[RomulusMD]

Hi - my first post here .

I'm looking to buy a 981 Boxster coming from a 2001 Z3 3.0... I like the Z3 but am looking for more refinement. Honestly, I think the Z3 has more low end torque but the Boxster is a hoot. I have found two cars that I'm considering:

2013 Boxster (July 2012 production), black with tan interior, 28000 miles with premium package (14 way seats, heated and cooled)
2014 Boxster (August 2013 production), guards red with black interior, 34000 miles with infotainment, convenience, and 19" S wheels

there's another contender - 2013 Boxster (March 2013 production), agate gray (my favorite color) with black interior, 26000 miles, sport design steering wheel, no other options

They are all the same price, 2014 is 1,000 more... all non-porsche dealers, the 2014 has warranty until September. I typically like the dark grays in a car and am afraid that arrest me red is gonna be too loud. The car will be a secondary car as I have a small SUV for regular driving, even though I'm planning to use the boxster for every single day with sunshine in New England. The black one is the only one that will be in my area, the other ones I'll have to go get.

I'd like to hear some opinions from long term owners - what would you get and why - what are your perceived pluses and minuses. I'm tempted by the 2014 because I think it would have a higher resale value down the road.

 

[OttawaSteve]

You didn't mention transmissions, which will be important to many. All they all manual?

I am obviously partial to the red, but that is entirely subjective. Since they are all non-Porsche dealers, you won't be getting a CPO car. A pre-purchase inspection would be very important, especially with a manual. I would use someone familiar with Porsches and who has the equipment to read the overrev report. Explained here:

http://www.planet-9.com/faq.php?faq=techdata#faq_overrev

and there are a number of threads on P9 concerning overrev issues.

 

[Noah Fect]

I'm tempted by the 2014 because I think it would have a higher resale value down the road.

Sure, but by buying the 2013 for a lower price, you'll get that benefit now instead of when you sell.

There are essentially no differences between the 2013 and 2014 model years. I think they got rid of the umbrella storage compartment to the right of the passenger seat in 2014, and added one or two minor options. All other things being equal I'd suggest going with the 2013.

 

[subshooter]

They added rev matching for 2014s if you have a manual and sport chrono.

 

[RomulusMD]

Thank you for the great answer. They are all manual. The price difference is only 1000 but the miles is 8000 - that's practically 1-2 years of driving for me. Difficult choice... The black one is a carmax car and they are transferring it down for free for me to take a look. The red is a small dealer 3 hours away... but again has 34-35K miles basically... it's such a funny game... basically if I add a couple thousand, I could get a 2015 low miles with no options... Options confuse the whole picture. And it's so easy to be like another thousand another thousand...

 

[blacksea]

Hi - my first post here .

I'm looking to buy a 981 Boxster coming from a 2001 Z3 3.0... I like the Z3 but am looking for more refinement. Honestly, I think the Z3 has more low end torque but the Boxster is a hoot. I have found two cars that I'm considering:

2013 Boxster (July 2012 production), black with tan interior, 28000 miles with premium package (14 way seats, heated and cooled)
2014 Boxster (August 2013 production), guards red with black interior, 34000 miles with infotainment, convenience, and 19" S wheels

there's another contender - 2013 Boxster (March 2013 production), agate gray (my favorite color) with black interior, 26000 miles, sport design steering wheel, no other options

They are all the same price, 2014 is 1,000 more... all non-porsche dealers, the 2014 has warranty until September. I typically like the dark grays in a car and am afraid that arrest me red is gonna be too loud. The car will be a secondary car as I have a small SUV for regular driving, even though I'm planning to use the boxster for every single day with sunshine in New England. The black one is the only one that will be in my area, the other ones I'll have to go get.

I'd like to hear some opinions from long term owners - what would you get and why - what are your perceived pluses and minuses. I'm tempted by the 2014 because I think it would have a higher resale value down the road.

I know i'm going to get hammered by P9 members. I wouldn't buy a base Boxster or Cayman,

 

[mrg02d]

I'd suggest going for an S model. More power.

 

[RomulusMD]

I know i'm going to get hammered by P9 members. I wouldn't buy a base Boxster or Cayman,

Wait... what? what would you buy instead?

I on purpose did not test drive the S so I'm not disappointed... I have considered it but thought the base gave me enough fun and I can floor the throttle all the time and red line the engine without being too much in a danger zone... I have been arrested before for speeding - not a big deal but the cop freaked out on me at 4am one morning down a small road with nobody else on it - but that was over 10 years ago and no tickets since. I considered a Z51 with the removal roof and that is faster but was not too impressed.

I think I am of the philosophy that I'd rather drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow... Not sure - perhaps I should go and test drive an S...

 

[PRNDL]

Hi - my first post here .
I have found two cars that I'm considering:

I recently purchased my first Porsche; a 2013 Boxster S, PDK, Sport Chrono, PASM, through CarMax. My experience with them was very positive. I also purchased their service contract for 5 yr/100K miles, and I'm glad I did. After owning this car for a couple of months now, I realize that it is *EXTREMELY* complex, particularly the electronics. If anything craps out, you can expect to spend a small fortune fixing it. Also, CarMax allows you to return the car for a full refund within 5 days no questions asked, so I was able to have a PPI done to sus out any issues (there were none) with no down side. CarMax also seems to undervalue Porsches' options list, relative to Porsche own CPO cars. Options like Sport Chrono, fancy seats, Nav, PASM, etc, etc, don't bump the price as much so, if you can afford it, they are a good value. For what Porsche was showing on their CPO list for a base car with Manual, I got an S with all the fixin's with perhaps 10K more miles for the same price. And a service warranty.

I don't regret spending the extra for the Boxster S. I was looking for about a year before the perfect one popped up and I, too, had CarMax transport it to my local store, Just know that, after you test drive it, you have to buy it on the spot or it goes back into their online inventory immediately.

 

[swessels]

2013 Sports Chrono and manual transmission does not do rev-matching. Option added in 2014 model.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[mrg02d]

The extra power comes in handy when needing to pass. The base will still get you into plenty of trouble

You just need to learn how to back off when the car wants to keep going, which the base will also do.

I bought a 2013 as well. The advantage to newer ones is just warranty length, in my opinion. My 2013 Boxster S was a cpo, so it's got two years to work out any issues.

While it's true that these can cost a fortune to fix, they shouldn't need fixing all that often. Just keep it well maintained.

 

[OttawaSteve]

Wait... what? what would you buy instead?

I on purpose did not test drive the S so I'm not disappointed... I have considered it but thought the base gave me enough fun and I can floor the throttle all the time and red line the engine without being too much in a danger zone... I have been arrested before for speeding - not a big deal but the cop freaked out on me at 4am one morning down a small road with nobody else on it - but that was over 10 years ago and no tickets since. I considered a Z51 with the removal roof and that is faster but was not too impressed.

I think I am of the philosophy that I'd rather drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow... Not sure - perhaps I should go and test drive an S...

It's personal preference, but your logic is sound. I have an S, not through preference but because when I bought there were no allocations left and I took an existing car. I love the car and the power, but I think that my original wish for a Base was the correct choice, for exactly the reasons you have mentioned. Its a joy to take this car and a back road and wind it out to 6-7,000 RPM, but the joy is lessened when you realize that your are going fast enough to go to jail, and you are only in 4th gear. If I tracked regularly I would want an S/PDK, but for street fun I would get a Base/6M.

 

[takeshi]

I'd like to hear some opinions from long term owners - what would you get and why - what are your perceived pluses and minuses.

You can collect opnions but it's really up to you to sort out your priorities to select the right car. Heated and ventilated seats were on my must have list. If they're not on yours then what I'd get won't be relevant to you.

If you still just want to look at opinions then don't overlook the Configurations & Ordering subforum. Thee are a lot of existing discussions on options.

Options confuse the whole picture. And it's so easy to be like another thousand another thousand...

Of course if you're considering every possibility. Sort out your "must have"s versus "nice to have"s versus "don't need/want". Then shop around.

 

[mrg02d]

The S can still run at high rpm without going to jail...Just keep a lighter foot. I pull over to manual mode in my pdk S and run it in high rpm without going way over the limit. I just feather the throttle in that mode.

The S isn't THAT much faster, just another 50hp. The S still sounds fantastic at lower rpms.

As for options, id probably have liked to have PSE to better enjoy the sound at lower rpms.

Another I wished I had was PASM. These cars are really rigid and super annoying going over bumpy surfaces.

Sports Chrono would have been fun in the beginning, but gotten old by now. These cars are pretty intense when you let them be.

I went for creature comforts over track ready ones. While a sports car, it has been very comfortable as a DD and road trips.

 

[T-Design]

Get a newer car of course. Esp if you don't plan to put too many miles - 6K miles difference is negligible. It's always good to have longer warranty!

 

[T-Design]

I think I am of the philosophy that I'd rather drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow... Not sure - perhaps I should go and test drive an S...

That's not exactly the case here. Both base and S 981 are pretty slow by modern standards for premium sports cars. Even some minivans have more power these days.

The way I see it - base is slow and S is somewhat adequate. No more than that. But if you liked the base - get what you want.

 

[OttawaSteve]

The S can still run at high rpm without going to jail...Just keep a lighter foot. I pull over to manual mode in my pdk S and run it in high rpm without going way over the limit. I just feather the throttle in that mode.

The S isn't THAT much faster, just another 50hp. The S still sounds fantastic at lower rpms.

As for options, id probably have liked to have PSE to better enjoy the sound at lower rpms.

Another I wished I had was PASM. These cars are really rigid and super annoying going over bumpy surfaces.

Sports Chrono would have been fun in the beginning, but gotten old by now. These cars are pretty intense when you let them be.

I went for creature comforts over track ready ones. While a sports car, it has been very comfortable as a DD and road trips.

To each his own. I find cruising along at high RPM like nails on a blackboard. What I like is powering out of corners and punching it hard, which gets you in potential legal trouble much faster in an S. Unless you are on a track.

 

[RickH]

The milage difference, 26K to 34K, is insignificant. So buy the newest car you can afford. Remember your still on the steep end of the depreciation curve, also the warranty is worth everything. i.e. many after market warrantees, if you decide you want one, will only be sold if the car is currently still under warrantee. I know because I've been there! As to S vs non-S. If the cars have manual transmission then I think you will be perfectly happy with the standard car. You'll have to keep the revs a bit higher than you did in the Z3 but the engine is so smooth you won't mind a bit. If on the other hand it is a PDK then I strongly recommend you go for the S. The standard car with the PDK is just not very fun. IMHO. Good luck.

 

[RADONCulous]

The milage difference, 26K to 34K, is insignificant. So buy the newest car you can afford. Remember your still on the steep end of the depreciation curve, also the warranty is worth everything. i.e. many after market warrantees, if you decide you want one, will only be sold if the car is currently still under warrantee. I know because I've been there! As to S vs non-S. If the cars have manual transmission then I think you will be perfectly happy with the standard car. You'll have to keep the revs a bit higher than you did in the Z3 but the engine is so smooth you won't mind a bit. If on the other hand it is a PDK then I strongly recommend you go for the S. The standard car with the PDK is just not very fun. IMHO. Good luck.

Agree completely with above.

 

[RomulusMD]

Thank you for all the great responses. I have been looking but the similar S models are closer to 50 which is 10K more than a standard model. That is about 30% more at this price range and despite the theoretical advantage, the standard suspension is reportedly more pliable for daily driving and I did not feel that regular cruising was a problem in the standard as the RPM in 6th gear were quite reasonable. It's not my Mercedes SUV but way quieter and more livable compared to my current Z3. Still shopping around