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1 hour ago, moospeed said:

Yeah, I was speaking with Jon of Jon Seal Sports Cars about his light blue restomod - at the time we were also discussing and comparing against Elise reliability.  He had similar comments about the aspiration vs reality.

They’re surprisingly reliable in my experience - even my Frankenstein 911. The problems, corrosion aside, aren’t really so different to an early 986 (eg tired suspension/interiors and/or previous bodge fixes elsewhere) it’s just that on these sorting one part usually shows that another needs sorting.  Plus the HVAC is shockingly bad. 

On 9/15/2021 at 12:02 PM, moospeed said:

I find a ratty looking air-cooled model quite appealing,

Have had one that meets this description for ages. It’s characterful to say the least - as @K.I.T.T. would probably confirm.

Definitely not a car for the purist with a few tweaks - it goes well, stops hard and handles nicely albeit the extra power means that anything over 6/10ths driving needs proper concentration.

All that said they are often a better aspiration than reality - especially corrosion - I got lucky with mine.

Heresey Incoming: I’d keep the heavily used Boxster over the 1982 911 Hotrod.

Reckon @RBD914 has pretty much sorted the ideal modern garage setup.

Would help folk respond if you add a link to the specific product.

Do that and I’m sure you’ll see some solid feedback based on real world experience 👍

Michelin Cup Sport2 or Toyo R888R?

22 minutes ago, Boxob said:

Buy original. It's one part that is a false economy to buy aftermarket.

This. 100%. 

@deanmr2 - do you know if your car had a replacement engine?

My UK car (986s manual 2002 chassis) has one cat per bank. Just like @edc’s 

My car has never had a cat on/near the manifold.

Three systems have been fitted to my car - Factory, CarGraphic and Bespoke. None of them have manifold cats.

I can see what the diagram shows - is that for US spec cars I wonder? Or maybe even something for a Tip version 🤔

…

My original text basically repeated the above. 

As well as any bulb upgrade it’s definitely worth making sure the headlamp covers are absolutely crystal clear - as opposed to just clean. Followed by making sure they were correctly aligned at a friendly MOT place. 
Went through the poor light output loop on my 986 (factory Xenon) and the biggest gain/£ came from refurbishing/polishing the headlamp covers. 
There are loads of “from this to this” type how to headlamp restoration guides on YouTube. 

Good stuff - well done.

2 hours ago, SilverBud said:

- the objective is ascertain the NOx levels of my ‘98 box and if they are less than 0.8 I stand a fighting chance of converting this situation in my favour …  

If the NOx levels are below 0.8 then there’s no question of the situation being in your favour. 
 

It’s alright here isn’t it?

Are you topping up or completely changing the fluid?

In terms of how you use the car is it road only or some track time?

35 minutes ago, Boxsum said:

I just had a read about how much was shared between the 986/996. I can see why 996 owners were quite disappointed. 

Not half as disappointed as they would have been having a 996 without the parts that 986 volumes provided to make the 996 viable 😂

🤔 Front half of the chassis, front suspension, electronics, engines and interior trim to name the high level BoM groups. 

29 minutes ago, markjh said:

Agreed a deal with @Porsche driver that suited both of us so 17 years after it left the Boxster is back, along side it's older, air cooled sibling. 

Great story and it looks like you’ve parked it in the same place as your OP image of 2 years ago which was presumably taken 15 years earlier. 

3 hours ago, Elmer Fudd said:

Ok, so I drove down to Bexley heath to Sanspeed to have my remap done 😁 A few hours later Martin came out and said "That went better than expected! With just the bolt- ons  you did that brought the BHP up to 244 and now after the remap it's 260! Not bad for a 2.7 boxster"

So as you can imagine I'm rather pleased 😁 Here's the graph .......

What a great result - really pleased for you.

Having ridden shotgun in an extremely well driven 458 on UK roads I would say that they are a massive event, massively quick and need a massive amount of space to be really enjoyed.

I have also experienced some of the Borders roads led by you. 

Reflecting on those two experiences I’d say you will get more absolute pleasure from the Spyder than the 458. 

For a lower capital exposure.

A lower risk of unexpected remedial work.

And at the end of the day if you want ballistic speed you’ve always got motorbikes….

2 hours ago, Photogirl said:

No, never.  I also avoid mud, rain, dust, and too much direct sunlight. If the car gets grubby it gets cleaned and dried to avoid contaminants building up. It's also garaged year round. 

My version of this.....

Yes, always..  I'll also drive it in mud, rain, dust, and direct sunlight. If the car is inadvertently cleaned it gets made grubby again very quickly to avoid a shine from ever building up. It's also left outside all year round. 

Two equally valid approaches to Boxster ownership.

14 minutes ago, the baron said:

I had heard this before about Ti, what's your thoughts on stainless steel, same issue I presume, they are both very hard with little give so tend to snap or shear rather then give a little.

Had been looking at Ti studs/bolts have used it before (and there's some in my engine) but am aware of the risks of buying the wrong alloy and manufacturing process.  Spoke to the guy who has done all the suspension development on my car - he was was clear that I should use steel not Ti or Stainless.

Whatever I end up doing I will probably look at a Ceramic/Cerakote type of finish on the parts.  Who knows I might even go for a colour matched finish to my car body - Road Grime Grey.

35 minutes ago, T911UK said:

Couple of points if I may............................they are bolts!!!!  (not nuts)

Indeed...

35 minutes ago, T911UK said:

The sockets highlighted dont protect the bolt at all, they can protect the inside of the wheel but really do very little.

Thought that when I looked at the links.

6 hours ago, the baron said:

’ve considered these in the past and still might purchase, titanium offer lightness and strength but at a price

https://www.design911shop.com/TITANIUM-Wheel-Bolts-for-Porsche-Boxster-986-996-997--PACK-OF-20-/prod131391/?showtax=true&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIiZOEk7LJ8gIVh-R3Ch3_3wB2EAQYBSABEgIZG_D_BwE

Be very, very careful with Ti parts.  The way they might fail if not correctly specified and manufactured can be quite nasty.

3 hours ago, RBD914 v2 said:

The sound is supposed to improve with miles apparently, so I will see how it goes.

My neighbour has owned his 982 Spyder for a good while now and I think the sound has improved with use.

That said I think it sounded pretty good fresh from the factory - too many exhausts are engineered to sound “sporty” and they just sound fake.

Based on my neighbour’s car the 982 GT/Spyder makes a great noise once they’ve actually had some proper miles put on them…..

Very, very nice. 

Gold wheels with silver body works brilliantly - if you’d described that I’d have been sceptical to say the least. 

This iteration of the Spyder is probably the only Boxster that would tempt me to sell my 986. 

Keep going back to the photos.

Fabulous….!

Before getting into lamp upgrades it’s worth making sure the headlight lenses are as clear as possible (cut/polish) and then as others have said be certain the alignments are spot on. 
 

I went through this loop with my 986 (factory fit Xenon) and there was a significant improvement in light quality and distance. The subsequent installation of new lamps saw another material gain. 

12 minutes ago, the baron said:

Jesus, has that been parked in the sea?

Well it certainly didn’t walk on it….

@999mch what about something like this which would all but disappear?

4 hours ago, JazH said:

And a reminder of where we started:

Looks great 👏