Almost done the deal on my 1st Porsche. Part excited, part scared

[Sputty37]

Hi, thank you for letting me join the group.  For a while now I've been researching the boxster, and finally decided the 987.2 is the one for me. Have now finally found one, and almost done the deal, but am now getting cold feet, as worried it's going to be a money pit. 2010 with 65000 miles and F.S.H

Any ownership advice much appreciated 

Kind regards

Steve

[Menoporsche]

Why would it be a money pit? We have someone here with double that mileage on the same car! They wear their miles really well, not like Italians.

What brand/car(s) are you used to, and do you know how to use spanners?

We're here to help...  Porsche Paranoia is a normal thing. Sometimes it's justified, but not always.

I guess the main thing is replacing suspension components can be fairly pricey (oh, and the damn crossover coolant pipes at the front) IF you want it to handle like a Boxster should. Many buy them and think it handles better than a BMW therefore there's nothing wrong with it.

Private sale or garage? (For comeback).

 

[Nobbie]

You should be fine with that one, 65k isn’t a lot on these. Common expenses on these are the coolant pipes (check history to see if they’ve been done) at about £800, gear cables can snap, about £300 and replacement discs and pads - upto £1k at a main dealer for all round, but much less at an Indy. Checking the MOT history, front discs were mentioned in 2019, so probably got replaced soon after and clean sheets after that. Looks like a good un👍
 

whereabouts are you? might be worth putting in your profile as makes it easier to recommend garages etc.

[Terryg]

No reason it should be a money pit if you have bought sensibly. I have a 987.2 and it hasn't cost me anything between services.  Tyres  work out more than more mundane cars and if you take it to a Porsche dealership for servicing that will cost you, an independent will be cheaper and give you peace of mind, or if you are handy with spanners you can do a lot yourself.

The reason the 987.2 is a good bit more that the 987.1 is that the expensive issues that earlier cars SOMETIMES suffered from were largely eradicated. Having said that I had a 986 before and never had any issues with that either.

[Menoporsche]

41 minutes ago, Sputty37 said:

am now getting cold feet, as worried it's going to be a money pit.

Relax, it's not like we have any members called @moneypit ...

[Jonttt]

It'll be the cheapest car to own that you've ever had 😉

yes you will pay for servicing and maybe some maintenance replacement parts but those will be more than offset by the low depreciation you will see on a 987.2, enjoy the experience.

[Terryg]

3 minutes ago, Jonttt said:

It'll be the cheapest car to own that you've ever had 😉

yes you will pay for servicing and maybe some maintenance replacement parts but those will be more than offset by the low depreciation you will see on a 987.2, enjoy the experience.

Good point that!

[gillbe]

I say go for it.  Mine is very similar to that.  Bought as a single owner full Porsche service history with 86K (70K of which was done in its first 4 years)

Now on 97K, service and repairs costs to date

That includes complete new set of tyres and wheel bolts; replacing a/c condensers and a front to back a/c pipe; replacing all front coolant and crossover pipes; all ARB bushes; front tuning forks; exhaust clamps and bolts; and an interim service at CPS inc gear oil replacement, filters and brake fluid.

Am budgeting on a further £3K8 over next 3 years allowing for a  major service and (possibility of) ; clutch and flywheel; front discs and pads; water pump; gear cables.  

 

Car still worth what I paid for it.

Edit:

Have previous owner receipts, averaged £1,155 per year in costs, all at Porsche dealership, over her 8 years of ownership from new.

 

Edited October 24, 2022 by gillbe

[JTBoxster]

As others has said - absolutely no reason for it to be a money pit of its been properly looked after. The 987.2's are fantastic cars - absolutely love mine !  

[Boxer boy]

No money pit quite the opposite.This is because you are past the IMS , RMS , bore scoring issues inherent with the earlier ones 0.2 cars .

You also have better none electric steering than the successor 981 a physically smaller car with a more raw sporty experience.

A wonderful port injected flat 6 , so no bill  worries for a media blast of the fouled inlets on a 981 direct injection .

As others have said just consumables .Which pretty much is proportionate to milage nothing different there to AN Other car .

They are dead easy to spanner on .Eg i did the AC condensers + pipes myself , gear box oil , air filter and recently had a door card off ( inc the inner plate ) chasing down a rattle .

Plenty of help / friendly advice on hear and loadsa info on American ( more DIY due to the geographic issue ) forums .

It helps if you are a bit old school and handy with spanner’s and have facilities at home to be proactive.

 

987.2 pick of the crop don’t let it slip through your fingers .

The only “ downer “is this obsession with 911 s folks develop.You will always be disappointed with a 911 s handling , turn in and chassis balance coming from a  987 Boxster . 
Buts that’s an optional expensive error for later ! 

 

Edited October 24, 2022 by Boxer boy

[Guest]

Sputty, same car is mine.... well, when i bought her anyway............ 155k miles on my clock and she's just starting to loosen up.

Get it bought, enjoy it and don't worry about her... look after and drive a car regularly and she'll look after you.

Oh, and get yourself a sprint booster... brings them alive at lower revs.

 

Good luck.

 

Si.

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Sputty37 said:

Hi, thank you for letting me join the group.  For a while now I've been researching the boxster, and finally decided the 987.2 is the one for me. Have now finally found one, and almost done the deal, but am now getting cold feet, as worried it's going to be a money pit. 2010 with 65000 miles and F.S.H

Any ownership advice much appreciated 

Kind regards

Steve

Steve, mot history looks very good ... 1 fail in 12 years would suggest it's been pretty well looked after.

[Topbox]

Having owned a 987.2 I can confirm it's a good choice. Had mine three years and it was the lowest depreciating car I have owned despite doing 20k in it. Went from 55k to 75k. Did need the cross over pipes done but that was all and some service items. All the same markers of a decent used car apply to a Porsche same as any other car, and, if they are looked after, they tend to be be very well looked after. They need a big service at 12 years mind which is £800-£1000 depending where you go IIRC😃👍

[Sputty37]

Thanks for all the info guys, you've convinced me to go for it.  Will be down the garage tomorrow to get it sorted. I'm not to bad with a set of spanners, so hopefully can sort smaller jobs myself. I'm in Suffolk and there seem several Specialist Porsche places about, appreciate any advice on which ones are best.

Do love German engineering, had BMW's since 2010, currently have a 4 series

Will be 50 at Christmas, so nice little present to myself, although the Mrs will use it mostly haha

[Menoporsche]

Just now, Sputty37 said:

nice little present to myself, although the Mrs will use it mostly

pfff... they all say that to start with...

[Sputty37]

Haha love it

[Sputty37]

Do you think it's a concern that there is no Boxster logo on the boot.  Hopefully just de-badged, will try and find out tomorrow

[Menoporsche]

Debadging is common. Especially when people catch the B with a cleaning cloth, and snap it.

[Sputty37]

Lovely thank you

[entdgc]

2 hours ago, Menoporsche said:

Debadging is common. Especially when people catch the B with a cleaning cloth, and snap it.

Some even choose to do it as it looks much better! ..... IMHO

[Davey P]

41 minutes ago, entdgc said:

Some even choose to do it as it looks much better! ..... IMHO

Yep, I did the de-badge on my previous Boxster, and it looked much better IMHO (The "B" on the badge was already broken when I bought the car):

Getting back to the original post @Sputty37 you are right to be cautious regarding running costs, but please don't be scared.  At the end of the day, it's a car, and they all have moving parts that wear out and need replacing.  It can go wrong, obviously, but that is true whatever you buy.  Also bear in mind, depreciation on a Porsche is insanely low at the moment, plus servicing intervals can be every 2 years instead of yearly, with alternating minor and major services.  If you can DIY, or take it to an independent, the normal servicing costs aren't that bad really.

Good luck, and I hope you get sorted soon mate 

[iborguk]

I thought I recognised this car....someone else asked for comment on it..http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202210040392566?atmobcid=soc3

 

Good money from a dealer currently.

MOT History looks cleanish, wonder if the windscreen hit was sorted ?

Be good to understand what the recent £3k spend was on ?

As it's manual ask for a rev range report re overrevs, gives you a feel for how helpful the dealer will be to deal with.

Ask if the coolant cross-over pipes have been done or what nick they are in , they can be labour expensive to replace.

3rd party stereo.

Looks clean on the surface.....as you spotted rear has been debadged , may just be that but ask if it's been involved in any known accidents or if any bodywork has been done.

@Sputty37 I had a Black 987.2 PDK until fairly recently and I'm very happy to have a chat re what I'd look for if you want to PM me.

I'm no expert but happy to share my experience of owning two 987's if it helps.

Edited October 24, 2022 by iborguk

[backinaporscheagain]

I bought my 987.2 with 90k on the clock. No major issues or bills yet after 4 years of happy motoring.

Agree with Skoosh1970 get a sprint booster fitted

[Sputty37]

Thanks for all the input and advice guys.

Going to see him tomorrow, will let you know the outcome

[moneypit]

10 hours ago, Menoporsche said:

Relax, it's not like we have any members called @moneypit ...

To be fair, I chose that name based on having the same concerns initially as the op. 😳 None of which so far have materialised so far, touch wood.

It's my 3rd, although I only had the other 2 very briefly. I'm six years in with this one, it's been pretty kind to me, and encouraged me to make more effort with it, both as a keeper and as something I can finally trust not to hand me my ar*e on a country road. It's taken a while as I don't get to drive it much, but recently I've had some absolutely fantastic drives in it.

I'd have a 987.2 without any concern if I felt the need to do so, or had any real concerns about the 3.2 being unreliable, but that's very unlikely to happen now given the way I feel about this one.