matmanx1

I've got my eye on a 2007 Boxster with only 6300 miles on it. It's at a dealership a couple of hours away and looks like a good deal (listed at $400 below book value) but according to the vehicle history report has had 3 owners already. Should I be wary of such a vehicle? Does it seem to good to be true?

I do plan on asking about an extended warranty. I also inquired about the tires and the salesman said they are Michelin Pilot Sports with 95% tread left on them and look new although the dealership did not put them on. 6300 miles is basically new but this car has been doing lots of sitting around for over 5 years whereas I would be using it for upwards of 10k miles a year. I need a good, solid, reliable car.

Any input is appreciated.

Schmidts Cat

Doesn't sound bad.... Check DME report for over revs etc. Check paint depth for any repair work etc.

Marine Blue

Spend the extra money and have a thorough PPI done. It's money well spent and will give you peace of mind that the car hasn't been in an accident or have any major issues such as IMS.

Cosmetically the car should be perfect which is a huge plus.

Macster

Second that doesn't sound bad comment. But with used cars you are smart to always keep in mind if it sounds too good to be true...

The 3 owners may not mean what it looks like it means on the surface.

Cars change hands, owners, when being swapped between dealers and at other times, for instance if the car was financed then paid off.

A CarFax report can sometimes shed some light on these changes of ownership and they lose some of their sinister characteristic.

Ask about a CPO warranty. What you hear means something. My thinking is if the dealer says yes without hesitation that can be good. If the dealer balks...

OTOH, such a low miles car the dealer might not want to put the money into the car to bring it up to CPO status. For instance the tires are probably past their use by date. Porsche considers tires unsuitable after 6 years. (My 03 Turbo received new tires -- as part of its CPO processing -- with just 10K miles on them before I bought the car in 2009 because the tires were too "old".)

Yet another thought kind of from the other side is a cherry car gets CPO'd which because the car is in good shape it doesn't take much money at all to bring it up to CPO level (tires are not that big an expense to a dealer) and the dealer then uses the CPO warranty to justify a nice price premium. Sure, the price often can be 'negotiated' down some but still the dealer makes some more money on the car than it would have sans the CPO warranty.

Also, the CPO warranty goes a long way to giving a buyer the warm fuzzies about the car which makes a sale much more likely to happen.

I can tell you when I bought that Turbo the 2 year, 100K mile warranty was a real attraction and while I didn't think it would be used as it was I was wrong and it was used several times saving me a bunch of money. My feeliings on having a CPO waranty on even a low miles car out of its new car warranty are quite strong. I'm in favor of a CPO warranty. However one has to remember that a 2 year, 100K mile warranty doesn't do anyone any good if the car just spends the next two years sitting around like it has sat around the previous 5 or 6 years. I vowed to drive my CPO car and managed to add nearly 50K miles to its starting 10K miles before the warranty expired on time. I'm glad I added the miles because at around 30K and again at around 50K miles problems appeared that the warranty covered, 100%.

Go look at the car. Ask questions. Why no CPO warranty? What's involved in getting a CPO warranty?

Ask for a copy of the car's Carfax report. Ask if the dealer has done any servicing and what and when was this done?

From the CarFax you might be able to tell where the car spent some time being used by a real owner and not just another dealer and then call dealers in that area to see if with the VIN they can tell you what servicing the car had.

Sincerely,

Macster.

matmanx1

Thanks for the suggestions all. I did go and look at the car today after pulling the vehicle history report last night (which was very clean) and ended up buying this very beautiful car.

They did offer me the CPO warranty but I did not opt to take it and was able to get out the door for just over 31k. I drive less than 10k miles a year so even though 2 years 50k miles sounds great in reality I would have ended up paying the 2 grand'ish for less than 20k miles of warranty. Hopefully that won't end up being a decision I will regret.

The car looks like it was bought, driven for a few thousand miles and then stuck in a time capsule for several years. It's basically a brand new Boxster that I got a huge discount on so that feels pretty good! The car had new Michelin Pilot Sport 2's on it (95% tread at all 4 corners) so no worries there.

It's Carrara White with a Black Top and Black Interior and after having driven it from Nashville where I bought it back home to Ga. where I live I can honestly say I giggled with glee several times on the way back and had a great time with the road trip.

Kelderek

I think you struck gold with that one!

Great buy and a beautiful car, enjoy!

Macster

Very nice!

Just a bit of rain on your new car... check the date on the tires. If they are over 6 years old Porsche considers the tires regardless of the tread left past their use by date.

Now some believe this is just Porsche being overly cautious but I note that in order to CPO my 03 Turbo with at the time of the CPO work had just under 10K miles on it all 4 tires were replaced.

Remember too some services if not due on miles are due on time. These can include oil/filter, plugs. B sure the brake fluid has been flushed/bled in the last two years. This an every 2 year job. It really prolongs the life of the brake system hardware and in the case of a manual transmisison equipped car the life of the clutch and indirectly the tranmission.

Sincerely,

Macster.

matmanx1

Will do, thanks!

the_vetman

Well, that's the most important thing, isn't it?

Congratulations on the new joy. Welcome to the club.

matmanx1

I spoke to the Dealer I bought it from and the oil and filter was changed in April at the 3500 mile mark and the tires are new. I'm still due for the brake system flush and will schedule that with my local Porsche dealership in a couple of weeks when my PCA card arrives.

George and I had a blast on the country backroads around here today. Here's a daytime shot as we headed out to do some automotive exercise.

ECS Tuning

That sounds like it was a great buy, congrats on your newly acquired machine. I would consider going with some Clear Euro Side Markers, they dramatically increase the look of an already great looking car.

Marine Blue

Congrats on the purchase! That's a fantastic price for a car that is essentially new.

Enjoy in good health!

500

Great car, and great photo! Carrara white is great, especially on a Boxster where the cockpit and roll hoop provide a great visual contrast.

I know what you mean about the giggles!

Is George your son? I have a 12-year old son (who I long-ago indoctrinated into the ways of Porsche). Every weekend we go for a drive in the country!

matmanx1

George is what I named the Boxster. Silly, I know, but it's an homage to an old Loony Tunes cartoon and the line "I will hug him and squeeze him and call him George". It's the first thought that popped into my head when I saw the car. What can I say? I'm an old school goofball at heart.

matmanx1

I meant to respond to this earlier and just forgot until now. I totally intend to do the clear side marker change in the future. I think it's a small change that makes for a nice visual improvement.