986 conundrum; 2.5 v 3.2

[TameRacingDriver]

Z4MCSL said:

This is so helpful, especially a direct comparison with the megane, I honestly can't believe how much I love it.


I am half wondering about a 2.5 due to the shorter gearing but I'm worried I'll always want a more powerful 3.2.

I'm starting to look seriously now so going to head off to the relevant buyers guides

Thanks

To be honest, while I've never driven the 2.5, I wouldn't have felt short changed had I ended up with one, I suspect.

[TameRacingDriver]

I'd have to concur with the above posts, not worrying about power too much. Mine is a facelift 3.2 so 260 bhp, but I seriously doubt I'd be leaving a 2.5 behind on anything other than a ruler straight road. I'd argue if you are worried about outright speed then the car probably isn't for you, as its just not that sort of car.

Though a 996 engine matched to a 2.5 box does sound damn good fun for sure!

[TameRacingDriver]

ATM said:

Hey OP

How you getting on with this?

Hi ATM

Its been great to be honest. I haven't used it quite as much as I'd like recently due to the weather.

It did cost me £670 after the first month for new coffin arms, top mounts and alignment. The chaps at the specialist said it was in exceptional condition, so that was nice to hear.

It has got an intermittent idle issue, happens rarely, but the revs fluctuate occasionally, and even more rarely, it almost stalls, but I'm talking about maybe twice since I got it. The specialist couldn't find the problem, as it's not throwing up any errors and it's happening rarely enough that it's hard to catch it in the act.

Otherwise though, I'm super super impressed with it, and it's never let me down or thrown any wobblers.

It's almost like two cars in one, it can be smooth, laid back and refined when you want it to be, yet when the mood takes you, it can certainly thrill. I'm very impressed with the ride, handling, steering, and even more impressed with the brakes. It just eats roads up like they aren't there, took my mate out for a pax ride and he was stunned by the ride and composure of it. Of course the drop top adds another element to that.

Just enough straight line speed to be interesting. I wish the gears were slightly shorter, but its not really a problem.

The noise is lovely, but sometimes I wish it had a little more, but then I find it can be quite easy to spoil a car making it noisier but not necessarily sounding better, sometimes worse, so I'm open to ideas but would proceed with caution. Also, the car is totally original bar a short shifter and it seems so sorted as is I don't want to try and improve on it as I probably wouldn't do a good job on it.

As it is though, the noise it makes is lovely, it's just not super vocal, but I love the howl as it works its way through the rev range. I see what people mean when they say Porsche's make a distinct noise.

I've been pleasantly surprised by other peoples reactions to it. Girlfriend loves it. People let me out at junctions. Kids shout "nice car mate". Had lots of compliments. It's not why I bought it for sure, but it certainly makes it a feel good purchase!

Absolutely no regrets I'll say that much. First time I've liked a car as much since I had my old DC2. I do sometimes wonder if I paid over the odds, but fk it, what's done is done

Edited by TameRacingDriver on Thursday 9th December 18:55

[TameRacingDriver]

A trip out to see my mates ended badly at the weekend. Driving down an A-road at the speed limit, a tractor coming the other way deposited part of its trailer straight into my car. Naturally, I'm a bit gutted about the car, but count myself lucky that I was uninjured, except for getting a few shards of glass stuck in my skin.









The car will most likely get fixed (unless it gets written off but that seems unlikely), but the incident has made me soul search a bit about how important cars are to me. I have always intended to run the car properly, so on top of the money I loaned to buy it, I'm also stashing away £200 a month aside for 'just in case', the routine stuff like insurance, tax etc another £100. I'd estimate that I drive only about 300 miles per month, and that costs roughly £100 in petrol. This is accounts for about half of my disposable income, for a maximum of about 8 hours usage per month!

Additionally, I've have been slowly losing interest in driving for a few years now, so I thought that having a car like this would make it better, but ultimately I'm not so sure that it is. I actually sold my old MR2 Roadster and didn't bother replacing it for a year and a half, barely driving in that time. I then felt like I was missing it, so got the Mini CS, but then felt like I was getting 'bored' again and thought a car like the Porsche would be the answer to my dreams, and as good as it is (it's actually a brilliant all round car), I don't think I'm actually having any more fun.

I'm wondering if this is simply my priorities changing as I get older, but for sure I don't have the same buzz for driving as I did say 10-15 years ago. At the moment, I think I'd rather improve my house than have a sports car. I'll hand in my PH card on the way out

That said, I would still like to have my own car, but something that I could perhaps own outright, and doesn't require you to keep several grand in the bank just in case, like say a Clio RS or something like that, but then I wonder would I really be much better off? Obviously, no car is only true answer if the motives are financial, but could this be a compromise, or am I just kidding myself?

I've got a while to dwell on this, and I'm not sure what I'm expecting to come out of this post, but it helped to get it off my chest...

[TameRacingDriver]

Agree, will have a while to think about it while it gets fixed. I think it will be OK as long as it remains reliable, which it has done other than refusing to start a few weeks ago, but a new battery and a jump start sorted that. Problem is with buying an old car of any kind, it can need work, sometimes better the devil you know. I suppose as long as I have a circa £2k war chest I should be good unless the engine decides to go bang, which is another thing that does sometimes pop into my head. However, there seem to be plenty on here who vouch for these cars reliability if looked after.

[TameRacingDriver]

ATM said:

I think the moment you start adding up what cars cost then any older Porsche is never going to make any sense whatsoever. These are basically financial suicide. Tesco 99 is £1.50 per litre and road tax is £350. Thats just the start or the tip of the iceberg. I've got 4 outside so I dont even want to start totting it up. Just times your numbers by 4 and you'll get an idea - but dont tell me, thanks. The problem becomes exasperated when you start estimating the what if costs which can escalate super rapidly. My mate is just going through this panic with his 996.2 and his what if costs are approaching 20 grand - I am trying to talk him down form the ledge.

Ignorance is bliss for sure - I could never own a 996 for this reason, unless I had seriously deep pockets and didn't mind potentially throwing that money away, so I can feel your mates pain. I would have sleepless nights! I'm a relatively risk averse human, so for me, even buying 'just' a 986 took a hand full of brave pills, and I talked myself out of it several times!

For the running costs, I don't feel like I get enough use out of it, and it's unlikely that situation will improve any time soon. Nevertheless, I haven't made any decisions about it yet. It could be super reliable, and I could be acting in haste. I am quite attached to it, but I just know it won't get the use it deserves and I'll always be wondering what else I could do with the money.

If I could find something cheaper (either in terms of purchase price, running costs or both), and have just as much fun on the odd hour I have free on a Saturday, then maybe I'd be in a happier place overall. Having no car would yield the biggest financial benefit, but I think cars are hard wired into my DNA.

I've made no decision yet though, because when I bought the car, at the time, I truly believed it was what I wanted. Now that I have had, I'm just not quite as sure. Whatever happens though I'm super glad to have had the chance to own a Porsche, and this may not be the end, maybe I'm just a bit down about what happened at the weekend, but the long battle between head and heart rages on.

[TameRacingDriver]

cerb4.5lee said:

I'm sorry to see this happen to your car TRD. Glad that you're ok though.

Hope you get it fixed as easy as possible.

Cheers Lee, I'm lucky really, whatever hit did so at pretty much head height! I'm not an expert but I don't think the damage is too serious, though it does look a bit of a mess at the moment.

[TameRacingDriver]

anthonysjb said:

Sorry to see a drive out ended so badly, such a shame. Hope it is a simple enough repair and doesn't hurt too much financially.

Sometimes your priorities do just change, other times you just need a good drive or road trip to get back into it again. If you can sell the car at a decent price and come out of it well and having scratched the itch as best you can, why not. There are other cars out there.

Hopefully it shouldn't hurt financially at all as the other party has admitted liability so I should not need to put my hand in my pocket. Actually getting anyone to do the work seems to proving difficult at the moment though, but that's another story....

Panamax said:

The key thing to bear in mind is these weren't "cheap to run" when they were new and there's no magical way they become "cheap to run" when they get older. In fact, exactly the opposite applies.

Unless you're handy with the spanners it can be a mistake to think a car costing Fiesta money to buy will have Fiesta running costs.

As always in the used car market paying a bit more cash to buy a good example works out a lot cheaper than buying a cheap one that "needs a bit of work".

ATM said:

If I remember correctly I think the OP did spend a bit more to get a nice one from a little dealer specialist. So his entry price was a bit on the high side.

ATM is correct - @ Panamax - if you read the thread, I actually paid a top end price in the hope that I might get a year of trouble free motoring, I certainly did not buy a cheap one and hoped for the best. Its reasonably low miles, has a service folder as thick as an encyclopaedia, and it does seem to be a good car for the most part. I did have an intermittent idling issue, so I took it to a specialist who couldn't find that issue but did realise the top mounts and coffin arms were worn, so that cost a bit, then I had a problem with the battery (10 years old) now replaced, nothing major really.

I certainly did not have the impression it would have the running costs of a Fiesta!

ATM said:

Exciting will be difficult to do without seeing a bit of a gap between buy and sell price. Of course once you decide the car has to go this isn't necessarily relevant but just worth considering if you're on the fence a little. You spent the time and money choosing a nice one. It would be a shame to let it go now.

I truly believe that as time ticks by the pool of available cars will shrink and the nicer examples will get harder to find. Most Boxster owners have been saying this for years so at some point it has to become true. Mine is now 21 years old but some of the early 2.5 cars are 25. Also the idea behind buying a nicer one was to keep the unexpected expenditure to a minimum. So perhaps don't be so doom and gloom when it comes to your excel estimates.

I've been using my 986 a bit recently. Mine isn't the best example but still makes me happy. I can't quite put my finger on why. I do think the not so linear power delivery had something to do with it. There is a distinct pickup as the revs get to around 3500 area and it suddenly feels peppy. Also the cabin is quite small so it feels like a small car. I still love the profile from the rear with the long flat back and I'm a sucker for the matching hardtop. The modern cars don't offer a hardtop option now.

So far I've spent very little on mine in terms of TLC. Perhaps that's only because i have other cars needing more attention. I've also been trying to persuade my mate to buy one too. Maybe he will and maybe he won't. If this one does go up for sale then please let us know OP. I'll leave this little pic which someone posted in my 986 thread as inspiration for you...

You're correct of course, if I sell up now, I could end up losing a couple of grand just to get out of it, which doesn't seem particularly appealing either.

Indeed, the idea of buying a nicer one was to avoid heavy costs, but apart from the aforementioned suspension components, it hasn't cost much, but then again, that's because I've not driven it as much as I'd like - blame winter, flat batteries and flying objects for that, but I agree I should maybe not be so doom and gloom with my running predictions.

The opportunities for photos like yours would certainly be nice and might change my opinion though!

Japcreation said:

The picture above is one of the reasons why I decided to buy one.

Suffering from anxiety and depression for the last couple of years (various reasons) and feeling like I'm existing rather than living has meant that I have decided to do something about it. I bought my 986 to scratch the itch of not having a "toy" car or something to tinker with. If I use it, great. If I don't, hopefully I won't lose too much on it and I can say that I tried.

Hopefully put it on track later in the year and tick something else off the bucket list.

Also, a 986 is much cheaper than a divorce!

Been there with the old A&D over the last few years, and yeah, it works, while you're driving it. On the flipside though, the hassle that comes with car ownership at times certainly doesn't help I'm afraid to say, and from past experience with other cars, getting a 4-figure bill tends to ruin your day/week/month which is always a possibility with these by all accounts.

WayOutWest said:

Reading between the lines it sounds like an MX5 might have been a better bet. Not that I'm a huge fan of them but a tuned up facelift model MX5 NC with some BBR conversion seems to be the sweet spot for a cheap to run sports car that is just fast enough to keep up with a base Boxster, provide similar fun and avoid running cost nightmares.
But now you've bought it you might as well keep hold for a while before making any rash decisions.

The irony is, the MX5 was the other choice. In fact I even looked at one that was 3k more than the Boxster S I ended up getting, an NC with some tuning and the folding hard top. Problem is, while it would have been cheaper to run and more reliable for the most part, they tend to have a nasty habit of turning to brown dust.

However, given that it's almost certainly going to leave me out of pocket to sell up now, it makes no sense to do so ultimately.

So it's more likely than not it will be staying. The next step is to find someone to do the work: The insurance company arranged a company to do the repairs, who then apparently told the insurance company they couldn't take on the work due to storm damage at the premises, but nobody bothered to tell me until I investigated why nobody has been in touch. So I rang the insurance company who denied that the repairer had told them this, and followed up. Then had to try and arrange another, who I was assured would be ringing me today... guess what? And this is where I'm coming from, hobbies should be fun, and this ISN'T fun. So I've another round of phone calls and being fked about tomorrow then...

[TameRacingDriver]

ATM - great shout with this advice. After a bit of phoning back and forth, I've got it booked into the Porsche approved bodyshop in town, and it'll be collected on Tuesday, which is great as a lot of places were refusing the work or stating 4-6 week waiting times. At least I know the repair work will/should be up to scratch

[TameRacingDriver]

ATM said:

TameRacingDriver said:

ATM - great shout with this advice. After a bit of phoning back and forth, I've got it booked into the Porsche approved bodyshop in town, and it'll be collected on Tuesday, which is great as a lot of places were refusing the work or stating 4-6 week waiting times. At least I know the repair work will/should be up to scratch

Hey OP

What's happening here

Do you still have the car or has it gone?

It's gone mate, never driven since February. It got written off

Replaced with an NC MX5 BBR Super 200.

[TameRacingDriver]

An update from me on this thread, which I wasn't expecting, but such is life

Since the black Boxster was written off, I've been driving an MX5, which I have really enjoyed, but I've started to get the itch for a more sonorous engine, more comfort, and a sense of occasion so I started the thread looking into the various options: 350Z/370Z, Z4C, Z4 35i, 135i/335i, XKR/XFR, Monaro, or...?

I was looking into cars for up to £10k, and considered many options, but in the end, I felt like the Boxster was still the answer, particularly for the prices they can be picked up for.

Once again, I did consider going for a 2.5, but again I've ended up placing a deposit on this Boxster S with 98K miles for £7k, with pretty much the same mods as I would have done. Pick it up the week after next. Back in the club Will post some more pictures once I collect

[TameRacingDriver]

ATM said:

Looks like Lapis with plastic rear window.

The hood has been replaced with one with a glass window

[TameRacingDriver]

ATM said:

TameRacingDriver said:

ATM said:

Looks like Lapis with plastic rear window.

The hood has been replaced with one with a glass window

Looks like an early roof so does that mean modified with the little letterbox piece of glass?

The inspection report says: -

Roof – the roof is in good condition and operates without any issues. The original roof has ben replaced and the new roof has the benefit of a glass rear screen.

[TameRacingDriver]

edc said:

Looks like an OE facelift hood from the profile. A rear shot would easily confirm.