My old man is 73 and deserves a toy. He has sacrificed himself enough for the family and frankly im embarrassed i waited this long to think about this. He owned a 356 way back in the day but had to sell it. I was browsing 2000 ish Boxters and at around $10-15k i dont think he or i can get into trouble. What expenses are highest in a Boxster around that age? What should i be looking for? Any huge reason to get an S or a base model? What else should i ask for besides a ppi and the IMS and clutch?

 

Well, you're aware of the IMS bearing issue and, AFAIK, that's the 800# gorilla for early Boxsters.

Given your dad's age, I'd suggest seeing if he will entertain the idea of a dual clutch (PDK) setup. I believe the first model year to have PDK available was 2008 (987), but surely someone will correct me if I'm wrong. So might be a little bit later (and more $$$) than what you're thinking.

I'm not even 60 yet but every spring when I start driving my Boxster (6MT), my left foot arch is tender for a few days til I get used to working the clutch. Just one more signpost on the road to ruin I guess but has got me thinking that if I ever decide to throw in the towel on my Boxster, I'd consider a sports car with a dual-clutch tranny. Love my 6MT but the way Porsche does PDK is truly magical.

 

Be sure the old man can get into the car ok. That seat is pretty low and unless your dear old Dad is pretty "spry" he may find it a bit of bother to get in and out of the car. Even younger people who are not used to the car's low stance can find it a bit of a struggle to get in and out of the car.

For S vs. base you or your Dad will have to decide. My advice is test drive examples of both cars and then make the decision. I loved my 2002 base car with its 5-speed. I had a chance to drive an S (loaner) shortly after I bought the base and I was half afraid I'd decide I made a mistake -- at the time I just didn't feel the $7K (?) price premium for the S worth it -- and while the S was nice I did not regret my choice of the base. 'course there are a number of S owners who have obviously come to a different conclusion.

Test drive both and decide.

What to look for when shopping a used Boxster? Everything. Allow me to paste this here:

My general advice is to visit the car cold, check the oil level from inside the car, which should only require 5 seconds. (Or use the dipstick.)

In the car start the engine. Be sure all warning lights come on and then go off once the engine has started. Pay particular attention to the CEL. Be sure the A/C is off. You test the A/C later.

Let the engine idle from cold. You want to listen for any signs of ticking/noises or any other signs the engine may not be healthy. A rough idle, backfires, spitting back, anything out of the ordinary.

Get out of the car and walk around the car checking body panel finish, alignment, and gaps. Note the condition of the wheels, looking for any curb rash. Check the tires. Ideally they should be factory sanctioned tires and in good condition. Check the tire date codes to be sure they are not past there replace by date: 6 years. Check the brakes, look at the rotors for signs of damage/excessive wear. A 1mm lip around the rotor outer diameter is a sign of the rotor being worn enough to be replaced.

Check the hood and trunk hinges for any signs the fasteners have had wrenches on them. At the front carefully the bolts that hold the fenders to the chassis/tub and check the fasteners at the top of the struts for any sign of wrenching.

Look inside the radiator ducts. If full of trash budget for a bumper removal and a trash clean out. The trash won't affect cooling but can lead to corrosion of the condenser and radiator.

After some few minutes -- the longer the better -- of the engine idling and with the engine still running ok and sounding ok have the seller take you on a test ride. The route should be around 15 miles long and chosen to give the driver a chance to demo the car as you intend to use it. What is wanted is a mix of city driving with stop and go, steady moderate speed cruising on like a boulevard, and some highway/freeway driving.

If equipped with an automatic while it is still "cold" have the driver perform an K-turn to see how the transmission responds to repeated and rapid changes in direction.

Ideally there should be some opportunities -- once the engine is up to temperature -- for some rather hard acceleration with the driver starting out from a standstill or a slow roll and accelerating hard up through at least a couple of gears. No need to smoke the tires or try to duplicate the factory's 0 to 60mph time but you want to experience the engine under hard acceleration to verify it pulls good, runs right, and afterwards shows no ill effects from the hard acceleration.

While a passenger of course pay attention to how the transmission shifts, how the car rides, feels. The car should not want to pull to one side or the other and the hard acceleration should give the driver a chance to perform a hard braking. No tire lock up but you want to verify the brakes have plenty of bite and the car tracks straight under hard braking.

With the automatic transmission up to temperature, or at least warmer -- have the driver do the K-turn test again.

After the 15 mile test ride then back at the starting point -- leaving the engine running -- get behind the wheel and drive the car over the same 15 mile test route and drive it pretty much the same way although since the car is unknown to you you can dial back on the hard acceleration test. You don't want to let the car get away from you and wrap it around a telephone pole.

The long idle after cold start, the 15 mile test ride followed by the 15 mile test drive should have the engine running for an hour. This is important for several reasons. A leak from a hot engine/drive train/cooling system is more likely to be active when everything is hot.

Also the engine run time gives the engine controller time to run through its readiness monitor tests and to get through these without turning on the CEL or logging a pending error code is important. BTW with a proper OBD2 tool you can check these are set to complete and there are no pending codes if they aren't.

After your 15 mile test drive then at the starting point if you still like the car confirm all systems work. From the head lights to the tail lights. From the horn to the back up camera (if fitted). The A/C. Check all the controls. The wipers. Manually operate the spoiler. Operate the top. Check everything.

Best if you can show up able to remove the Torx fasteners that secure the plastic covers on either side of the battery so you can remove these covers and check for any signs of water backing up in the front body water drains.

When you check the top as you open the top when the clam shell gets as elevated as it can be stop and get out and check the rear body water drains. There is one located on either side of the top under the clam shell arm.

Check the door bottoms for any signs of dampness. If damp this is a sign the door membrane is bad and should be replaced. (If one bad both should be replaced.)

While you are checking for dampness check under both seats for any signs of moisture. A water drain overflow, a leaking door membrane, a leaking top, a leaking weather strip seal can let water in the cabin and the security module is on the cabin floor under I think the driver's seat. So if you detect any signs of moisture my advice is to walk away from the car.

At this point if you still like the car and believe you can buy it for a good price -- based on your market research -- it is good idea to arrange to have the car given a pre-purchase inspection (PPI) by a tech who is qualified to evaluate the car. A Porsche dealer tech can be used. These guys evaluate trade ins all the time.

This gets the car in the air so a check can be made for any leak sign. At the same time a check can be made for any signs of damage or damage repair.

The idle time, test ride followed by a test drive give you an opportunity to really experience the car in its natural state: engine running and on the road. All cars generally look good on the lot. But it is how they look and run and feel and sound and smell on the road, or after being on the road, that really matters.

Unless the seller can supply paper work the services are current make a ist of services "due" and budget for various services: oil/filter, brake fluid flush/bleed (due every 2 years), plugs maybe, transmission/diff fluid change, maybe even a drain and refill of the cooling system. (This every 4 years or so really helps preserve the water pump seals and hoses.)

Tires should be factory sanctioned tires and in good condition. If tires are worn unevenly budget for new tires and an alignment assuming wear is not severe enough to suspect the car's bent. In this case you don't want an alignment you want to walk away from the car.

My 2002 went 317K miles on its original clutch. Now I admit the last drive after I had been away from the car 30 days the effort needed to work the clutch pedal clearly indicated that while the clutch was not slipping or really manifesting any issues the clutch was worn out.

Also, with my 2002 I never bothered to replace the IMSB. The car racked up 317K miles on the original IMSB. This of course is no guarantee the car you look and buy will have the same luck. My preference would be to get a car that has not had the IMSB addressed then have this done after you buy the car, if you believe this worth doing. My thinking is if you have this done you can pick the best IMSB "solution" based on your research and then pick where the work is done and what is done and have some feeling the job was done right. Had I kept my car I would have had the clutch done at the dealer service department and probably just for curiosity's sake had the Porsche replacement IMSB installed.

Remember these things: Price is not fact only an opinion. And there is always another car. If you find something seriously negative about this car don't feel you have to buy it. There is another car out there you'll like just as much if not more than this one and it won't have any negatives.

 

If you can afford it, look for a 987.2 base model (2009+). They are much more reliable and have enough power to drive like a Porsche. I saw one on Rennlist for slightly over $15K.

 

great info thx guys

 

I'd second the 987.2 - more reliable and the first year PDK was available. Your dad will appreciate PDK. Base or S. I'm base and find it quite satisfactory. It's not a drag race car - it's all about going around corners very quickly. It does that to perfection.

BTW - I'm 73 and slightly rotund - and I can't say I'm graceful getting in and out of the car, but I can do it without looking like a damn fool. Took a day or so to work out the technique.

 

found a 2011 base with 42k miles ....the big reveal to dad is today

 

and? he loved it?

 

oh yea....almost had a stroke......could have been bad

 

I join the others re the 987.2 with a PDK. Bought a 2009 S with a PDK for my brother-in-law (his money) I did the search, located, bought, picked it up in CO and drove it back to CA, detailed it and delivered it to him. The '09 is the sweet spot in the line up and you rarely find them in the classifieds. Great car with a great transmission. You get the LED lighting and the newly designed direct-injection engine with no IMS issues. Well worth the money.

 

Dad loves it. It brightens his day every time he takes a drive. He’s 73 so the S might have been too fast and might get him into trouble. The base version is plenty fast, very light, and handles great. Almost like my CLK 63BS. Well not that good.