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Purchase decision - am I right?

Pedro10RM

Pedro10RM

New member
After much deliberation and talking to club members I believe I have settled on the model with which to begin my Porsche ownership experience, namely a Boxster 2.9 Gen II at between £23,000-25,000. To be honest I would love a 997, but this remains out of reach, especially as we would like an open car, and prices seem to be beyond £30,000 - likewise, the Boxster 3.4S Gen II with prices in the range £25,000 - 30,000.

The above relates to my preference to buy from a Porsche Centre with two years warranty. I’d like to reduce the risk of unexpected maintenance bills and seek relatively predictable running costs. My budget for serious fettling will be limited. This is also why I believe that a classic Porsche would not be the right choice, despite the attraction, including retained/increasing value. Also, I do not really want to spend the additional time on their care and maintenance.

Having said all this, it is an important decision, and many of you with experience of the alternatives may have come to different conclusions, so I am open to your informed opinions and comments. As Porsche ownership is new territory for me I’m a little apprehensive, and want to make a choice which will leave me happy and satisfied, and well equipped to take a full part in club membership.

I’m looking forward to meeting more Boxster owners at Althorp and will endeavour to visit the register display between 12.00 and 1pm on Saturday, when I understand Trish and Cliff will be on hand.





 
I switched from a 997 Gen 1 which I had from new and have no regrets. The 2.9 is a sweet little engine that revs freely and is enjoyable at legal speeds. No IMS failure or bore scoring to worry about which is very reassuring. I am sure you will love a 2.9 and a lot of them have good specs as they were towards the end of 987 production.
 
Nice find Mr D.

The 987.2 Boxster is a great car. I ran mine for 4 years and 22k happy miles and it proved reliable and great fun. Buying a car with the "proper" Porsche warranty makes a great deal of sense for your peace of mind as a first Porsche. In case you didn't know, cars with the warranty such as the one linked to can have the warranty extended at the expiry of the current term subject to an inspection by Porsche (and, obviously, compliance with servicing requirements etc).

If you do buy from a Porsche Centre, you can reasonably expect a far higher standard of service than most manufacturers offer customers of new cars and you should not expect any problems.

If you buy from elsewhere, check out the brake discs, especially the inner faces you can't see - they corrode for fun and low mileage garaged cars can be the worst offenders if they have been washed and put away without drying the brakes first - ask me how I know! My 987 needed a set of rear tyres at 16k miles but the fronts were still hanging in when I changed the car - they were Bridgestones though and other brands do wear differently. I had a problem with the electric cooling fan on mine but it was replaced under warranty. Also the front radiators/condensers are quite exposed and can pick up damage or collect debris that makes them rotten eventually.

I will be at Althorp over the weekend (with a name badge on!) so feel free to say hello = I'm sure Tracy (not Trish) and Cliff will happily tell you everything you need to know about Boxsters though!

Good luck with the search (if indeed, you need to look any further!)


 

Many thanks Lawrence and Rob.

Your comments are very much appreciated, and give me confidence that I am thinking along the right lines. Thank you for responding in this detail. Your experience suggests that this model should deliver the enjoyable and trouble free ownership I am looking for. I'm very interested in your comments about Porsche Centres. I have heard good reports of my local one in Solihull. My apologies to Tracy, especially when I was referring to her column in Porsche Post at the time!

I hope I can look forward to having a chat with you Rob, on Saturday, if you have the time. You have done a lot to reassure me, and I can't wait to take the plunge after having been a "non-owning" member of the club for some time. I must say I have really enjoyed the events I have attended and their friendly atmosphere. It's a great club to be a member of and I look forward becoming fully qualified over the winter!

Alan.
 
No problem Alan
i have been known to answer to anything.[:D][:D]
i look forward to meeting you on Saturday
Regards
Tracy

 
Hello
You sound very similar to my thinking. Last year I decided to enter into Porsche ownership and after some research decided that the Gen II 987 was the right car for me. I also like you wanted to find a good trouble free version as after reading all the forums they mainly concentrate on many of the bad experiences. I have neither the time or inclination to spend on repairs after a significant investment.

So i also bought from a Porsche dealership with 2 years warranty included, some will argue that the extra you pay would cover any problems found and they could be right but I was not looking for hassle and have no regrets. I bought a 3.4 S gen II and its great, the minor issues I have had have been rectified by the dealer without issue and it comes out with a full valet looking as new.

Ultimately it comes down to cost, for some it is worth every penny for others not, I now have to decide in a years time whether the cost of extending the warranty will mean if I choose to sell will I get most of my money back, so far depreciation has been small. Good luck with the purchase

 
Thank you for responding. Your thoughts were indeed remarkably similar. You have summed up exactly how I have been looking at things, and it is reassuring that your experience has been so positive. As you say it comes down to cost, but your judgement of value for money would be my own.

Alan.
 
I think the non S boxster is the way to go on all variants. Call it what you will, peppy, torquey, tractable, they're all a great engine for roof off driving. Basing this opinion on extensive driving of a 986 and a 981 (as well as my 997 S by way of comparison).

Agree re the warranty, but for the record we also have a 2.5 986 which is a little experiment on running a low cost Porsche as an everyday car, which I service and tinker with myself on a self imposed budget. This is also a great car, the only real issue being the stigma of the 2.5, easier to dismiss when the roofs down on an autumm day, when the 'proper' Porsches are in the garage for fear of getting wet/stone chipped/unpolished
/depreciating etc.

If I were to buy a new boxster tomorrow, and cost was no object, I'd get a base model, 2.9.
 
Agree that most of the time base boxster is plenty (2.7 now btw)
but for continental trips the s is def worth the extra IMO
 
Hi Alan

After my last post I have done some head scratching and decided to sell my S earlier than expected, it may be a little above where you want to be but it really is a good one and I have put it in the "For Sale" part of the site. Just a long shot but have a look if you want to.

Robert
 
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