Knackered old Porsche with loads of natural light - Boxster!
Discussion
I've been meaning to post this for a while! Some months back I stumbled across a 2.5 Boxster on E-Bay.... it was very cheap and came with no history, as well all know the very best Porsches are listed on e-bay cheap, with the odd broken bit and no history so without any further ado I immediately went and got it:
Obviously trailered it home to keep the mileage off it and not because it didn't run, had no brake pedal or smelled of wet dog or anything like that....
It looks pretty good in this picture which hides the mismatched tyres, heavily kerbed wheels, badly rattle canned front bumper, green roof and heavy misfire really well!
_IMG_20220619_170528.png?width=960&height=720&fit=bounds)
However the good bits were a mostly complete service history, 90K miles, great spec (including Litronics, extended leather, and embossed seats) and underneath all the moss and dirt it was actually pretty straight.... but did need a few bits sorted, like the misfire and poor brake pedal.
As this was before I'd actually finished the garage it was a fix it on axle stands job:
Luckily the problem was pretty simple, a massive vacuum leak from the brake servo feed, which was easily fixed. I also set the throttle cable up properly, cleaned the butterfly, checked the air filter and gave it a wipe over of healing. Once done it drove really well to the point that I felt quite sorry for it that for the sake of a loose hose it had been sat for 6 months odd.
A few other points needed addressing, like the broken centre cubby lid and sloppy gearstick. Porsche to a cubby repair kit and short shift kits are cheap so neither of these was a problem:
Cubby repair kit:
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Previous owners badly mixed epoxy fix:
Actual fix:
Well worn gear selector:
And short shift kit fitted:
I was so pleased with how this was going I got the DA out and gave it a proper once over, using Autoglyms rapid renovator kit which is almost impossible to cock up:
And the headlights got a polish too!:
Aside from the front bumper the paint was all original and save for an amount of patina that you can't knock a 22 year old car for was in decent condition once "corrected":
The hood had a massive clean with an Autoglym kit which was clingfilmed on overnight resulting in a much cleaner and less green top!
The front bumper got a strip down and repaint as that was unrecoverable but came out alright in the end
I changed radiators at the same time but forgot to take any pics of that...
Wheels refurbed with a couple of fresh Bridgestones:
TT did a great job on these including getting the centre caps back to presentable.
The utterly used front discs and pads got swapped whilst the wheels were off and I also cleaned the calipers up:
Wheels fitted with some new black bolts:
It was really starting to look pretty tidy now!
In a fit of enthusiasm and because by this point I'd also mostly finished the garage I treated it to a service
_IMG_20221029_130403520.png?width=960&height=720&fit=bounds)
Got to love a pop up filler
And fixed the door microswitch so the window drop worked:
Which resulted in a really nice 2.5L Boxster which everything works on and that returns 30mpg bumbling about the place.
It is a beautifully balanced little thing, even on it's probably original dampers, and whilst boasting very little power is nippy enough to enjoy and have fun with - in the wet it also does sideways impressively well! I've used it as my daily up until the salt started to appear on the roads and it's sat in the garage now. Jobs for next year / once I've finished the 996 are pretty sparse as this is staying as a pretty much standard car. I need to fix the hand brake light switch which packed up just before I parked it for winter as this stops the roof working and the hood needs a new rear window, amazingly it's not split down the middle as so many do but is pretty opaque and starting to fret on one corner.
I can't get over what a fun car it is to run around in, and surprisingly practical too if you don't need more than two seats. Definitely a mega e-bay buy and proof that you can never have too many projects....... or too many Porsches
I'm planning a Euro trip in this later this year as well as using it as the daily (because it halves the fuel bill vs the Cayenne!) so I'll keep things updated with how well / badly this goes
Obviously trailered it home to keep the mileage off it and not because it didn't run, had no brake pedal or smelled of wet dog or anything like that....
It looks pretty good in this picture which hides the mismatched tyres, heavily kerbed wheels, badly rattle canned front bumper, green roof and heavy misfire really well!
However the good bits were a mostly complete service history, 90K miles, great spec (including Litronics, extended leather, and embossed seats) and underneath all the moss and dirt it was actually pretty straight.... but did need a few bits sorted, like the misfire and poor brake pedal.
As this was before I'd actually finished the garage it was a fix it on axle stands job:
Luckily the problem was pretty simple, a massive vacuum leak from the brake servo feed, which was easily fixed. I also set the throttle cable up properly, cleaned the butterfly, checked the air filter and gave it a wipe over of healing. Once done it drove really well to the point that I felt quite sorry for it that for the sake of a loose hose it had been sat for 6 months odd.
A few other points needed addressing, like the broken centre cubby lid and sloppy gearstick. Porsche to a cubby repair kit and short shift kits are cheap so neither of these was a problem:
Cubby repair kit:
Previous owners badly mixed epoxy fix:
Actual fix:
Well worn gear selector:
And short shift kit fitted:
I was so pleased with how this was going I got the DA out and gave it a proper once over, using Autoglyms rapid renovator kit which is almost impossible to cock up:
And the headlights got a polish too!:
Aside from the front bumper the paint was all original and save for an amount of patina that you can't knock a 22 year old car for was in decent condition once "corrected":
The hood had a massive clean with an Autoglym kit which was clingfilmed on overnight resulting in a much cleaner and less green top!
The front bumper got a strip down and repaint as that was unrecoverable but came out alright in the end
I changed radiators at the same time but forgot to take any pics of that...
Wheels refurbed with a couple of fresh Bridgestones:
TT did a great job on these including getting the centre caps back to presentable.
The utterly used front discs and pads got swapped whilst the wheels were off and I also cleaned the calipers up:
Wheels fitted with some new black bolts:
It was really starting to look pretty tidy now!
In a fit of enthusiasm and because by this point I'd also mostly finished the garage I treated it to a service
Got to love a pop up filler
And fixed the door microswitch so the window drop worked:
Which resulted in a really nice 2.5L Boxster which everything works on and that returns 30mpg bumbling about the place.
It is a beautifully balanced little thing, even on it's probably original dampers, and whilst boasting very little power is nippy enough to enjoy and have fun with - in the wet it also does sideways impressively well! I've used it as my daily up until the salt started to appear on the roads and it's sat in the garage now. Jobs for next year / once I've finished the 996 are pretty sparse as this is staying as a pretty much standard car. I need to fix the hand brake light switch which packed up just before I parked it for winter as this stops the roof working and the hood needs a new rear window, amazingly it's not split down the middle as so many do but is pretty opaque and starting to fret on one corner.
I can't get over what a fun car it is to run around in, and surprisingly practical too if you don't need more than two seats. Definitely a mega e-bay buy and proof that you can never have too many projects....... or too many Porsches
I'm planning a Euro trip in this later this year as well as using it as the daily (because it halves the fuel bill vs the Cayenne!) so I'll keep things updated with how well / badly this goes
Edited by poppopbangbang on Tuesday 3rd January 18:44
Liking this, good work!!
Did i miss the bit about how you fixed the misfire or was that cured during the service?
Either way, that looks like a cracking buy, i suspect you got it for somewhere maybe south of £3k , I've also been looking at a few cheap Boxsters on Ebay but haven't been brave enough for a fixer up and keep suffering from budget creep as I'd love a Speed Yellow one!!
Did i miss the bit about how you fixed the misfire or was that cured during the service?
Either way, that looks like a cracking buy, i suspect you got it for somewhere maybe south of £3k , I've also been looking at a few cheap Boxsters on Ebay but haven't been brave enough for a fixer up and keep suffering from budget creep as I'd love a Speed Yellow one!!
aka_kerrly said:
Liking this, good work!!
Did i miss the bit about how you fixed the misfire or was that cured during the service?
It was a massive vacuum leak from the brake servo vacuum feed. It idled at a lot of RPM more than it should and misfired on light throttle due to the leak being after the MAF. Did i miss the bit about how you fixed the misfire or was that cured during the service?
aka_kerrly said:
Either way, that looks like a cracking buy, i suspect you got it for somewhere maybe south of £3k , I've also been looking at a few cheap Boxsters on Ebay but haven't been brave enough for a fixer up and keep suffering from budget creep as I'd love a Speed Yellow one!!
I totally rolled the dice on this on the basis that if it was a dead engined one I'd steal the headlights as spares for the 996, fit some standard ones I had in stock and sell it as a project. Fortune favours the brave and all that I do think Boxsters are going to see an increase in value over the coming few years as so many have been lost to breaking for parts etc. as their value was so much lower than the repair cost. It will be interesting to see where they end up but regardless it's very hard to fault a 2.5 as they are so cheap to run in terms of consumables (none fancy brake discs etc.) and seem (touching wood) to avoid the usual foibles of the M96 due to the thicker bores and dual row IMS.
tvrfan007 said:
Another entertaining thread to read. What's first on the mods list?!
If it goes pop I'm putting an LS3 in it on general principle otherwise its staying as the daily - it is my least modified Porsche..... which considering one of the others is a Cayenne is saying something ReverendCounter said:
Ever thought of starting a business of buying and upgrading Boxsters and 996's to sell, or sorting customers cars out with a range of upgrade packages or something?
The amount of knowledge you've amassed, doesn't seem like there's much if anything you couldn't tackle.
You're not the first person to suggest this The amount of knowledge you've amassed, doesn't seem like there's much if anything you couldn't tackle.
poppopbangbang said:
ReverendCounter said:
Ever thought of starting a business of buying and upgrading Boxsters and 996's to sell, or sorting customers cars out with a range of upgrade packages or something?
The amount of knowledge you've amassed, doesn't seem like there's much if anything you couldn't tackle.
You're not the first person to suggest this The amount of knowledge you've amassed, doesn't seem like there's much if anything you couldn't tackle.
Alternatively, just buy every crashed Porsche you can get your hands on and rebuild+upgrade them, create a constant supply of trustworthy 986/7/996's into the market.
DerSchweinefleischdoktor.co.uk - catchy, eh!
eltax91 said:
When you find another cheap one that you just can’t resist, drop your old pal a line and sell me this. I sooooo miss my 996, got the itch for a Porsche again. 
I can highly recommend a Boxster, they are so well balanced and still feel a lot like a 996. There are a good few about that are perfectly decent for £6K'ish and you can spanner so a 2.5 will be cheap to look after! Get it done jon-yprpe said:
Never mind the cars, you have my dream garage set-up. All the gear and nice and tidy!
Thank you! It's coming together slowly - I want to build some storage / work surfaces up as the next job and plasterboard the ceiling but it's more than sufficent for working on something like a 996 in at the moment so the rest of the fit out can wait until summer!I did consider the Sealey cabinets etc. but I want something a bit warmer and less pure garage than that.... next project
ReverendCounter said:
Alternatively, just buy every crashed Porsche you can get your hands on and rebuild+upgrade them, create a constant supply of trustworthy 986/7/996's into the market.
I would happily fill a barn full of 996s to build later should opportunity present itself - after all you can do that for less than the cost of an RS 4.0 at the moment poppopbangbang said:
eltax91 said:
When you find another cheap one that you just can’t resist, drop your old pal a line and sell me this. I sooooo miss my 996, got the itch for a Porsche again.
I can highly recommend a Boxster, they are so well balanced and still feel a lot like a 996. There are a good few about that are perfectly decent for £6K'ish and you can spanner so a 2.5 will be cheap to look after! Get it done Bright Halo said:
That looks really nice
Has it been lowered as looks a little lower than normal?
Thank you, it's standard ride height on 23 year old springs.... which may be why it looks a little lower Has it been lowered as looks a little lower than normal?
It measures up within 2mm of what the Porsche spec is though so they haven't sagged too much.For a double row IMS, look for:
Engine Number up to 651 12851 (M96.22) - 2.7
Engine Number up to 671 11237 (M96.21) - 3.2
If I remember correctly, it's pre about mid 2000 - I had a '99 2.7 Box and it was double row. Fantastic little thing, revvy and sweet and you could absolutely rag it to the red line because it had very neutral handling coupled with a nice engine with just enough power to have fun.
Not that my 3.4 996 was bad, but it felt a bit more 'serious' whereas the Box was a riot to drive, and the flat six sound is great with the top down.
I've got pangs for another 986...
Engine Number up to 651 12851 (M96.22) - 2.7
Engine Number up to 671 11237 (M96.21) - 3.2
If I remember correctly, it's pre about mid 2000 - I had a '99 2.7 Box and it was double row. Fantastic little thing, revvy and sweet and you could absolutely rag it to the red line because it had very neutral handling coupled with a nice engine with just enough power to have fun.
Not that my 3.4 996 was bad, but it felt a bit more 'serious' whereas the Box was a riot to drive, and the flat six sound is great with the top down.
I've got pangs for another 986...
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