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I've been mostly a 928 guy for 25+ years but bought a Panamera a couple of years ago and really have enjoyed getting to know what a modern Porsche is like. My son, graduated college, got a good job and recently got the bug and started looking at Caymans. I didn't know much about them, but he found a '09 6 speed in Houston for 26k with 89k miles so we took a look at it and it was in great shape. The dealer (user cars only) was replacing a PS hose which took a while to get, but eventually the car was ready to drive and sell. Today I brought it home. Everything seems to work and the interior has held up really well. There's a clear bra on the front that starting to look a bit old, and smoked film on the headlights that we will try to remove. This car is a blast to drive and I didn't expect some of the features like hill hold when starting out on a hill. On the other hand, there's at least one feature I'm surprised it doesn't have, a back up camera!
The paint and body are perfect. We didn't do a PPI ( I know...) but I did remove the covers and visually inspect the engine.
The only issue I can find is that the clutch squeaks a bit when you push it in. With the engine running you can't really hear it. Sounds like some linkage that could be lubricated perhaps.
My son lives in Georgia, and will fly to Houston to drive it back to GA. He has VERY limited stick experience, but this one seems very forgiving since you can slowly let the clutch out in R or 1st and the car will just start moving with no gas.
I think that was the best looking of the caymans available in Houston.
That cherry S with race seats is….interesting. Literally any other color exterior and I’d be on a plane right now. Also, driving that little egg trailer across the country would be terrible.
Very nice deal/find. I had two 987.2 Boxsters (one in manual and one in PDK) and sold them once I got a cayman R (in PDK, my wife's play car), but would prefer the same in manual too. Regarding the shifter, I would upgrade to the numeric cables with short shifter and see if the squeaks would resolve. It is a great upgrade anyway and the original Porsche shift linkages always will break.
Originally Posted by Don Carter
I've been mostly a 928 guy for 25+ years but bought a Panamera a couple of years ago and really have enjoyed getting to know what a modern Porsche is like. My son, graduated college, got a good job and recently got the bug and started looking at Caymans. I didn't know much about them, but he found a '09 6 speed in Houston for 26k with 89k miles so we took a look at it and it was in great shape. The dealer (user cars only) was replacing a PS hose which took a while to get, but eventually the car was ready to drive and sell. Today I brought it home. Everything seems to work and the interior has held up really well. There's a clear bra on the front that starting to look a bit old, and smoked film on the headlights that we will try to remove. This car is a blast to drive and I didn't expect some of the features like hill hold when starting out on a hill. On the other hand, there's at least one feature I'm surprised it doesn't have, a back up camera!
The paint and body are perfect. We didn't do a PPI ( I know...) but I did remove the covers and visually inspect the engine.
The only issue I can find is that the clutch squeaks a bit when you push it in. With the engine running you can't really hear it. Sounds like some linkage that could be lubricated perhaps.
My son lives in Georgia, and will fly to Houston to drive it back to GA. He has VERY limited stick experience, but this one seems very forgiving since you can slowly let the clutch out in R or 1st and the car will just start moving with no gas.
Agreed, sounds like a good deal. I got my Boxster in early 2021 - 2010 base with 77k miles for $24k through Carvana. Caymans have higher value... and the market has gotten worse since then, so You're in good shape I think. I'd still recommend a PPI even on a base (assuming that's what it is as you didn't mention S specifically, and those are usually about $10k higher from what I have seen).
Backup cameras weren't required until like 2017 I think, so it makes sense that it's not there... but you can get them relatively easily if you really need it. I will admit with the top up, the Boxster is a little hard to see past the wide "C-pillars"... the Cayman might be better for that. With the top down, you realize you really don't need a camera, of course!
I've been mostly a 928 guy for 25+ years but bought a Panamera a couple of years ago and really have enjoyed getting to know what a modern Porsche is like. My son, graduated college, got a good job and recently got the bug and started looking at Caymans. I didn't know much about them, but he found a '09 6 speed in Houston for 26k with 89k miles so we took a look at it and it was in great shape. The dealer (user cars only) was replacing a PS hose which took a while to get, but eventually the car was ready to drive and sell. Today I brought it home. Everything seems to work and the interior has held up really well. There's a clear bra on the front that starting to look a bit old, and smoked film on the headlights that we will try to remove. This car is a blast to drive and I didn't expect some of the features like hill hold when starting out on a hill. On the other hand, there's at least one feature I'm surprised it doesn't have, a back up camera!
The paint and body are perfect. We didn't do a PPI ( I know...) but I did remove the covers and visually inspect the engine.
The only issue I can find is that the clutch squeaks a bit when you push it in. With the engine running you can't really hear it. Sounds like some linkage that could be lubricated perhaps.
My son lives in Georgia, and will fly to Houston to drive it back to GA. He has VERY limited stick experience, but this one seems very forgiving since you can slowly let the clutch out in R or 1st and the car will just start moving with no gas.
Decent deal?
Congrats! Car looks beautiful. I think it's a very good deal at this point. Prices have gone up dramatically over the last year+. In Sept 2020, I found my 987.2 (non-S, also from TX) - a 2011 with 8k miles for just over $30.8k. It's in upstate NY now. If you go on Autotrader (less than 1.5 years later), the average price for a non-S 987.2 with 8k on the odo is high $30's if not low $40's.
Clutch squeak can also come from under the dash (there is a piston there) or from the slave cylinder. In my 987.1 changing the slave did it, it due for a refresh anyway, and took an hour most of it fighting the piston to stay retracted as I was doing it by myself with car on jackstands.
I’m looking for a Boxter for the wife as a run about, specifically with a manual (ok, I might drive it too) and have been looking on line in all the normal places, (Cargurus, Cars.com, Carfax, etc.). I’ve been loading everything into a spreadsheet with all the normal metadata (model, year, price, trans, color, location, vin, mileage, others) to understand how much I should pay. The below pivot shows averages. I’m in the range of a 987 I believe but I still can’t quite believe the cost. Reading through the evolution of this thread, everything seems 10k higher. Every time I get close, the car has something wrong like accidents.
Am I looking for love in all the wrong places? (See if anyone picks up on that line..) Are these really the values?
Last edited by vanlieremead; 01-16-2022 at 12:15 PM.
Reason: Love
I bought my 2010 base through Carvana earlier last year. I think I started the process in Feb. My price was $23,990 (73k miles). Since then, Carvana has "caught up" with the "real" pricing in the market... so they aren't as great a deal, of course. That said, I've seen pricing rise by $8-10k due to the crazy market... so that would mean $31,990-33,990 ish... which seems to be on-par with what you're seeing. Is it right/fair? No... but, supply/demand and the COVID-market is what it is. And S-models were about $8-10k higher than that, even back when I was buying (as well as today)... so they can get crazy.
Looking right now, Carvana is showing even higher prices (though there are a few purchases "in progress" that are within the window I suggested... so prices seem to be going even higher... crazy.
In the end, I think that your pricing is in the right realm today.... that's just the market we have. That said, if you really LOVE the car, jump in, because there aren't many out there anyway. The market might get better in the future, as the COVID premium fades... but then lack of supply might wash that out too... so it's a gamble. Personally, I'd wait (because I'm cheap)... but now that I have one, I can see why they're so awesome... I could make $10k+ if I wanted to, but I would absolutely NOT do that. Love the car too much!
... so that would mean $31,990-33,990 ish... which seems to be on-par with what you're seeing. Is it right/fair? No... but, supply/demand and the COVID-market is what it is. And S-models were about $8-10k higher than that,.. so it's a gamble!
Your points are sound. Right now I have a 911 C2S Cab so this would be my second. With that experience and the current status of the 911s, a 10k premium on the Boxter compared to a 20-50k on the 911s is a pill that may be “swallowable.” What I want is a sound car that looks and drives good. I’ll maintain them of course but don’t want to drive for 6 months to find an IMS or a PDK go out. The wife says I should buy from the Porsche dealer, pay the premium but have a car that is dependable.
01-07-2022, 10:08 PM
