im afraid of big bills

Stoddy said:

I reckon that's an impossible question with all due respect.
I'd suggest setting yourself a budget, looking at the cars within that budget, whittling it down to the ones with the best service history and condition, then entering a service plan with your local indie.
Will it be a daily driver, weekend warrior, monthly moocher etc, long, short journeys, track? Tours. Motorways?
It's about minimising risk really, there's always a risk but if you research and ask loads of questions on here, you'll reduce that risk.
Some people put a little aside each month for exactly that reason too, so also worth considering.
This lot are awesome for knowledge and opinions!
Good luck!

Merry Christmas!

Stoddy. :thumbs:

Click to expand...

easternjets said:

I bought a Boxster off a member on here, it was a Cat S write off and when I got it home I realised it needed a lot more than the damage fixing.

I replaced the gearbox, clutch and when all that was out I did the IMS as well.

It wasn't cheap to do but I now have a car that is pretty well sorted and barring small items all the major components have been checked or replaced. Boxsters are pretty simple cars and replacement parts are available S/H or new, my gearbox only cost £250, I was also lucky to have a friend who did all the mechanical items for me for a reasonable price.

Most indies will do a PDi for a hundred quid or less, so get one of those done and see what bits your going to need. The only thing I would steer clear of is rusty cars as boxsters seem prone to rotting round the wings.

I now use my car daily and as it has a hard top is easy to live with this time of year.

Click to expand...

stichill99 said:

I ran a 987 2.7 for 5 years between 3 and 8 years old. Apart from routine servicing which I did myself/brother all it needed was a suspension spring and a seal for the timing chain tensioner. A full set of filters was around £50 from Euro Car Parts. I traded the car in for a 993 and the dealer was unconcerned about self servicing as I provided parts receipts.
Now the bad news,I met the dealer 2 years later and he told me that the car had a corroded water pipe/clip and had dumped it's coolant on the motorway but had been out of warranty. I think there is quite a lot of luck when buying cars. My mate has an A4 avant and it has had turbo,dpf ,glow plugs etc etc and has been a total money pit! I tend to think Porsche probably aren't the best buy for those with little kids but I have got away with it so far so why don't you go for it! Get a good ppi done though and the best of luck!

Click to expand...

cheshire911 said:

To be honest, if big bills worry you, I'd steer clear of an old Porsche. A good one at PPI might inspire confidence. Come the first service under your ownership and it might throw up some extra work that will push your bill up.

Rarely is it one thing. Anecdotally they come in pairs or triplets. One year you could face an MOT needing new discs and pads, new tyres and perhaps the brake pipes are shot and need doing or they find the rads and condensers need doing at service on top of the MOT work.

Click to expand...

kurlykris said:

If a possible big bill is a deal breaker for you Jim, then, as above, maybe you should look for another make of sportscar, or go down to the lowest end of the Porsche offerings with a view that if it breaks then just scrap it or part it out to get some money back :grin:

I`ve been running a 2006 Boxster S 987.1 3.2 since 2014 currently on 62K, serviced by myself with top quality consumables and parts. big garage bills so far if not repaired by myself would have been : all new disks and pads £450 (£1000), waterpump £150 (£500), new battery £120 (£180), blown exhaust manifold/cat joint bolts which I paid my local garage £60 to fix on one side, then the other side blew also and I repaired myself.
This year I will have new cats to be fitted as one is below par and throws a check engine light every now and then probably £600, I have a slight weep from a coolant pipe at the front which will need new OEM pipes to be fitted when it gets worse probably £300, I need 2 new rear tyres as the ones on the car are over 6 years old, hard and about on the wear limit £300.

I drive the cars hard and she has done about 10 trackdays since 2017.

My 996 has been about the same cost since 2015.

Hope this gives you an idea of normal wear and tear that you can expect to be shelling out for :thumb:

But, if you get a catastrophic failure such as IMS or bore score then you are looking at £10,000 + to fix it properly :sad:

This is what I tell anyone that asks when they are thinking of buying an older used watercooled Porsche to leave them in no doubt at the prospect of a massive unexpected garage bill :thumb:

Just as an aside, my last 3 Mercedes daily drivers have dropped me with unexpected bills of around £1500 each over the same period of time :grin:

Click to expand...

Magic919 said:

Boxsters, even the 3.4, don't bore score like the Cayman. I'd look for a later 987 with good history.

Click to expand...

Marky911 said:

I'd say wait a few years. The fear of a bill will always be at the back of your mind.
It will spoil the enjoyment of the car. You can have almost as much fun in something else.

Porsche's are great but you don't want to be living in fear.

Having said all that if it's a weekend car and it breaks you could always just leave it in the garage and sort it gradually. Not a great ownership experience though, having workmates or family asking 'How's the car going?" And you having to say 'Oh it's bust. It'll be fixed in 3 or 4 years time". :grin:

Click to expand...