Kevin Rohrer

Oops, you are right.

SoCal924

As you mentioned bore scoring is also attributed to lack of proper warm up before romping on the gas pedal. Boxster being a convertible might be stored for the winter or not driven in colder weather.

2mAn

Im in the same boat as the OP. The neverending complaining about the IMS really turns me off the 987.1, but I also think the DFI motor comes with its own headaches. Theres a heck of a lot more .1-S cars available and I would rather have an S vs a Base .2 even if it means I eliminate the IMS issue forever

maybe its just me, but I would take the risk too... by 06/07 the issue had been around for the better part of 10 years and with a few different evolutions of the M96 motor.

Reno 911

FWIW, BBI Autosports (Betim Berisha) was recently on The Smoking Tire podcast and mentioned that the DFI motors are really great and bulletproof (during which he was attempting to convince Matt to buy a 997.2 C2S).

9872SpeedYellowCS

What headaches do the DFI motors have? I honestly have not heard of any, which is why I bought a 987.2 CS instead of a .1

Tremelune

Carbon buildup

Also, I think the 987.2 tends to be about $5-10k more expensive [citation needed]. Why pay that up front out of fear of a blown IMS?

Marine Blue

From what I have heard the carbon buildup is caused by either a failing air/oil separator or overfillling the oil which would allow it to return into the intake plenum and cause the carbon.

But if it were truly a significant issue wouldn't we hear more people complaining about these engines? After all they have now been on the road for 8 years so they're not exactly young and there are now plenty of high mileage examples around.

gnarfle

So following up, today I put a deposit down on a 2009 base boxster. Pending a good PPI I'll pick up it next week.

In the past few weeks I drove a 2008 S, a 2005 S and the 2009 base. Of the 3 I liked the 2008 S best of all. That 3.4 motor really scoots and the extra power over the 3.2 S can really be felt I think. The 3.4 felt serious quick when it gets up in the revs, really pins you back, whereas the 3.2 and 2.9 just feel quick but not amazingly so.

That said, the 2008 was priced too high at $31k. Heck there is a 2009 S with reasonable milage offered up for $30k near me so... I've also decided I want to keep it < $25k to not eat into other budgets.

Looking at the options in that price range, well, there are plenty of .1 S models available but I can't shake my worry over them. Bore scoring, IMS, water pumps, oil starvation, etc etc. Yeah these things can be rare but overall it just seems like the engine design is a bit of a crap shoot whereas the newer 2.9 engine is really solid.

I honestly felt the 3.2 S and the 2.9 base were quite comparable. The S felt a little faster, but not hugely so. It felt a little tighter and flatter in the corner, but not that much. All in all they are quite close. The 2.9 I put a deposit on is lower mileage and has dealer records going back to the beginning all at the same porsche dealer. It has a bona fide manual transmission, which I think suits the 2.9 better. It's clean and I even like the color and at $23k it seems like a fine deal.

I still want the S but I concede in 99% of my driving I won't notice the difference. And this base seems like a fine place to spend a few years while waiting for 987.2 S prices to drop a bit more.

Let's hope the PPI goes well!

Marine Blue

$23K for an 09 sounds like a smoking deal when you consider how much performance your getting.

Good luck with the PPI and hopefully we'll see you posting up some pics of the new car soon.

gnarfle

Yeah I thought so, haven't seen that many at this price point with such low miles. Carfax has all services performed at the same dealer it's entire life too so that's good.

Here's the listing: https://cargur.us/gbKDq

It's not super optioned but honestly there aren't many options I want anyway. Heated seats are about the only deal breaker for me. PSAM would be nice but it rides great without it IMO. Sport Chrono seems to not really be a big deal with a manual like it is with pdk. Sport exhaust would be nice but not a deal breaker.

Really what options do you really need? I kidna wish it didn't have the bose system though as I'd really like an aftermarket unit with sattelite radio and android auto, and doing that would mean ditching the factory amps and speakers... At least it has bluetooth, and I mostly listen to podcasts in the car.

Tremelune

With the top down through the mountains, none of this will matter. All of these cars are great to drive, and a little bit of horsepower or suspension response won't be missed most of the time. $23k for a clean Boxster is about the bast bang-for-buck going in the sportscar arena today.

Drive it and enjoy it.

Spokayman

Congrats on the '09 base (I have one too).
I understand your concern about the earlier generation engines and I believe your list is correct except for the water pump. You'll be needing to watch for leakage/wear and will need to change out the water pump on your 987.2 gen car as well as miles accumulate.
Also don't forget the AOS as it too is a wear item that is applicable to both generations.

gnarfle

Interesting... Well I watched some youtube videos and changing out the water pump doesn't look too bad. Still debating whether to wrench it myself or take it to a local independent (nearest porsche dealership is 2 hours from me), but honestly most of the work on these cars doesn't seem bad at all. The fact that you can access the top, from and bottom of the engine pretty easily (after removing some bits) seems to make access to most parts quite easy.

crispy

These are my numbers... 2007 2.7 5-speed with 173,000 miles. I bought the car with 32k miles. 3 sets of pads and 1 set of rotors up front and 1 set of pads and original rotors in the rear. Original clutch. 2 sets of lower control arms after original. 1 set of tie rod ends and presently have some play. Water temp sender, water pump, coil packs and lots of tires. Castrol Syntec 5w/40 every 9,000 miles. Replacing my air/oil separator today.
This has been a GREAT car and very reliable. This was my 8th winter in the NorthEast (60 lb. sand snake secured in the back). So fun to drive this car in marginal winter conditions as a daily commuter on mountain twisties, back roads and highway. C.

850tgul