Boxster S 3.2 vs 3.4
Discussion
The reviews of these engines suggest they are much further apart then just a 0.2
Some even suggesting that the newer 2.9 cars are better packages than the old 3.2
I drove them all and in the end I went for a 2.9 as the rest of the car was ideal spec and on the road it is plenty fast enough.
I guess that does not answer your reliability question but (they) can never be truly answered anyway as the car you buy might have an issue..... or not.
Cheers, Matt
Some even suggesting that the newer 2.9 cars are better packages than the old 3.2
I drove them all and in the end I went for a 2.9 as the rest of the car was ideal spec and on the road it is plenty fast enough.
I guess that does not answer your reliability question but (they) can never be truly answered anyway as the car you buy might have an issue..... or not.
Cheers, Matt
As far as i'm aware the 3.4 had an improved IMS bearing compared to the 3.2 used in the early 987 but the 3.4 is apparantly slightly more susceptible to scored bores, D-chunk etc
the 3.4 DFI so far has no known issues but then the price difference reflects this, a decent 3.2 is about 15k, a 3.4 18k and a 3.4DFI closer to 30k
the 3.4 DFI so far has no known issues but then the price difference reflects this, a decent 3.2 is about 15k, a 3.4 18k and a 3.4DFI closer to 30k
I am desperately waiting to test the 2.9 Cayman, and possibly the boxster also. I want the 3.4S DFI engine, but as stated, they are rather pricey. Some can be picked up for just under the 30k mark, but if its spec your after, then its just pot luck to whats about.
I asked the question about the 2.9 Cayman and it has had favourable reponses as being quick enough for B roads, however i want to use mine track also.
If it was a choice of 3.2 or the 2.9 in boxster guise, i'd probably go for the 2.9.
I asked the question about the 2.9 Cayman and it has had favourable reponses as being quick enough for B roads, however i want to use mine track also.
If it was a choice of 3.2 or the 2.9 in boxster guise, i'd probably go for the 2.9.
get yourself the 3.4 boxster(987.1) with low miles for under £20k with an opc warranty.the ims is upgraded so less of a problem,the bore score issue is still there but tends to happen on high mileage cars and more so the 3.8 carrera engine.avoid early 2.9 cars.
if you buy a nice 987.1 boxster s(no warranty) for £10k less than a 2.9 that covers the cost of an engine IF it goes bang.
also new or nearly new 3.4dfi can be had for mid £30k so a 2.9 at £26k to £30k looks expensive
if you buy a nice 987.1 boxster s(no warranty) for £10k less than a 2.9 that covers the cost of an engine IF it goes bang.
also new or nearly new 3.4dfi can be had for mid £30k so a 2.9 at £26k to £30k looks expensive
get yourself the 3.4 boxster(987.1) with low miles for under £20k with an opc warranty.the ims is upgraded so less of a problem,the bore score issue is still there but tends to happen on high mileage cars and more so the 3.8 carrera engine.avoid early 2.9 cars.
if you buy a nice 987.1 boxster s(no warranty) for £10k less than a 2.9 that covers the cost of an engine IF it goes bang.
also new or nearly new 3.4dfi can be had for mid £30k so a 2.9 at £26k to £30k looks expensive
I have been researching this forum now for quite a while, and the general consensus seems to be the exact opposite of what you have just stated!!!
The Bore scoring seems to be occurring in LOW mileage infrequently used 3.4s cars!!!
Also whats the issue with the early 2.9 cars?
See that don't make sense to me what you have just said. Why would you want to buy a car that was worth say 17k, spend 10k on an engine. You sell a year later, do you think your gona get 27k for that car, are you heck, your gona get 15-16k. No one gives a toss if you just spent 7-10k on engine work or mods, end of the day, its still a 15-16k Boxster!!! So this is why i would not even consider a gen1 3.4s without a warranty, and this is why i honestly wont consider one full stop now, i could not be bothered with the potential hassle of having my car off the road for engine work!!
if you buy a nice 987.1 boxster s(no warranty) for £10k less than a 2.9 that covers the cost of an engine IF it goes bang.
also new or nearly new 3.4dfi can be had for mid £30k so a 2.9 at £26k to £30k looks expensive
I have been researching this forum now for quite a while, and the general consensus seems to be the exact opposite of what you have just stated!!!
The Bore scoring seems to be occurring in LOW mileage infrequently used 3.4s cars!!!
Also whats the issue with the early 2.9 cars?
See that don't make sense to me what you have just said. Why would you want to buy a car that was worth say 17k, spend 10k on an engine. You sell a year later, do you think your gona get 27k for that car, are you heck, your gona get 15-16k. No one gives a toss if you just spent 7-10k on engine work or mods, end of the day, its still a 15-16k Boxster!!! So this is why i would not even consider a gen1 3.4s without a warranty, and this is why i honestly wont consider one full stop now, i could not be bothered with the potential hassle of having my car off the road for engine work!!
for a start there have been reports on another forum of early 2.9 having bore/piston issues,that said porsche also updated the rings 3 times.personally i have not heard of many confirmed bore scoring on 3.4 engines (boxster/cayman,your not thinking of early 3.4 carrera engines are you?) but a lot of talk/confirmed issues on the 3.8.
the chances of having any kind of engine failure is still minimal,and if an opc warranty is in place there is no worry.i speak from experience of engine failure on a 986s in early 2007(replaced by porsche foc) so have followed these engines m96/7 problems for 5 years now.i still went out and bought a 3.4 987.1 cayman and had no issues in 3 years of ownership.as for paying out £10k for an engine this is absolute worse case scenario.you could still have that with a non warranted 2.9 or any performance car but highly unlikely.
my advice is buy the car you like and if worried buy with an opc warranty/slush fund.as far as i can see gen 1 3.4 boxster/cayman are cracking value at the moment but prices have firmed up slightly on the cayman s over the last few months'
the gen2 2.9 is not a patch on the gen1 3.4 and given a choice thats where my money would go.the 3.4dfi is another story thats why a recently bought a spyder
the chances of having any kind of engine failure is still minimal,and if an opc warranty is in place there is no worry.i speak from experience of engine failure on a 986s in early 2007(replaced by porsche foc) so have followed these engines m96/7 problems for 5 years now.i still went out and bought a 3.4 987.1 cayman and had no issues in 3 years of ownership.as for paying out £10k for an engine this is absolute worse case scenario.you could still have that with a non warranted 2.9 or any performance car but highly unlikely.
my advice is buy the car you like and if worried buy with an opc warranty/slush fund.as far as i can see gen 1 3.4 boxster/cayman are cracking value at the moment but prices have firmed up slightly on the cayman s over the last few months'
the gen2 2.9 is not a patch on the gen1 3.4 and given a choice thats where my money would go.the 3.4dfi is another story thats why a recently bought a spyder
Edited by mayes911 on Thursday 22 March 15:15
Edited by mayes911 on Thursday 22 March 15:21
mayes911 said:
for a start there have been reports on another forum of early 2.9 having bore/piston issues,that said porsche also updated the rings 3 times.personally i have not heard of many confirmed bore scoring on 3.4 engines (boxster/cayman,your not thinking of early 3.4 carrera engines are you?) but a lot of talk/confirmed issues on the 3.8.
the chances of having any kind of engine failure is still minimal,and if an opc warranty is in place there is no worry.i speak from experience of engine failure on a 986s in early 2007(replaced by porsche foc) so have followed these engines m96/7 problems for 5 years now.i still went out and bought a 3.4 987.1 cayman and had no issues in 3 years of ownership.as for paying out £10k for an engine this is absolute worse case scenario.you could still have that with a non warranted 2.9 or any performance car but highly unlikely.
my advice is buy the car you like and if worried buy with an opc warranty/slush fund.as far as i can see gen 1 3.4 boxster/cayman are cracking value at the moment but prices have firmed up slightly on the cayman s over the last few months'
the gen2 2.9 is not a patch on the gen1 3.4 and given a choice thats where my money would go.the 3.4dfi is another story thats why a recently bought a spyder
Hi Mate.the chances of having any kind of engine failure is still minimal,and if an opc warranty is in place there is no worry.i speak from experience of engine failure on a 986s in early 2007(replaced by porsche foc) so have followed these engines m96/7 problems for 5 years now.i still went out and bought a 3.4 987.1 cayman and had no issues in 3 years of ownership.as for paying out £10k for an engine this is absolute worse case scenario.you could still have that with a non warranted 2.9 or any performance car but highly unlikely.
my advice is buy the car you like and if worried buy with an opc warranty/slush fund.as far as i can see gen 1 3.4 boxster/cayman are cracking value at the moment but prices have firmed up slightly on the cayman s over the last few months'
the gen2 2.9 is not a patch on the gen1 3.4 and given a choice thats where my money would go.the 3.4dfi is another story thats why a recently bought a spyder
Edited by mayes911 on Thursday 22 March 15:15
Edited by mayes911 on Thursday 22 March 15:21
Yeh i had heard talk about the 2.9, but no one seems to have any solid confirmed information as yet. No defo the 3.4 Gen1 Cayman/boxster. Although, in the grand scheme of things i am led to believe its a very small %, which is probably true. However again Internet Chat, it depends on whom you listen too. But in several of my previous posts, many of the guys are saying to stay away from the Gen1 3.4S because i do want to track it, due to the poor cooling and the obvious risk of bore scoring due to this.
This is why i began to look at the 2.9. I could afford the Gen2 Cayman S, as you say, some good bargains about slightly just over 30k. But with my circumstances i just did not want to put a huge chunk of money into the car, so the potential of a 2.9 for around 27k was possibly appealing. Although, i have not driven any of these variants(still in Iraq), but deep down, yeh my heart lies with the 3.4S Cayman!! But as a compromise it may have to be the Boxster S Gen2, which can be picked up for close to my budget. I say a comprimise, i am sure the boxster S is a fantastic car, but the Soft top i could take or leave!!
See i put a post up about 2.9 /3.4S ect, and a good few of the posters came back stating the 2.9 and Gen 1 S were fairly comparable on performance?
Anyway, everyones opinions are different, and i am sure i will have mine soon enough, but as i said before, its always interesting to see everyone elses points of views on this!!
Thanks for the post.
i fully understand wanting the gen2 car for tracking it is not only better cooled but more importantly it has better oil flow 4 pick up pumps instead of 1(read on the planet-9 forum they race the cars in america so have more knowledge)i dont think you will be dissapointed with a boxster though i had boxster then a cayman now a spyder,the cayman is sharper on turn in but the boxster is more compliant but no softy and is still a nice place to be.if you can wait until after the summer should get yourself a nice 2010 boxster s for your budget
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