thought that brake fluid had hydrophilic qualities and can go bad over time - so changing it makes sense to me. Plus I've got a pressure bleeder system so this is another easy one to do at home.

I'm still unsure if the transmission & differential fluid need to be changed. It's supposed to last 50k miles and I'm not sure if it has the time component to changing. BUT I have heard that the car needs an alignment after you change the transmission fluid so figured I might change it anyway.

Thanks everybody for your input. It's an amazing car and I'm really looking forward to spring and summer months with it.