mac`

[first time porsche buyer]

so I did a PPI on a 01 and the results turned me off. it was listed at 13,500 with 54,000mi. It needed new brake pads all around, all new tires, had 2 oils leaks (maybe an RMS issue), needed a rear left shock, had body work done and parts painted (possible accident), also needed its 60k maintenance... and after hearing all that I told the mechanic to not even bother with the compression test :/

annnyways it turns out the mechanic was selling a personal boxster he had (I asked him if he knew of any on the market). It is a 1999 with a 2001 2.7L engine with 2,000 miles on it, and the clutch was just replaced and has 1,000 miles on it. The chassis has 84,000 miles on it thought It is in pretty good cosmetic condition, but he is asking 18,500 for it. I offered substantially lower because honestly that is out of my price range, and I offered what I could actually afford.

Now my queestions for rennlist are the following:

1) What do you guys think of that price (18.5k), i mean ive looked all over and i know thats high but its got a brand new engine/clutch.. which other 15k,13k,12k 01 and 02 968's can hardly ever claim

2) aside from doing another PPI (at a different mechanic), what questions should I be asking him? I trust the dude but just want to make sure I cover all my bases. Im kind of concered with this whole new engine thing. the odometer shows 84k but there are only 2k miles on the engine. if i ever try to sell the car how can i convince someone that the engine has 82,000 miles less than the odometer shows?


thanks for your input.

Tommyboy72

Don't do it. There are lots of other cars, with a better history. Listen to your gut...
$18.5k is too high.

Macster

What tommyboy72 said. Walk.

How do you know the engine's only got 2K miles? Where did the engine come from? Factory ordered through dealer? Who installed the engine? What parts/labor warranty? If engine sourced from factory and installed by dealer engine comes with 2 year, 24K mile parts/labor warranty?

Wait, check that. Unlikely dealer would install 2.7l engine in '99 car. '99 car came with 2.5l. So forget any warranty on engine or labor.

Walk.

There's always another car.

Someone was mentioning an 03 for around $15K. Not sure this is a good deal cause price a bit lower than the market indicates so I'd be careful.

There are good buys to be had, but you got to look.

As for PPI you should improve your car inspection skills. No way that car you had PPI'd should have been PPI'd given all that was wrong with it.

You should only PPI a car that you can't find any reason to reject and only PPI one car: The one you end up buying.

Sincerely,

Macster.

mac`

yeah i know i know. damn

and I only PPI'd that first one cause I have no mechanical know-how at all and never would have known it needed a new rear shock, and I didnt even notice the panels were re-painted in the front.

anyways im looking at these now:

http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/m...406622315.html

http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/n...409072085.html

http://www.cars.com/go/search/emailT...paId=317367722

http://www.cars.com/go/search/emailT...paId=325619418

any obvious comments on these?

mikefocke

I think you need
to first make friends with a Porsche mechanic and ask him if he knows of any cars that are worth looking at. Since you seem to be in the DC area, you might find this site useful. Look over the guide to buying a Porsche Boxster too.

mac`

i have read both parts of the buying a boxster guide.

most of the boxsters in my area that are in my price range are coming up on the 60k maintenance schedule and are probably going to need 1-2k worth of service (guess)

anyway the 1999 with the 2001 engine is owned by a mechanic at autobahn and he personally replaced the engine/clutch/rotors/breakpads/coolant thing/RMS stuff. I got him down to 16.5k which I think is actually pretty reasonable. I drove it today and it felt waaaay better than the 01 that I mention in my first post. The body also has no dents and is in pretty amazing condition. The dude also said he would give me a 6 month limited warranty on the engine that he swapped in. He bought the engine from another shop from a 01 that was in an accident. Anyways im gonna take it to another private porsche mechanic to get a PPI.

and that 03 for 15k was one of those rare deals that pops up; by no means is that the norm.

seafeye

I just missed a 2001 Boxster S, for $13,300.
The car went in for emissions test and failed. They had to replace the MAF and a catalyst. Porsche dealership was doing it and the price for those 2 items was $2200. $800 for the MAF and $1400 for the Cat. The car dealership wanted me to pay for the converter. I could do both those items for $500 so i passed on it. The price was good to begin with but the car didn't have a service history, no paint work, but the seats were dry dry dry, like the top was left down and it rained for a month.
Looking around i can't find anything that cheap again. But i am sure something else will come up.
You can buy my 1999, 88,000mls total. 50k on the new engine. Silver/Black $11,500, and better shape than that 2001...

Larry L

Keep looking. A couple of months ago I found an '05 base Boxster with 18 inch wheels for $18,500. The car was 300 miles away, and while I was mulling that one over, a '98 popped up locally for $6500.

I drove the '98 and gave a it a good look, and didn't even bother with a PPI. It closely resembles the description you gave of the '01, but with higher miles. The seller gave me a list of issues that his mechanic put together, and there's nothing that I can't handle myself. So far I've invested an additional $700 in the car (new top and various maintenance items) and I'm perfectly happy with it.

The seller was out of work, and just wanted to dump the car instead of spending the $3K on it that his mechanic deemed necessary. Half of that was the top, and the car will need pads soon. Also needs some attention to the RR suspension. There's a pronounced "clack" over rough pavement that occurs when the car is unloaded. The car looks great, runs well, and was a real bargain at that price.

Deals are out there, and the next few months should bring an increase in the number of desperation sales.

mikefocke

Ask the mechanic how he handled the mechanical to e-gas conversion. Did he just use the block from the 2.7 and the accessories, ECU and intake from the original 2.5? Or does it have a newer ECU and an e-gas connection from the accelerator to the throttle body?

And ask him what limited warranty means. Get really specific and ask for it in writing. Mechanics can skip town pretty easily so you want to know if it is the shop that is providing the warranty or an individual.

As for the PPI finding fault, the second Boxster I bought needed $1k of work that the PPI showed but I factored that into the price I was willing to pay. And then I had the 60k done at 45k shortly after I bought the car just so I'd know where the maintenance stood on it. As long as the total is OK with you, it is OK for the PPI to find things...in fact it is the sign of a good PPI.

Compare it to:
'01 base Very clean with 28,500 miles arctic silver, grey top, grey interior, full leather, litronic headlights with washers, porsche stability management, sport touring package, 5 speed, 17"cast alloy wheels with new tires. (810)793-8131 Columbiaville Mi. 48421 pictures available. $15,000 Firm no trades. (ad/picture over on www.ppbb.com)

I don't think your car/deal is a very good one.

As Larry said above, the trick is finding the motivated seller.

mac`

well ive decided not to buy that overpriced 1999 boxster

now ill be scouring craigslist/ebay/forums everywhere for a good deal on a boxster.

If anyone has a boxster you are trying to sell near northern VA please let me know. Im looking for an 01-05, S or not.

Thanks for all your input guys.

Macster

Comments?

#1: $10K in mods? Big deal. And mod'd cars are in my book cars to be avoided. Plus seller has bad attitude. Let the seller eat the car.

#2: Car at dealer. Car looks ok. Course ad pictures always try to make used cars look good. Go look at car when dealer closed. Check it out for body panel gap and signs of any bad body or paint work. Get a feel for car's condition up close by looking at it. If you see car again with dealer open ask for copy of inspection report. Go over it looking at same things and see if what you see matches the report. Sometimes the inspector just checks the boxes off while he's in the bathroom. If car looks good keep looking for any reason to reject it.

#3: Again car looks good. I like the color. Go check it out.

#4: From pics car looks good. More miles that the others but not alot more miles.

Condition and price are the 2 most important things to a used car buyer. You need to work very hard to ensure you know as much about the car's condiition as you can possibly know. You can't know too much but of course you are limited in how much you can learn in a meaningful time frame and with a limited budget.

As others have advised gather info on how to buy a used Boxster. A used Boxster is in many ways just a used car and any good used car buying guide a good guide to follow to check out a used Boxster, but Boxsters also have special areas that need closer inspection. And you want to know if RMS/IMS seal and o-ring/bolt upgrade applied. If when RMS done when and if still oil tight. If not could be bad RMS installation, seal, or could be crankshaft out of position and RMS will never seal and engine doomed anyway.

I like to avoid mod'd cars, even if put back stock. I like to avoid tracked cars. Avoid cars with signs of bad paint/body repair. Avoid cars with damaged wheels, mistmatched tires, worn tires, signs of abuse, or that have been neglected.

For all cars get VIN and run Carfax check. Carfax is not infallible so if report comes back "clean" don't take it as gospel car has clean history. Call dealers in areas where Carfax indicates car was registered, operated, etc. and see if you can find any dealers who have serviced the car and can tell you anything about the car. Start with newest dates first and work your way back. It is more important how car has been treated recently vs. how it was treated when it was first purchased.

You have to look at cars and develop an eye for spotting things, an ear for hearing what the seller is saying or not saying. Let seller talk as much as possible. Do not attempt to fill silence, but give seller a chance to keep speaking, to try to fill the silence. He might say something that provides you with a hint of something amiss with car.

Sincerely,

Macster.

mac`

hey guys, thanks for all the input, I really appreciate it.

Ok so this one is a little over my budget but I think it may be worth it:

2005 boxster with 36k miles, still has 14k mi or four months on the factory warranty. just had major service done at 35k mi. new rear tires and break pads. comes with all tools/books/etc and all maintenance records . body looks like its in awesome shape and the car was well taken care of. $22.5k

still not sure why he is selling it, but ill find out.

its in a color I love but the only problem is its far away (200 miles), but coincidentally im going to visit my family next week who lives really close to where this car is at.

I think this one might be it

Macster

Be sure to ask where major service performed. Local Porsche dealer or local gas station service bay? Ask to see receipt for work. What was done? What oil used? Etc.

Arrange to have PPI done if you can find no reason to reject car. Run VIN check through Carfax. Remember a clean Carfax is not proof positive car's history unblemished but if it turns up something, that's good enough to reject the car.

Remember, price not fact only an opinion. $22.5K is just an opinion by the seller. You're entitled to your opinion.

And there's always another car.

Sincerely,

Macster