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Hi I'm a new boxster owner

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xenon2000

New member

[attachment=image.jpeg]Hi all,
hi this is my first post on here, and just wanted to say hi
this is a picture or my first Porsche,
its a 1999,2.5ltr,manual, less than 84k the clock, I'm the 12 owner.
i have had it 2 months
sadly I did it all wrong when I brought it, I broke all the rules, but at the time I did not know.
my name is les and I'm 52,
car last service in the book was at 72k, I payed just a little over 3k for it.
engine sounds grate no rattles, and pulls like a train.
it had led rear lights when I got it that were not working correctly, Evern though it has just passed an mot, did not spot this till I got it home, but I have replaced them with original rear lights lucky for me cost me less that £100, then I found out rear brakes not working as they should, now has new pads and discs on the rear now working correctly not got todo the fronts but I did know about the front brakes., has exhaust rattle found this to be the heat shields, easy fix, so no rattle,, it looks like it was serviced before I got it as oil was clean, but not sure, it needs two front tyres as there on legal limit, as for roof it's fully working but needs a little work as the stitching has come away on one side, I got the needles and correct thread to sort this, I just need time and nice weather

i do find the food brake rock hard, very little travail, not sure if this is right, but once I fit new front disc and pads. I'll bleed the hole system and ajust Hand brake.

not sure if I waisted my money or not, im still panaking over it all.

any comments welcome

 
Hi Les,

At around £3k and 84k miles it was probably worth a punt and it sounds as though you've been able to fix the main items yourself at minimal cost - even at Porsche prices..!

Replace the front tyres, fix the front brakes and the roof and you should have a nice runner. You don't mention when the last service was performed but I'd be inclined to change the oil and filter to be on the safe side.

Hopefully there are no oil leaks around the bellhousing (RMS) and that the clutch is biting well without slipping. Check that you're not losing coolant and that the a/c is working satisfactorily as the coolant and a/c condenser rads are very vulnerable up front.

With 11 previous owners it's impossible to tell how well the car has been treated in the past 19-years unless there's a comprehensive documented service history. It just needs a bit of TLC.

Good luck..!

Jeff



 
Hi Jeff
thanks for the reply, last recorded oil change was some time ago, but the oil looked as though it had been recently changed, I think last owner had it serviced, but I have no record of it, but I know alternator and battery was changed last year, and a tensioner was changed beginning of this year, so it looks as though it's been looked after to some degree
Service record I have is a follows
6647 miles 2000
13199 miles 2001
22649 miles 2002
25966 miles 2004
31483 miles 2005
43248 miles 2006
55319 miles 2007
69240 miles last service 2013

not a very good history, but I do have two keys and the leather wallet with all the books
and an hpi record showing all the private number plates it has had,
it came with the one that's on it now, and when I sell it it will go with the car.

yes i I will do what work I can myself, this will not affect how much it's worth, due to a lack of service record,

as for oil leaks I can't see any oil on the ground after I have driven the car, as for coolant I have not seen a loss in level.

i was planning on doing an oil and filter change, but at the moment money is a problem, but as I got it locked up in a garage and it's not my everyday car it will have to Waite

i have looked at the at the bell housing and sadly it looks like there is oil on the bottom of it, but it's not dripping on the floor , looks like oil that's been there sometime with dirt in it.

as for clutch that seams to be ok. No slippage that I have noticed,

aircon on is fully working, when I press the button you can hear the engine load up.
I have noticed the car has no rust.
but it to be honest, after reading everything about it on here I feel like selling it, all the joy of owning it has gone, all I do is panic about it now, I wish I had never brought it.

i don't know how long I'll keep it, but I know it won't be long, as all the fun has gone, some of it is due to the chat about barings and seals, rads, and things and cost of keeping it up.

regards

leslie


 
Hello Les, and a warm welcome to a very very good forum!

I have a Boxster, my first, a 987.2, and have been through a few wars, and this is nothing unusual imho.

Reading the 'net about these car will definitely tend to spoil the relationship with the car, so stop doing that!
You are working your way through the car and once some of these big item are fixed, you should simply relax.

It looks to be a sound car, needs some TLC and some cash, but all the work only enhances it's re-sale value, and at 3K ish for an early 2.5 you are well placed for a nice classic car very soon!
These cars are strong, only made weak by poor maintenance just like any other car. I think the early 2.5's will become collectable very soon, just keep it standard and get it clean and working and presentable.

Your 2.5 was cheaper than many MX5's!
Make a list of things that people expect to be correct on any Porsche, esp a Boxster:

Good overall condition, paint, seats carpets etc
Full MoT
Service to schedule even if the past is sketchy, get it back on track.
Check the RMS crank oil seal for leaking at the gearbox, take pictures to prove the condition.
Fix the brakes. The brake feel should be progressive with nice travel and when pushed STOP well. At first Boxster brake seem weak, so use them hard and your opinion will change.
Good quality tyres, standard size for the wheels, same make/rating all round.
Everything works. The A/C as already said is a know weak point. I've just done mine following advice off this forum for £145 all in, DIY. To be able to say this has been done will add to the value no end.

Finally, use the car. The car is made for good drives, difficult in the UK (we all know), but get some exciting rewarding miles under your belt, go to Scotland!
You will get enthused, and if you sell you will sound enthused too! You will probably talk yourself out of selling it...

Hope this helps. I've been down the path you are walking, leave the dooms on the 'net and get your car straight.




 
Hi
the brakes on this car are rock hard very little travel, and it stops very quickly when pressed hard,
i don't know why the pedal has so little travel, it looks like master cylinder is brand new and the vac line to the engine is brand new too, I have checked the booster and that's working as it should,
the brakes do not feel weak at all, but I do know front discs and pads need changing, I have the parts todo the job all I need is time and I don't have much of that these days.

 
Some very sound advice from Graham there Les. As he says, don't be put off by the internet doom and gloom merchants. Yes, bad things can and do happen but they're far less common than you might think from reading all the negative comments out there. And remember, it's only the owners who have had problems who tend to complain and there are significantly more who have positive experiences whose voices remain unheard.

Just to pick up on a couple of points: If the oil is just misting around the bellhousing joint, popular wisdom (including the Porsche centres) says that there isn't a problem and best left alone. The brakes are lightly servo assisted in comparison with more modern cars and require a firm push, but they should pull the speed down effectively. Porsche brakes are top-notch.

The car looks tidy from your pics and is probably worthy of time and effort and some cash to get it sorted fully. You just have to remember that although you picked it up at a low price, Porsche parts are relatively expensive (it was an expensive car to buy back in 1999) even at OEM prices and it will be more expensive to run than a Ford Fiesta.

Jeff
 
Hi
thanks for the advice, i do know it will cost a lot more to run, I have had a 1989 ( f plate )2.9ltr 4x4 searra, and 1989 (g plate) turbo mk 3 supra , these are not cheap cars,

but it I have never felt like this about any car I have owned, I can't explain it

parts for the boxster have not been too bad on the cost front at the moment, but I do know the clutch and exhaust are expensive to replace when needed.

i have been thinking about selling it over the last 4 weeks, due to the negative feelings I have and not haveing much time to drive or give the car some tlc .

If im lucky I get to the garage once a week,

i found I could not get car out this week, as someone has parked the car across the garage,
i have been onto the peaple I rent the garage from, to get this sorted, but I don't know how long this is going to take, this only makes the things worse.


les
 
hi

well I'm still working on the access problem with the garage rental company.

i put a polite note on the car that was blocking me in, and they have not parked there again so fare,

the rental companie are putting no parking signs up this week, so they can start to fine peaple that park there.

i have looked at another garage near by, too see if it was worth moveing too (same rental company),
but found that had Evern a bigger access problem, so for the time being its a work in progress job.

i hope I can get this sorted easily.
 
Hi Les.
Welcome. I started with a 2000 2.7 Boxster similar to yours and loved it , now have a 987 RS60 Spyder . My 986 has had two owners since I sold it and I know both of the owners and the car is a pleasure to drive.

Enjoy.
Ian.
 
Les,

I have owned three 986 Boxster the first in 1999 so the same as yours. It cost around £40k back in 1999. I had around 16 years of ownership, trouble free except for one thing. Your version was bomb proof at the time. Lovely engine, really flies along. The chassis could take more power so hence the S version and then the 2.7 litre engine along the way.

Looking at the replies the one thing I would comment on that failed for me and is a well documented issue is the radiator reservoir that is located in the boot. The plastic bottle fails over time. The pressurised system takes it toil on the plastic. The tell tail indication is if the plastic looks milky in colour. It should be clear. If its milky then likely to fail. The bottle from memory went through three versions on the 986 and the last was an update in 2005/6. Bottle is not expensive but is full days work to replace at the garage.

Cheers
Adrian


 
Hi guys

thanks for all the advice,

still working on on the access problem, got no aprking signes up now, so if I get blocked in they got £100 fine for every day there parked blocking me in.

replaced back brakes , discs and pads, went todo the front, but found a caliper bolt that holds it on, won't undo, I suspect it will snap , so I just put new pads on front for the time being, might give this to a garage todo.

had two front tyres and tracking done ( I did not put expensive tyres on it as I need to keep cost down until I got all the jobs sorted ) but car brakes are now as they should be and not rock hard, but progressive as you guys have told me they should be,
still got to get it serviced before the summer, as car not being used much now.
roof still needs looking at, I'll try and stitch up when I get time, if not I'll have to get it replaced.

hope it passed its its first mot that I put it through, as I suspect the last mot was not done correctly, but I can't prove this.

anyway
happy chrismas and new year to you all.
 
Hi guys
well this is an update for you.
got the access sorted, but have sold the car, it was going to be a money pit.
i got some things sorted but then other things started to go wrong,
i sold it to Wbac , I did not get much for it, but I could not have sold it to a private person, I could not be dishonest like the person that sold it to me, will I get another one, no.

thanks for you support
 
I think we are all sad to read this.
Budget Boxster or any special car is a risk, but glad you are resolved.

good luck for future adventures if you read this.
Graham.
 
Tottaly agree with Grahams comments above sad to hear but fact is. Budget performance cars any cars to be fair of a certain age and budget are going to require a refresh which can often be more than the cars worth.
A well cared for loved one with money lavished upon it is a better bet but will be reflected in the price.
A performance car needs specialist care in my opinion .
Old saying goes no such thing as a good cheap Porsche often cheap for a reason.
Only advice to any potential buyer of a Porsche is get it checked over buy either PC or a good Porsche Indy can save lots of heartache and money.
Good luck in the future.
 
Hi guys

i agree with your comments, I should have spent more on buying the car, but I did learn a lot, I liked the car a lot, it was fun for the 150miles I drove it.

Update on on the car it was on British car auctions website, blackbush,
but have found it on fleebay, being sold by carwithnoserverreading, yes it's in reading auction company, item number 283360078990

its got too 2k

problems I know off
needs new roof
wheel bearing drivers side needs replaceing,
clutch slipps if pushed hard,
exhaust will need doing very soon yes the hole thing,
it needs a service, and water pump needs replaceing, and the bonnet needs repaint.
front passengers side brake calliper bolt
is cross threaded, so might need new hub,

and all the suspension is rusty, the suspension crakes , so bushes need doing,
hand brake needs adjusting.

and it's had 12owners, and they have hidden the number plate , it's m8oxr


my advice stay clear.

spend at least 6k and get a good one

i do have a set of brand new front discs, not Oem, and pad wear indicator , good set of used u bends for exhaust and 101 things to do with your boxster, open to offers, PM me
 
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