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I everyone, thank you all for your comments. I have not yet seen the car as my wife got into my head and someone also sent me a private message that kinda stopped me in my tracks. I think the car looks great, but my fear is the maintenance. I mean, this would not be my daily driver, just a fun summer car, it would really suck if it is in the shop all the time with repair bills that keep on climbing. Mikefocke, are they really cheap to maintain? I would think they would be expensive because it is a German car and it is a Porsche. I mean people say BMWs and Mercedes are expensive to maintain which is why people just lease them, but wouldn't a Porsche be on another level? I looked at the carfax on this car and it looks like it had two owners and the current dealership got it via an auction. I have not heard back from the dealership about the maintenance records, but maybe it is just taking some time. The gentleman said he would do his best and get back to me when he had some info. Again, the fear of something breaking scares the poop out of me. I do not mind a $200 oil change, as that is like every 10,000 miles right? The non-upkeep stuff is frightening.
I everyone, thank you all for your comments. I have not yet seen the car as my wife got into my head and someone also sent me a private message that kinda stopped me in my tracks. I think the car looks great, but my fear is the maintenance. I mean, this would not be my daily driver, just a fun summer car, it would really suck if it is in the shop all the time with repair bills that keep on climbing. Mikefocke, are they really cheap to maintain? I would think they would be expensive because it is a German car and it is a Porsche. I mean people say BMWs and Mercedes are expensive to maintain which is why people just lease them, but wouldn't a Porsche be on another level? I looked at the carfax on this car and it looks like it had two owners and the current dealership got it via an auction. I have not heard back from the dealership about the maintenance records, but maybe it is just taking some time. The gentleman said he would do his best and get back to me when he had some info. Again, the fear of something breaking scares the poop out of me. I do not mind a $200 oil change, as that is like every 10,000 miles right? The non-upkeep stuff is frightening.
You're correct in your thinking that they are not particularly cheap to repair when things go wrong and you are wise to consider that before jumping in.
The key here is to get a good one that has been well maintained and then there is a bit of good luck needed that it will stay that way. In 12 years of ownership I've probably spent $8000-$9000 in maintenance and that would include the oil changes, IMS bearing, clutch, alternater, belt and plugs, filters and fluids, MAF senser, water pump and probably more. Tires and fun improvements are outside of that. I don't think that's too bad when broken down over 12 yrs but others may disagree. The biggest one time expenditure would have been about $3000, the rest was gradually over the years.
I think as these cars get older, good maintenance by previous owners will prove to be essential. Probably more important then when I purchased mine when it was 4 yrs old.
All in all its been a great car to have and it's never let me down and left me stranded. However I may be a lucky owner, everyone has their own experience I'm sure.
The car you have identified is not ideal. Automatic is not desirable for driving enthusiasts, and therefore should be priced much lower. $11k is overpriced for a base 2001 Boxster with Tip and no service history.
Regarding your fears, you are doing the smart thing by asking questions on a forum. Already, you've taken a step in the right direction. Part of the enjoyment of these cars is learning about them. Do you like reading forums, or asking questions?
No one wants to get into a disaster money pit. That is why you select a car that is tested proven by enthusiasts. Problems are ok, as long as they are known things.
Some perspective may help. Try to determine the worst case scenario and then get some sense of probability. You can't, but it may help for you to not think the downside is infinite, if that is how your mind works. Search Google for some old threads about cost of ownership. Let's say you arrive at many estimates of $2000 a year, on average. That might mean $6k one year, and $0 for the next 2 years. Are you ok with that, for example?
The car probably will not be "in the shop all the time" with run away bills. But, things will break. Like with any car, they need service at times. That should not scare you. Not having a plan should scare you. You have already identified an indy mechanic, which is also the smart thing to do. Already you are ahead of the curve. Remember, these cars do not automatically break, just because they are supposed to be expensive to maintain. Many owners have had years of trouble free ownership.
Remember, you are getting a $40,000 car for $10k. That is a heck of a discount. Be prepared to invest some money to keep the car running. You might not mind spending money on a special car that you want to keep. A weekend sports car can be timeless, and you may own it for 20 years. Many people do.
Keep shopping. Read internet for sale ads. Start getting a sense of a well kept car (low owners, clean carfax, no damage, clean interior, clean exterior, entire service history, reputable private seller, few modifications, etc) Does that give you more of a comfort level?
If you have no budget for repairs then you are not in a position to enjoy a weekend car. Can you handle a few $500 repairs each year? How do you feel about that.
The nature of buying a used car is that of a gamble. You just want to make a smart educated gamble. How do you do that? You make sure you're buying a car platform that is not time proven to be a disaster. Is the Boxster a disaster? You need to decide. There are many cars out there that can serve as a sport weekend fun car.
Next, you also want to buy a good specimen. A cheap neglected car that needs lots of work will be more expensive than a nice car that has been maintained well. As the saying goes, “There's nothing more expensive than a cheap Porsche.”
So, buy a good example of a proven car. That removes half of your worries. Then make sure you have the budget and support system to maintain your car. The larger your buffer, the safer you will feel. It is not a good feeling to own a car where you are fearful of the next repair. Instead, it may be safer to "Hope for the best, but plan for the worst" Of course, you need to get a handle on what exactly the worst realistically is.
Remember, you are not getting married, and this is not a permanent decision. Once you are educated on the marketplace, think of the downsides. If you don't like the car, you can always sell it. It is not a life sentence. Your life will not be over if you buy a car, spend $4k on repairs, decide this isn't for you, and then just sell it to someone else for a loss. It's a toy, you're supposed to lose some money! The stressful nature of taking this leap is that it's easy to only focus on the irrational downside ("This car will cost me $10k a year in repairs and drive me into bankruptcy.") Do not forget the upside ("This car is fun, I like owning it, the repairs are reasonable, and it's still worth about what I paid 3 years ago, and has been cheaper to own than our new minivan")
There's always a good reason why the car ended up in the auction: There's some problem the seller wasn't prepared to accept the liability of selling it with.
And it is possible to get a great Boxster following none of the advice given. My first was ... until I crashed it. My second I got a great PPI by a very knowledgeable racing mechanic who setup P-cars for racing. Once I had done the initial wants and needs identified by the PPI (two different categories but the wants are somewhat related to long term reliability in my mind at least), my second Boxster was much easier and cheaper to maintain than similar era Honda and Acura cars I had at the same time. Having said that, I could have had a major and expensive repair need at any time, just as with any car.
In both cases, I thoroughly understood and had verified the motives to sell of the private owner who was selling me the car. And curiously enough, the guy who bought my second Boxster did it having never driven the car and, when asked why, he said it was because of the attitude and credibility of the seller (I insisted he take two trunks full of spare parts, tools, documentation, magazines, etc.)
Hi Sugarwood, thanks for checking in. Well, i did not end up with the car. I kept trying to get a hold of the dealership and left messages but they were never returned. I left text messages with their "Internet Sales Manager" who was the one who informed me he would do his best to get any maintenance documentation he could find and he just never got back to me. When I checked the dealership's website, the car is no longer listed, so I assume they sold it. I guess at the end it was for the best. Like I said in an earlier post, my wife was a little apprehensive about me getting a car that could cost a decent amount of money in repairs, so I am not sure if I would have felt comfortable moving forward with the purchase without her being 100% on board. Anyway, I was a little disappointed about not getting the car, but at the same time, a little relieved too as I was a kinda nervous going in.
In the end, I did end up making a purchase that I am happy with and though it is not a Porsche, it does put a smile on my face. While I was in my disappointed state (lol) of not getting the boxster, I was looking at several auto website for nice fun sports cars and I came across a 2003 Nissan 350Z being sold by a private seller. It only had a 41K miles on it, the seller was the original owner who also had all the maintenance records. She also always garage kept it and had about $10K worth of upgrades/modifications to it...Volk racing wheels, exhaust, sway bar, and some other cosmetic items. She was asking $11K and I ended up buying it for $10,500. I felt more comfortable with this purchase as I figured a nissan should be a little kinder to my wallet than a Porsche would. Maybe some time down the road, I will have a Porsche, I just don't think it was my time just yet.
Smart move letting it go. It was way overpriced.
The car was an automatic, which makes it very hard to sell.
If your wife was not into it, you'd never hear the end of it, if it ended up being a bad car.
Smart move getting a car you're more comfortable with.
Look how different it felt buying from the original owner with known history compared to some dealer flipper lot.
You did everything right. There is always time for a different car in the future.
Smart move letting it go. It was way overpriced.
The car was an automatic, which makes it very hard to sell.
My TIP car sold in three hours off a simple 3 line no pictures Craigslist ad. Full price, cash sale (I mean a stack of it). I had 4 callers in those three hours begging me to hold the car until they could get here and the first buyer bought it. Sold in August from a little rural town 50 miles from the nearest Craigslist.
So I don't buy the difficult to sell bit. Maybe not to the enthusiasts on the forums but they aren't the only potential buyers.
Oh, by the way, I bought two TIP cars. Congestion sometimes makes it more desirable for a daily driver. (My 3 prior sports cars were all stick.) And many of the current generation buying $5-15k cars can't drive a stick anyway. Try and find a driving school that teaches it these days.
Yeah, for me, stick wasn't really an option as I never learned how to drive it so it was an auto for me. Here are some of the pics of the car, just wish I didn't buy it at the start of winter.
I find it hard to believe that any driving enthusiast can't shift a manual. I mean, if you can't shift when you want, what's the point of owning a "sports car"???
I was looking for a 350 or 370z when I found my boxster. there's just something about a Porsche that no other car has....something like people see a nice 350z and they think, awww, just a Nissan...they see a Porsche, they think "wow, a Porsche"....
11-23-2016, 01:47 AM
