Considering my first Porsche - Page 1 - Boxster/Cayman - PistonHeads UK

Hi all There are lots of Caymans around for the £15k ish mark and whilst on the face of it this feels bargain tastic - please can anyone advise whether these cars throw large bills? Are they reliable? Based on purchase price alone, man maths comes into play and makes me think this is a good idea for 20k commute!! I have never owned a Porsche so don't know what to expect reliability wise. The cars all seem to be around 8 years old with c60k miles on. Any advise or background would be most welcomed!! Cheers.

sidicks said: ilduce said: It'll be an 8 year old car and it will go wrong. The bits are expensive. The servicing is expensive. The tyres are expensive. Do yourself a favour and buy a Golf GTI. You'll have just as much fun on the way to work and people won't call you a cvn't. Based on your attitude on here, I'm guessing that people if were calling you that it probably had nothing to do with the car you were driving... Edited by sidicks on Wednesday 6th May 17:26 ilduce got bitten when he was a Porsche owner so has an axe to grind. Yes they can be expensive but like any 8 year old, high-performance car they cost money to repair and keep on the road. Do a search for Cayman bore-scoring and make your mind up after that.

ilduce said: It'll be an 8 year old car and it will go wrong. The bits are expensive. The servicing is expensive. The tyres are expensive. Do yourself a favour and buy a Golf GTI. You'll have just as much fun on the way to work and people won't call you a cvn't. I think that is OTT. Without doubt there are reliablity and cost issues and you should do your research before buying and this forum gives lots of pointers to potential pitfalls. Regarding how you will be perceived, I'll grant that some will regard you as an image seeking prat, but whatever car you buy people will make assumptions about you - rightly or wrongly. Own a people carrier people (I have) people might assume you are a boring old fart, a Subaru Impreza (I have) you are a boy racer and so on. But the opinion of people who make such simplistic assumptions almost invariably know nothing about cars, so their opinion is of no consequence.

ilduce said: True, but disregarding the engine problem, I was still a bit surprised at how many normal things wore out at such a low mileage- stuff I'd never changed on any vehicle before. If he buys one at 80k it's going to be around that point in it's life when he'll need to spend a lot of money and the bits aren't cheap. Not necessarily. ilduce said: Don't write me off as a hater, I have a 7 years of Porsche experience to share that could help someone. Trouble is you lot won't take criticism or p.taking of "Zee Marque" so the forum just ends up like a Jehovas meeting. Shame you chose to write such b ks when you posted previously, rather than share this valuable experience... ilduce said: Lighten up and take my posts with a pinch of salt ok? No one will have a problem if you post useful stuff. On the other hand, if you post rubbish then expect to get called up on it.

If you're joking around, perhaps make that more obvious? It's hard to detect sarcasm by simply reading text on a screen. You are right though, accept that they are cars with a fair few years under their belt and they will require attention. Especially with performance cars, you can't expect to just go on forever on with the same suspension bushes and other such components. And when you replace them, they ain't cheap! The key is to buy a car where someone has just recently spent a load on it! Don't be the mug who buys a car with a service due and tyres with 1mm of tread on

I agree with some of the comments above,I didn't really know what too expect when I bought my 987 from a dealer,despite covering less than 40,000 miles a suprising amount has failed on the car,stuff on other cars I've never had to sort at that sort of mileage.Cost me just over 2k too get the car where I wanted.

Tis true - they are expensive bugga's and bits on mine wore out at relatively low mileage. But, doing the work yourself (they are a cinch to work on)and buying the bits from places other than Porsche, they are an amazing car to own and drive. Don't bother with warranty, just bank the money and dip in to it when you need to replace bits and pieces....and relax, it's just a car a the end of the day

Pretty typical for any older car that was expensive to buy. I have gone down the used route at earlier points in my life on some expensive cars, and while there is some exposure, it gives you the entry into the pure fun of driving a Porsche. Of course there are other marques, and I have driven and owned plenty of them, but the Porsche is tremendous fun, at least for me.

If you're looking at a certain silver Cayman S for sale at around that kind of price near Dartford then do PM first. I personally would agree with both sentiments here, there is nothing to say these cars can't be run as DD for a 15k miles a year commuter, but like any it will cost to do so. None of my Porsches have cost me any more on balance to own and run than any of my Audis etc, but they can have the potential to bring eye watering bills, but then so can a V8 Audi S4. Personally I would say just go for it, and try and have a couple of grand in the bank at least to help you sleep at night.

It's people like ilduce that scare others away from forums. They appear to be aggressive and refuse to adopt a more acceptable stance. That's a shame, because seven years of Porsche ownership should be a valuable resource for sharing, not a baseball bat to threaten other forum members.

I commuted in mb Boxsters. Owned 2. Neither cost me as much to maintain as similarly aged (and miles) Honda products I owned at the same time. Even accounting for the fact that the Porsches got more expensive tires and battery than the Hondas did. Why? Because I loved driving the Porsches. Just drove the Hondas because I had to. My wife knew when she sent me to the store it was going to be a while till I got back because I'd go to the furthest one by the most scenic route. Especially on a spring day with the top down. Never had negative comments directed at me. Sample size so small as to be absolutely worthless. Forums give you the wrong impression. People with no trouble in their cars are liable to be out driving and not posting. Any car 8 years old has age and use working against certain parts. Budget for the expense when you buy the car by maintaining a reserve. Have the car inspected at your cost by a Porsche mechanic who can tell you the condition and what to expect. And yes a car that has just had its major service done is worth more. Drive some. See if it fits you. If it doesn't, that is OK. We each have different preferences.

Got to honest- yes I do think Christ how mush will this cost-However I have had my Boxster S two years now 08 plate and just love driving it-Agree with some of the other posts give it a go! It wont disappoint!Have a look round though should get slightly lower miles for that money!