Tell me about 987S's

[scz4]

I'm looking for a Z4M at the moment, but I should try a 987 Boxster S, but lets not get into a discussion comparing the two

What I'd really appreciate is someone giving me an overview of these cars and what to look out for in terms of spec etc. My background is BMW for the last 8 years, so comfortable with service intervals, must have options, but this is all new to me.

From what I've read, I want Sport Plus seats and Bose Sounds system. How about PASM etc. PSE would be nice, but not essential.

Would I be right in saying the 3.4 is more reliable and a better drive?

How about aftermarket improvements, what should I look for. Thinking springs, exhaust etc. Any recommendations?

I like this:
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/p...

Edited by scz4 on Sunday 29th September 21:42

[mrdemon]

Bose is not great imo.

People like stock cars, but you can give them a bit of a tinker :-)

[NNH]

[Opinion]
Less is more on spec. The sound systems aren't much good, so don't spend extra on upgrades, but install something decent later. I quite liked the sport seats on mine, but I had a pair of GT3 seats left from a previous car so I've installed those instead. PASM makes a big difference to the rise, especially if you want to go for 19" wheels (I'm on 18s, and the long distance ride is great with PASM even with the hard GT3 seats). HID lights are nice, too.
[/Opinion]

[BIRMA]

I'm just coming up for a year of ownership with a 3.4S well it's an RS60 which basically had every extra thrown at it. You need to drive/thrash a car with and without PASM to decide, I came down on the side of loving it and like the way it tightens up when driving quickly on twisty bits. For the money they really are a superb point and squirt little car, the more I drive it the more I like it. I have an Alfa 4C on order and I have decided to keep the Boxster when it arrives, I like the car that much. The car just loves to have its neck rung and you can do the same thing every day without fail or anything falling off. Everything inside has a feeling of quality and looks and feels like it will last for ages. Regardless of budget I would always choose a high spec Boxster and a number of people I know have sold very expensive sports cars and bought a new Boxster and also feel the same way. If you can get an extended test drive and find some twisty bits give it some stick I did and all the salesman did was go a bit pale but it made me decide what I wanted. I would say PASM with 19 inch wheels, PSE. Mine has the Carbon Ceramic brakes which is a rare expensive option but for road use are superb, I have access to a number of cars and everytime I get in one after the Boxster I think st this car has no brakes, but as I say it's a rare option which I personally will not buy another Porsche without them.
Only negative thing is the government screw you for £480 road tax

Edited by BIRMA on Monday 30th September 15:28

Edited by BIRMA on Monday 30th September 15:29

[MadMark981]

It's a lovely car!

The Gen 2 versions have better (read stonger) engines and a slightly tighter feel the the damping.
SatNav is generally regarded as best for resale.
Bose is fine if tweaked to the right settings (usually it's too bass heavy), but the sound pack isn't bad. Standard stereo is poor.
Plus seats are a bit better bolstered, but the standard ones are fine. Heated seats are essential.
PASM is only essential is you have the 19" wheels, which are usually better for resale anyway.
The standard headlights are a bit limp, Xenons (or Litronic) are much better for night driving.
PSE (or the sports exhaust) makes a much, much beter noise if you're not going to change the exhaust.
Sport Chrono works well with the PASM dampers and the PSE - changing the whole sound and feel of the car at the touch of a button ....

Not a lot of point messing about with the suspension unless you want to take it on the track. Then Bilstein do either the Damptronic or the popular PSS9's.
Brakes work well either as standard or OEM - certainly better than most BMW's, but a change to Pagid pads (or similar) will make them more fade resistant.
The engines respond well to induction (BMC air filter / throttle body enlargement) and exhaust mods (manifold and system - that get rid of 2 of the 4 catalytic converters) and sounds fantastic!

Happy test driving!

[kingston12]

The three options on my 987S that I would not be without are heated seats, Bose and PCM/NAV.

As a lot of people correctly say, the Bose and PCM/Nav options are nowhere near as good as aftermarket equivalents, but they are still better (for me) than either having the car ripped apart to install new ones or having a standalone satnav hanging from the windscreen.

They will also help you on resale, altough that matters less as these cars get older and cheaper.

For the rest of the options, you'll have to drive the cars to see how much difference they make. For me, the 3.4 did not offer much performance gain over my 3.2, but it does have less potential for IMS failure.

[Trev450]

kingston12 said:

The three options on my 987S that I would not be without are heated seats, Bose and PCM/NAV.

Please don't misinterpret this as having a go as that is not my intention, but these are three options I have no desire to want.

The top three for me that I have on my CS are: sports seats, PSE and sports chrono.

[anonymous-user]

The bits i could not do without are the S version, the heated sports seats, the sports steering wheel (standard is horrible) 19" Sport design wheels, and Eibach pro springs fitted and set up by Centre Gravity, which apart from transforming the handling makes it look a whole lot better

[Siy]

Thought of a Spyder...If you are looking to 'tinker' to get more from your driving experience - then perhaps you should look at one of those - they have had the 'tinkering' done to them - and drive amazingly - I bought one a couple months ago - and have been amazed by the drive....! Smile on the face every time!

[scz4]

Not within budget sadly. I've got £16k to play with tops.

Any information on service intervals and the difference in services?

[scz4]

Porkerjag said:

Not a black fan, but that does look nice. Excellent stance at the front.

[BIRMA]

scz4 said:

Not within budget sadly. I've got £16k to play with tops.

Any information on service intervals and the difference in services?

It's every two years minor then major. The Porsche Centre do display the prices.

[scz4]

BIRMA said:

It's every two years minor then major. The Porsche Centre do display the prices.

Thanks just had a look, shame BMW don't publish prices, seems to vary a lot. It also seems a lot more reasonable compared to the Z4M. However, no mention diff fluid ever being changed, plugs etc as part of a service. I also hate the idea of this type of car going 20k between services.

[Trev450]

scz4 said:

BIRMA said:

It's every two years minor then major. The Porsche Centre do display the prices.

Thanks just had a look, shame BMW don't publish prices, seems to vary a lot. It also seems a lot more reasonable compared to the Z4M. However, no mention diff fluid ever being changed, plugs etc as part of a service. I also hate the idea of this type of car going 20k between services.

Transmission fluid change I think is at 60k and plugs are at the 40k service.

A lot of owners, myself included, have an interim oil and filter change every year.

[BIRMA]

Trev450 said:

scz4 said:

BIRMA said:

It's every two years minor then major. The Porsche Centre do display the prices.

Thanks just had a look, shame BMW don't publish prices, seems to vary a lot. It also seems a lot more reasonable compared to the Z4M. However, no mention diff fluid ever being changed, plugs etc as part of a service. I also hate the idea of this type of car going 20k between services.

Transmission fluid change I think is at 60k and plugs are at the 40k service.

A lot of owners, myself included, have an interim oil and filter change every year.

Yes I do too, it seems far too long going two years on the same oil regardless of mileage

[thegoose]

Transmission fluid, which includes the diff as it's a transaxle arrangement, always used to be 10 years/96,000 miles. I think it's under £100 at an OPC.

[Boxstercol]

I've had my 987 S since the end of June, it was purchased to replace a written off 986 S.

It's a much better car in every way. I looked at a few but settled on one which had the options I was looking for - sports steering wheel (much more visually pleasing than the standard one), heated sports seats, Bose (regardless of what people say, I love it), cruise control, 19" Carrera wheels. It hasn't got PASM which again I prefer as I've heard a few stories about units failing with a massive visit to replace. Another major selling point for me was the OPC warranty until December 2014.

Servicing is every 2 years, mine just so happens to have never gone over 12 months or 12k miles between a service anyway. I paid the OPC to carry out an oil change when the car was in having the spark plugs & drive belt changed. It cost just under £300 for all the work & I supplied my own oil (Costco £60 instead of another £195 from OPC for same oil!).

They are great cars, buy on condition with the spec that you want & ensure it has service history.

[kingston12]

Trev450 said:

Please don't misinterpret this as having a go as that is not my intention, but these are three options I have no desire to want.

The top three for me that I have on my CS are: sports seats, PSE and sports chrono.

That is why it is a difficult question to answer, it is so different for each person. I'd love PSE on mine, but certainly wouldn't search out or pay extra for a car with sports seats or chrono.

[nlm13]

Having bought a 987 S in June, and already having the Z4M (coupe though)I can say that I prefer the Boxster in almost every way. I think it handles much better, has more grip, better ride, better more comfortable seats, sounds better and is generally more fun to drive. Both cars actually belong to my wife, and she prefers the BMW but purely on a looks basis, she doesn't drive them like they were intended!, which is a win win for me as I get to drive the porsche more often. With regard to the specs, I think this very much depends on what you want to use the car for. Having Just driven 3500 miles round France in the Boxster the one thing I don't have that I would have liked is Cruise control for the long boring motorway bits down through the UK from Glasgow to Dover. I found the Satnav could be a bit slow to update but generally pretty good, and the Bose sound system is OK. I wouldn'y have contemplated this trip in the Z4 as I find it uncomfotable after a short time, and it has no where near as much storage space for luggage etc.

I would recommend driving a few differently specced ones to compare, there are loads about, especially if you are down south. Ours is a 3.2S, 19" wheels, non PASM, sports seats, bose, PCM/Satnav and it's great, wish we'd bought it ages ago!

Hope this helps in some way

Edited by nlm13 on Wednesday 2nd October 11:14