CactusAvant

Hey guys, I am new here. I have been lurking for a while since I've been interested in a 986 for a while, especially at the cost-to-fun ratio they seem to offer. Anyway, I found a 1999 Boxster with only 10k miles, and Id like some opinions.

I know low mileage cars can be a very bad buy sometimes because they just sit and never get used, seals dry up, old tires, old fluids, etc., but it looks like this might have actually been garage kept and looks to be in decent shape, especially the exterior. I believe this car has the dual row IMS bearing so hopefully that's not too much to worry about. I can't tell if this is a great find, or I should walk away/be very cautious. Ideally, I would like an S and not have grey interior, but with such a low mileage car, I'm tempted. Below is a link for the car for sale. Any obvious problems with IMS or other parts of the car strictly due to age or miles? Is it a good find? What do you all think? It would be an extra weekend car to just drive in the mountains and around town in nice weather.

Any input would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

CharlesLS

IMHO, (and this may be owner bias) the 1999 was a good year for the mechanical of the Boxster.

As you pointed out, the IMS bearing is purported to be double row, side steeping that issue. The smaller displacement engines are also more immune to D chunking, because of the thicker side walls. Lastly, as I have just recently learned, the M96.25 engines have a different piston arrangement making them largely immune to bore scoring. Really win-win-win with the mechanical. There are a few downsides with these engines though. You don't get the better VarioCam that the newer engines have, and you are left with 2.5L displacement. Nothing that's a ticking time bomb though that I know of.

As far as the rest of the car, IDK. I don't really like soft tops. They leak, they break, they are a pain to clean. I would have preferred a hard top. Then we get to the stupid problems with the immobilizer, which I can tell you from personal experience is hell on Earth to try and sort. The problem is worse with the soft tops, because, again, they leak. Water is the cause of 99% of the problems these have. If you are sure it's been dry, and you are sure YOU can keep it dry, then yes, amazing car.

... unless there was an extra special reason, I wouldn't pay more than $10K for one though.

Nickshu

99 transmission has moly coating, the best of the 5 speeds. Worth changing the shift pins to steel from aluminum (easy, they just bolt in from the outside of the transmission, in the car).

I would do the IMS retrofit regardless of double row or mileage, personally. May as well do the clutch and RMS while you are in there.

Dr. 914

can't beat a low mile original car, hopefully you purchased it for a good price

pilot4fn

Does this apply only for '99 or is the 2001 5-speed also same regarding Moly coating and the shift pins material / change?

Nickshu

As far as I know both these issues only pertain to 1997-1999 5-speeds. After that I don't know. Maybe.

1997 had steel pins from the factory. In 1998 they went to the aluminum ones that are prone to wear. Tarett sells aftermarket steel pins, or you can harvest them from a 1997 transmission if you find one.

zoomster1776

my 99 had a 2.7L engine

Mike Murphy

Find out how many oil changes in the last 23 years and post back. While I’m not a fan of changing the oil every year for an engine that doesn’t run, any time the engine is used, some contamination will exist and just be sitting there for potentially years and years if they didn’t change it often enough.

Same question goes for other fluids. The brake fluid should have been flushed a few times now, and even the trans fluid and coolant should be swapped out.

Ten thousand miles over 23 years is under 450 miles a year. If that’s 1.3 miles every day, that’s bad. Hopefully they drove the car only on nice days and for longer drives.

Bush Pilot

Typically low mileage is a good buy. There's no getting around the fact that it isn't "worn". As far as the power goes with the 2.5L, I'm sure that you'll find it to be plenty. If you need more power, you're driving like a nutball on the street and need to be on a racetrack.

mikefocke

So sitting around for 20+ years with acid in the oil eating at the bearings is good for the car? I hesitate to generalize but it all depends on the maintenance in those years.

Bush Pilot

Subjectively speaking, if it had had at least one oil change the oil shouldn’t be that acidic with only 10k mi. but I don’t know. Just guessing. I feel that 10k mi is a better buy than 100k depending g on the price.

CactusAvant

Hmmm, looks like I'm struggling to get the Facebook link to work for some reason.... Anyway, the car is listed at $13.9k. I'm starting to think that's a little high for a base 99 boxster with an 'undesirable' interior color...

The car is still for sale due to the owner being an older man with some medical issues and has not been able to show the car yet. That being said, I have had some time to think and I will report back when I do see it, but I am kind of leaning towards finding an S or a more desirable color combo at this point. But is it worth the extra mileage and cost? So my next question; is the S really worth the premium I seem to be seeing? Is the little extra power, the larger brakes, and the small other changes really that noticeable? They seem to be creeping up in price a lot in the last couple years and don't seem like as much of a 'bargain' as they used to be.

You should be able to see the post if you copy this link into your browser and delete the spaces before hitting enter.

https://www. facebook. com/marketplace/item/148109734732718/?ref=search&referral_code=null&referral_story_type=post&tracking=browse_ serp%3A769cb9bf-54ea-422a-badb-fcc34b7fac26

Edit: here is another I found to throw in the mix. Although I would never pay this much for it:

https://www. facebook. com/marketplace/item/278387621232537/?ref=search&referral_code=null&referral_story_type=post&tracking=browse_ serp%3A68a58d06-1c50-447f-b4a2-3dd27d648937

Bush Pilot

What's the "undesirable" interior color? With 10k mi, if it runs and drives well, that could be a bargain.

CactusAvant

I guess its more of an opinion thing, but I've always seen the grey interior as the 'least desirable' option. I come from the B5 Audi world where no one ever wanted the grey interior cars haha. Id absolutely love a red or brown interior on one of these 986s, but they seem pretty uncommon for the most part.

I'm still working with the seller to try and go see the car, but obviously health issues come first, so I will be patiently waiting. I'll try to grab some pics to post when I do get the chance.

Bush Pilot

Yeah, I'm not a fan of the grey either but could live with it for a great deal.