3.2S Porsche Boxster - Good Buy???? 8-10k?

[DonsterD]

I have been trawling through the autotrader and been looking at a daily driver.

I am shocked at how cheap the boxsters are!

What sort of budget should i realistically be looking at to get a DECENT 3.2S or even a 2.7?

Am i expecting a st car at 8-10k? What about 12k?

Originally was going to buy the 335D as i have some cash butning a hole in my pocket. But if i can get a decent boxster i would probably buy that..

A few of my cousins have mentioned the car is for fairys and is a "poor mans" 911. Truth be told i dont give a st. Its a proper solid car (well i thought so!!! Read further ....)..

Edited by DonsterD on Thursday 1st January 23:59

Edited by DonsterD on Friday 2nd January 08:52

[northandy]

DonsterD said:

I have been trawling through the autotrader and been looking at a daily driver.

I am shocked at how cheap the boxsters are!

What sort of budget should i realistically be looking at to get a DECENT 3.2S or even a 2.7?

Am i expecting a st car at 8-10k? What about 12k?

Originally was going to buy the 335D as i have some cash butning a hole in my pocket. But if i can get a decent boxster i would probably buy that..

A few of my cousins have mentioned the car is for fairys and is a "poor mans" 911. Truth be told i dont give a st. Its a proper solid car..

Edited by DonsterD on Thursday 1st January 23:59

They have dropped a lot recently... great cars IMO I had a 3.2S about 3 years ago..

Make sure you drive a few before you buy, check the clutch works properly (not just at the end of the travel) look for a proper service history/signs of neglect (kerbed alloys etc)... Also make sure the Aircon works, radiators can rot and its a £500/£600 fix...

Also at that age be aware traction control isnt standard, even on the 3.2

[DonsterD]

northandy said:

They have dropped a lot recently... great cars IMO I had a 3.2S about 3 years ago..

Make sure you drive a few before you buy, check the clutch works properly (not just at the end of the travel) look for a proper service history/signs of neglect (kerbed alloys etc)... Also make sure the Aircon works, radiators can rot and its a £500/£600 fix...

Also at that age be aware traction control isnt standard, even on the 3.2

Cheers for the headsup. No traction control?..surprising.

Anyone have any info about the supposed exploding engines?

Reliabilty is important to me really. I just spent 2k fitting a new slushbox to the merc. Car only did 50k on the previous auto. So i was not impressed at all.

I will defintley be getting a decent after-market warranty on it. Hopefuly this should put my worries at ease.

The E320 CDi was a very expensive lesson i learned about the importance of warranty!!

Edited by DonsterD on Friday 2nd January 00:09

[hornetrider]

I'm looking for a 911 at the minute but Boxster prices are very attractive indeed. Cridfords have a great looking S in Lapis at 11k, for example. But there's loads around, plenty of choice!

Get more specific model info/tips etc at www.boxa.net

[Chainguy]

3.2 is a great car for the money, and a great drivers car all round. Fairly frugal to if you dont step on it that much, not that you will be driving it easy, as they sound great when pushed.

Just a very capable, real world performance car all round really. Anyone who tells you otherwise, I guarantee hasn't driven one.

[HAB]

Great drive. But personally I just can't get over the pushmepullyou looks. Though certain colours work better than others.

[hornetrider]

Seen this?

[HAB]

Not sure about that. What is it?

[DennisTheMenace]

f**kin ugly is what it is .

[hornetrider]

It's a Boxster with a removable Zeintec hardtop, styled to look like a Cayman. I reckon it looks alright!

[Ribol]

hornetrider said:

It's a Boxster with a removable Zeintec hardtop, styled to look like a Cayman. I reckon it looks alright!

Nicely done but why would you want one?

The Boxster hood is brilliant in all weather conditions and disappears in a German kind of way in seconds.

[northandy]

DonsterD said:

northandy said:

They have dropped a lot recently... great cars IMO I had a 3.2S about 3 years ago..

Make sure you drive a few before you buy, check the clutch works properly (not just at the end of the travel) look for a proper service history/signs of neglect (kerbed alloys etc)... Also make sure the Aircon works, radiators can rot and its a £500/£600 fix...

Also at that age be aware traction control isnt standard, even on the 3.2

Cheers for the headsup. No traction control?..surprising.

Anyone have any info about the supposed exploding engines?

Reliabilty is important to me really. I just spent 2k fitting a new slushbox to the merc. Car only did 50k on the previous auto. So i was not impressed at all.

I will defintley be getting a decent after-market warranty on it. Hopefuly this should put my worries at ease.

The E320 CDi was a very expensive lesson i learned about the importance of warranty!!

Edited by DonsterD on Friday 2nd January 00:09

Intermediate shaft issues seem to happen around 30-40 thousand miles, doesnt seem to be any rationale behind why... I bought a car with 32k on the clock and did 16k in it before I sold it..

[vinnie83]

I must admit, there've been a fair few times I poked fun at an ex-boxter owning friend of mine... untill I had a Boxter S for a courtesy car a few weeks ago.. I LOVED it.... If I was in the market for that budget / type of car, I'd get one without thought...

The handling is as great as you read about, the sound with a sports exhaust is great! If breaking land speed records isn't top priority then the boxter S is a great car...

(admittedly the loaner car I had was the RS 60 Spyder edition which is more powerful with a bigger engine than the one you speak about, but I'm sure the great handling is still there, even though it will be a little less powerful)

[DonsterD]

Defintley not buying now. Very poor reliabilty it seems. OPC and intermediate shaft failure. Feck that. After my Mercedes exprience i need some reliability..

Looking at S2000 or if possible a 330D/335D or even a cheap E46 330D Coupe.

Edited by DonsterD on Friday 2nd January 04:32

[Irish]

DonsterD said:

Defintley not buying now. Very poor reliabilty it seems. OPC and intermediate shaft failure. Feck that. After my Mercedes exprience i need some reliability..

Looking at S2000 or if possible a 330D/335D or even a cheap E46 330D Coupe.

Edited by DonsterD on Friday 2nd January 04:32

Ah boo. It is a great car. A for being a "poor mans 911" I wanted my 2.7 back after my 996 C4 which was dull, dull, dull to drive.

[DonsterD]

Irish said:

DonsterD said:

Defintley not buying now. Very poor reliabilty it seems. OPC and intermediate shaft failure. Feck that. After my Mercedes exprience i need some reliability..

Looking at S2000 or if possible a 330D/335D or even a cheap E46 330D Coupe.

Edited by DonsterD on Friday 2nd January 04:32

Ah boo. It is a great car. A for being a "poor mans 911" I wanted my 2.7 back after my 996 C4 which was dull, dull, dull to drive.

Dont get me wrong mate. I have the cash to buy one today BUT this intermediate shaft business has really put me off. It does seem to be pre-2004 though.

Can anyone here give me some advice on how i can gain some confidence in buying a boxster? Do third parties even provide warranty for it?

Wtf, my E320 gearbox went, Now Porsches have like a a high engine failure rate. What happened to good old German Reliabilty lol?

My 2001 A4 has givenme no problems at all. Solid and dependable...

[kambites]

Do they really have a high engine failure rate or is it just a few isolated cases being blown out of all proportion (as tends to happen when any weakness in an engine uncovered).

[DonsterD]

kambites said:

Do they really have a high engine failure rate or is it just a few isolated cases being blown out of all proportion (as tends to happen when any weakness in an engine uncovered).

There are stloads. Real pity..

http://www.google.co.uk/search?client=firefox-a&am...

[kambites]

DonsterD said:

kambites said:

Do they really have a high engine failure rate or is it just a few isolated cases being blown out of all proportion (as tends to happen when any weakness in an engine uncovered).

There are stloads. Real pity..

http://www.google.co.uk/search?client=firefox-a&am...

I wasn't questioning that it happens, but what sort of proportion are we talking about? 10% of engines? 1%? 0.1%?

[DonsterD]

kambites said:

DonsterD said:

kambites said:

Do they really have a high engine failure rate or is it just a few isolated cases being blown out of all proportion (as tends to happen when any weakness in an engine uncovered).

There are stloads. Real pity..

http://www.google.co.uk/search?client=firefox-a&am...

I wasn't questioning that it happens, but what sort of proportion are we talking about? 10% of engines? 1%? 0.1%?

The figures i have seen are around 25%+. No wonder 996's are so cheap.

Moreover, every engine is susceptible to the failure. Its not related to a particular period i gather.

Eitherway i'm giving it a miss i think. My recent experience (Merc) has taught me to follow my gut instinct...

Edited by DonsterD on Friday 2nd January 08:41

Edited by DonsterD on Friday 2nd January 08:42