Anyone here experienced with buying used Porsches?

[UnknownSoldier]

I've been looking around for a recent model 718 Boxster or Boxster S, and there are plenty of them on the West Coast but most are in California. This is a bit hard for me in terms of shopping, I'm not yet ready to just fly down to LA to check out used cars. I might check out the local dealers around here first and at least get the lay of the land. So I have some general questions.

How are Porsche dealers compared to dealers of other cars? More ruthless, less ruthless? Generally willing to haggle, or get annoyed if you try and squeeze them for their used luxury good? Will they try to screw me at every opportunity like your average Toyota, Ford, etc. dealer or are they more laid back because they expect only rich people anyways?

How significant is high mileage on a Porsche? I know they have a reputation for being very reliable in the past few decades. There are also a lot of low-mileage Porsches out there, because I'm sure a lot of wealthy people buy them to be garage queens or just take them out for a drive once every few months on rotation with their other 40 cars or something.

Is Certified Pre-Owned important on a Porsche? Again, they are known for being reliable, so is the extra CPO 2-year warranty really useful to have around?

What should I look for when test-driving a used luxury car like a Porsche? Any specific well-known flaws, defects, or problems I should be aware of with the 718 Boxster line?

Thanks for anyone who can help me out. Also if anyone knows a good Porsche owner's forum, please direct me so I can also do more research.

 

[RichardL]

You could check out the forums at pelicanparts.com - lots of knowledgeable people there. The long term recommendation has always been to buy the newest Porsche you can afford.
Older cars can be very expensive to rebuild (I speak from owning an 89 911 and a 2000 Boxster!) - I guess a 718 is still new enough to avoid those scary issues.
I would not expect a Boxster to be a garage Queen so much, but often they are not driven so hard these days. Often being driven harder is better for their engines - keeps them running better.
Good luck, they are fun cars.

 

[Asterix187]

Be careful if you ever look to buy a 996 or 997.1. Engines are known to either bore score or have failed bearings. Well worth getting a boroscope done before hand for most of those models.

 

[UnknownSoldier]

Yeah, apparently only the Turbo/GT2/GT3 of that era are immune to IMS engine failure. That's largely a moot point for me, as I'm looking at Caymans/Boxsters and not 911's at this time.

Went down to the local dealer and took a 718 Cayman S for a spin. Big mistake. I won't lie when I say the motor sounds just horrendous compared to the 981 but God damn is the 718 gen fun to drive. These guys have so much torque at the lower power bands, it reminds me so much of my AWD 3 + Acceleration Boost except with something loud roaring right behind me. Mid-engine really does mean the engine is behind my seating position, haha. It's even more visceral than the rear-engined 911.

At lower speeds and RPM's the turbo four-banger sounds like a lawn mower but you when get it on the freeway and let it stretch it's legs it actually sounds pretty nice. It's hard to argue with how the car handles and feels, though. Driving my 3, while certainly enjoyable, it really does feel like driving a really fast iPad. Driving the Cayman felt like I was driving a living thing with a beating heart and I could feel the heart racing when I was going hard into a corner (not too hard, this was a test drive) or flooring it on the on-ramp.

Looks like it's back to the Porsche website for me, I'm still looking for a good deal on a CPO used one. Prices are down because of The Rona in case anyone else has been thinking of shopping for a used car so I'm just waiting and hoping for a nice S to drop into my lap. I don't want to have to go down to Cali and drive one back up here because the selection here is so limited but honestly I feel like that's what is likely to happen. There are plenty of them down there and some have pretty low mileage and good prices. Plus you know there's nothing wrong with starting ownership of a new car with a road trip, it's like a bonding experience.

 

[HooosierDaddy]

This being an older thread... you may have already made a move on one of these. I have a 718 Cayman S and happy to answer any questions or If you really want info quickly and the ability to pull from a larger pool of knowledge, maybe signup at 718forum.

 

[Uncle Paul]

Interesting just how emotional the sounds a car makes taps into the "fun" part of our brains.

An electric car can be going much faster or cornering better due to the very low center of gravity, but some will still be drawn to the sound of an ICE engine, the squeal of a tire, the quickness of steering and the roar of a nicly tuned exhaust.

Problem now is that most stock production cars really sound like ass with tapping motors, turbo silenced exhaust and super stickey tires.

Additional problem is how much damage driving like that does to the environment that so many others are obsessed with protecting.

 

[HooosierDaddy]

I find the M3P and my 718S are both pretty damn fast and surprisingly have almost exactly the same performance in the quarter. After the quarter the Porsche will walk away.

Porsche is next level sexy and handles like a dream. However... I find it much easier in the M3P to be smooth in cornering. Smooth is fast but I wish they had better seats so I didn't feel like I was going to slide off them. Porsche hugs your body, the forces are not as evident like in the 3. I know the Porsche is faster overall, but it doesn't feel like it! The torque from a M3P is just... well, delivering a big a$$ smile every time you drop the hammer! Love it when a Hellkitten wants to prove to a tesla what the no traction have'n behemoth is possible of!

 

[Brando]

You can buy new race car seats [Recaro?]
You could rent for a road trip.
You don't have to own/insure for a 5% use case.

 

[Brandenburger]

As far as I know, Porsche dealers are no different from anyone else. Business sharks And in terms of the cars themselves, well, they're posh. Especially not the latest models. In the context of their price, they're really good.

 

[Brandenburger]

P.S and if you look at their legendary models (for example, at Best Place to Buy Used Trucks and Cars | Dash Car Sales), then you can understand that it makes sense to take a Porsche for yourself. They are really very strong and "tenacious". True. I don't know anything about new models