986 or 987 Boxster S
Discussion
I've been interested in a Boxster S for quite a while now and have been saving a chunk of my payslip each month so that I won't have to finance any of the cost when I eventually come to buy.
The only thing that I'm unsure of now is 986 or 987.
£10,000-£12,000 or so seems to be able to get me a great 986 S - usually from 2003/2004, with low mileage and a FSH. £14,000-£16,000 seems to net me a 987 S with double the mileage, FSH and only a year or 2 newer.
Is the 987 really worth the premium price? It looks a lot nicer IMO, the interior definietly holds up better, it has a little bit more power but thats it really. Is it really worth that extra £4,000+?
I'm stuck really - I want the 987, but it means I'd need to save for another 12 months, whereas I could potentially pick up a 986 early next year..
What are the other differences between the 2 - and what would you do?
The only thing that I'm unsure of now is 986 or 987.
£10,000-£12,000 or so seems to be able to get me a great 986 S - usually from 2003/2004, with low mileage and a FSH. £14,000-£16,000 seems to net me a 987 S with double the mileage, FSH and only a year or 2 newer.
Is the 987 really worth the premium price? It looks a lot nicer IMO, the interior definietly holds up better, it has a little bit more power but thats it really. Is it really worth that extra £4,000+?
I'm stuck really - I want the 987, but it means I'd need to save for another 12 months, whereas I could potentially pick up a 986 early next year..
What are the other differences between the 2 - and what would you do?
I went for a 987s so I can't offer any insight into the 986.
All I can do is recommend the 987 as IHMO it has a more modern cabin, but also has a timeless design (no fried egg headlights make a huge difference to me). I picked up a high spec 3.4. It's a fantastic car, great performance and oozes confidence when pushing.
The 986 is affected by IMS bearing failures and the 987 (3.4) is affected by bore score.. My only experience of this is the scare mongering threads on the net.
What I can say is this is the first time fuel consumption has played on my mind.. Driven harder your under 20mpg. Tyre wear on the rear is approx .5mm per 1000 miles mixed driving (pair done in around 8000 miles) and the VED (tax) is stupid on the 3.4 at £490 ish PA.
But, I love my Porsche experience.. I have no intention to letting this car go... It's in really great condition, goes really well and has some great options fitted at factory. Loved every moment of ownership and Sunday morning hoons have never been better
A pic to whet the appetite
All I can do is recommend the 987 as IHMO it has a more modern cabin, but also has a timeless design (no fried egg headlights make a huge difference to me). I picked up a high spec 3.4. It's a fantastic car, great performance and oozes confidence when pushing.
The 986 is affected by IMS bearing failures and the 987 (3.4) is affected by bore score.. My only experience of this is the scare mongering threads on the net.
What I can say is this is the first time fuel consumption has played on my mind.. Driven harder your under 20mpg. Tyre wear on the rear is approx .5mm per 1000 miles mixed driving (pair done in around 8000 miles) and the VED (tax) is stupid on the 3.4 at £490 ish PA.
But, I love my Porsche experience.. I have no intention to letting this car go... It's in really great condition, goes really well and has some great options fitted at factory. Loved every moment of ownership and Sunday morning hoons have never been better
A pic to whet the appetite
Edited by petej on Friday 28th November 20:07
£10-12k is way too much to pay for a 986S. I would aim for as good a car as you can get for under £9k and spend a little on renewing some of the 10 year old mechanicals. If you want this as your every day car then maybe a 987 may be better. Bit more comfort, bit more space, bit more refinement.
Cheers for the insight.
The IMS issues don't scare me - my dad had 2 996's and never had an issue and noone I know who owned one had the problem either!
I don't mind the fried egg lights - but the 987 does look undeniably fresher and obviously that interior is much newer.
As for the running costs - it will actually save me money to own (I run two rotaries and would be selling them for the Boxster).
Sunday morning hoons are all I think about when I look at them - early on a sunny Sunday morning as the sun rises and the air is crisp, top down on a lovely drive...
I did test drive one and enjoyed it...
Yours is lovely. Just need to decide - early next year or early 2016! If only I earnt more!
The IMS issues don't scare me - my dad had 2 996's and never had an issue and noone I know who owned one had the problem either!
I don't mind the fried egg lights - but the 987 does look undeniably fresher and obviously that interior is much newer.
As for the running costs - it will actually save me money to own (I run two rotaries and would be selling them for the Boxster).
Sunday morning hoons are all I think about when I look at them - early on a sunny Sunday morning as the sun rises and the air is crisp, top down on a lovely drive...
I did test drive one and enjoyed it...
Yours is lovely. Just need to decide - early next year or early 2016! If only I earnt more!
edc said:
£10-12k is way too much to pay for a 986S. I would aim for as good a car as you can get for under £9k and spend a little on renewing some of the 10 year old mechanicals. If you want this as your every day car then maybe a 987 may be better. Bit more comfort, bit more space, bit more refinement.
It would be a daily. I'm one of those idiots who is obsessed with mileage - which tends to be pretty high on 986's under the £10k mark.
What sort of things would need reneweing on this (admittedly I've done next to know research on the Boxster itself - I test drove one and that's all)?
I would look for a nice low mileage 2005 or pre March 2006 3.2 987 if it has to be the 'S' then potentially get the IMS bearing changed. Alternatively you could get a late 2006-2008 2.7 the later ones being 245bhp with no IMS issues and believed to be the safest engine option. Both these cars fall into the cheaper tax band, £280 ish rather than £490. Some people think this tax thing is not important but I think when the cars reach this value it does matter as paying almost £500 before you even think of servicing and insurance is a pain.
Well actually I am on my seventh Porsche and from my experience of buying and selling them and frequenting forums like this 911uk and boxa.net a lot of Boxster/ Cayman and older 911 buyers buying cars for 20k ish ARE bothered about things like road tax bands avoiding the £480 cars. Look how many adverts for 996's mention lower tax band rates, like it or not it does matter to some people. I understand fully what you are saying I just know that there are a lot of people that try and avoid the top tax band cars. Why do you think the uk 987.2 3.4 engine has the flat spot??..... it's down to emissions to get the car down to 225 Co2, in other countries its 230 Co2. Why have they done that I wonder??
Rubbish,some folk object too paying 500 quid to allow one to drive on overcrowded and poorly maintained roads,hence when choosing a Boxster I went for a 2005 987 2.7 to avoid the high tax bracket.The car recieves money no object care at a well known specialist and a Porsche definetly IS the car for me
I've had 986, 987, 997
I had a really good 986 2.5 and went to a really good 2 year old 987 2.7
Going from the 986 to the 987 was a massive massive step forward. Everything about the car was so much better and I don't believe the 986 was more raw or anything like that, I just didn't think it was as good. Crashy hard ride on 17's and M030 sport suspension, poor interior. 987 was tight as a drum on 19's with no PASM rode way way better than the 986. The look and feel of the 986 was light years ahead and the extra power which doesn't look like much on paper was very noticeable. The £480 tax was a total nause but over the 2-3 years of ownership makes v little difference overall.
I paid another £13k to change my 986 for a 987 and thought it was worth every penny and more
Drive both and see if you think the same
I had a really good 986 2.5 and went to a really good 2 year old 987 2.7
Going from the 986 to the 987 was a massive massive step forward. Everything about the car was so much better and I don't believe the 986 was more raw or anything like that, I just didn't think it was as good. Crashy hard ride on 17's and M030 sport suspension, poor interior. 987 was tight as a drum on 19's with no PASM rode way way better than the 986. The look and feel of the 986 was light years ahead and the extra power which doesn't look like much on paper was very noticeable. The £480 tax was a total nause but over the 2-3 years of ownership makes v little difference overall.
I paid another £13k to change my 986 for a 987 and thought it was worth every penny and more
Drive both and see if you think the same
evojam said:
Rubbish,some folk object too paying 500 quid to allow one to drive on overcrowded and poorly maintained roads,hence when choosing a Boxster I went for a 2005 987 2.7 to avoid the high tax bracket.The car recieves money no object care at a well known specialist and a Porsche definetly IS the car for me
Point proven I think, it matters to quite a few people, maybe not all, but quite a few!!! anonymous said:
[redacted]
Yes I agree with what you say about it not making any sense, I got defensive as someone tried suggesting if you didn't want to pay £500 odd on road tax then a Porsche isn't for you, that's what annoyed me, any way despite your argument making total long term sense I think I pay enough in fuel duty so will continue to buy cars that aren't in the top tax bracket, I give enough to the government to get sod all back, look at the state of our roads!! I'm biased and will vote in favour of the 986. Dad has had one now for a couple of years and it's been great! Hasn't really had to have any other work done servicing and tyres aside. It's a weekend car, but has occasionally been roped into daily driving duties, and has performed really well.
He paid £9k for a 28/28k mile example, he's the third owner. £10k should be more than enough to get you a good car.
Another pic for the sake of it!
He paid £9k for a 28/28k mile example, he's the third owner. £10k should be more than enough to get you a good car.
Another pic for the sake of it!
Alignment makes an enormous difference in rear tire wear. I got more than twice your 8k and the tires were still quite legal when ultimately replaced for tire age reasons. My car was aligned for maximum tire mileage and not maximum grip. The guy who did it set up Porsches as race cars so he really knew his Porsche suspensions. Since it was a daily driver and not a race car, that worked for me.
Depreciation can easily be 2-5x the tax amount you all are talking about. Least it was for me.
The main differences between a 2004 and 2005 come down to:
Variable ratio power steering
Stiffer chassis, wider wheel alignment
Bigger brakes
Head airbags
PSM standard
17” wheels standard (18”, 19” optional)
Improved headlights
More cockpit room
Better positioned roll bars
The last two may matter a great deal depending on your body shape/height. Or it may not.
I owned a 2.5 and a 3.2 Boxster and the most fun was the 2.5, you could put your foot down longer and stronger before becoming illegal.
My Prius gets twice the mileage as the Porsches ever did. As much fun? You have to be kidding.
Life is a series of tradeoffs.
Depreciation can easily be 2-5x the tax amount you all are talking about. Least it was for me.
The main differences between a 2004 and 2005 come down to:
Variable ratio power steering
Stiffer chassis, wider wheel alignment
Bigger brakes
Head airbags
PSM standard
17” wheels standard (18”, 19” optional)
Improved headlights
More cockpit room
Better positioned roll bars
The last two may matter a great deal depending on your body shape/height. Or it may not.
I owned a 2.5 and a 3.2 Boxster and the most fun was the 2.5, you could put your foot down longer and stronger before becoming illegal.
My Prius gets twice the mileage as the Porsches ever did. As much fun? You have to be kidding.
Life is a series of tradeoffs.
My 2p's worth.
A few years back I looked at getting a Boxster & found an immaculate 986s. Everything sorted, low mileage, spotless service history, immaculate in every respect. Think it was 13k. Fell out with the selling dealer over the deal so didn't buy. Then found an excellent 987s. Not quite perfect but very good which I bought for about 1500 more than the 986. To me the biggest difference between the 2 was the cabin. The 986 cabin looks & feels prehistoric compared to the 987. As you spend most of your time on the inside looking out, my feelings, with hindsight, are that the 987 is a big step up in quality feel to the 986. There's little price difference between a late 986 & early 987. To me 987 is the place I'd rather sit.
A few years back I looked at getting a Boxster & found an immaculate 986s. Everything sorted, low mileage, spotless service history, immaculate in every respect. Think it was 13k. Fell out with the selling dealer over the deal so didn't buy. Then found an excellent 987s. Not quite perfect but very good which I bought for about 1500 more than the 986. To me the biggest difference between the 2 was the cabin. The 986 cabin looks & feels prehistoric compared to the 987. As you spend most of your time on the inside looking out, my feelings, with hindsight, are that the 987 is a big step up in quality feel to the 986. There's little price difference between a late 986 & early 987. To me 987 is the place I'd rather sit.
I'd just like to add my comments about the 987 I'm coming up for my third year of ownership which is a record for me as I have never kept a car longer than a year. I agree that the interior is very nice and well set out and compared to some of my previous cars all the knobs and switches still work perfectly as does the car which once properly warmed up is as far as road use is concerned hard to beat.
I too hate the rip off road tax but as I have the use of other cars means I tax it for a year and run it for about 7-8 months when the weather is decent then claim back what I don't use.
I am having great difficulty finding a car that I would want to replace it with and as such have given up so I tuck it away for the winter and look forward to the nice weather where the top down experience on a pleasant evening is only trumped by blasting an old bike along country lanes.
I too hate the rip off road tax but as I have the use of other cars means I tax it for a year and run it for about 7-8 months when the weather is decent then claim back what I don't use.
I am having great difficulty finding a car that I would want to replace it with and as such have given up so I tuck it away for the winter and look forward to the nice weather where the top down experience on a pleasant evening is only trumped by blasting an old bike along country lanes.
Been the owner of a 2001 986 S for well over a week now. I particularly was looking for the 986 as I seem to be drawn to the first incarnations of car models. So far I'm enjoying it very much. I sent quite a long time looking to get the spec /trim that I wanted coupled wit a history file of not just stamps, but actual work done. yes I'm sure I'll keep my fingers crossed for a few months, as I do with all cars I buy, till the confidence sets in with the car and the purchase.
Good luck with your hunting OP.
Good luck with your hunting OP.
Cheers for all the comments thus far...
So before I started this thread I wanted a 987 but thought I'd settle for the 986 but the more I think about it, regardless on how good a 986 might be, I know that if I was to buy one I'd always have it in the back of my mind that its the 987 I wanted.
So - on the hunt again for 987's - though it means I will have to save for a little longer which is disappointing.
I've seen a quite a few with the same wheels as the 997 Turbo. Would these having been fitted by the owners or were they an optional extra?
Also, are there any other options on these cars that I should be looking at? Aside from Sat Nav...
So before I started this thread I wanted a 987 but thought I'd settle for the 986 but the more I think about it, regardless on how good a 986 might be, I know that if I was to buy one I'd always have it in the back of my mind that its the 987 I wanted.
So - on the hunt again for 987's - though it means I will have to save for a little longer which is disappointing.
I've seen a quite a few with the same wheels as the 997 Turbo. Would these having been fitted by the owners or were they an optional extra?
Also, are there any other options on these cars that I should be looking at? Aside from Sat Nav...
TREMAiNE said:
Cheers for all the comments thus far...
So before I started this thread I wanted a 987 but thought I'd settle for the 986 but the more I think about it, regardless on how good a 986 might be, I know that if I was to buy one I'd always have it in the back of my mind that its the 987 I wanted.
So - on the hunt again for 987's - though it means I will have to save for a little longer which is disappointing.
I've seen a quite a few with the same wheels as the 997 Turbo. Would these having been fitted by the owners or were they an optional extra?
Also, are there any other options on these cars that I should be looking at? Aside from Sat Nav...
I'd be surprised if you couldn't get a good 987 for 12K. I got mine 2 years ago I think it was. 2006 car so just inside the tax threashold, it has the 997 wheels, BOSE, Sport Chrono, full leather, multi-way heated sports seats, 35k on clock & I paid around 15k So before I started this thread I wanted a 987 but thought I'd settle for the 986 but the more I think about it, regardless on how good a 986 might be, I know that if I was to buy one I'd always have it in the back of my mind that its the 987 I wanted.
So - on the hunt again for 987's - though it means I will have to save for a little longer which is disappointing.
I've seen a quite a few with the same wheels as the 997 Turbo. Would these having been fitted by the owners or were they an optional extra?
Also, are there any other options on these cars that I should be looking at? Aside from Sat Nav...
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