Which Boxster S year is safest to buy - Page 2 - Boxster/Cayman - PistonHeads UK

Hello all, Considering a Boxster S as the next vehicle but I'd like some guidance on which model year you are safest with in terms of the so called fundamental issues with these engines i.e. IMS and bore scoring which all sound very expensive! Thoughts welcomed Thanks

2007 Another approach is to buy the right car at the right price with the right mechanic available and factor in to the price the cost of the best IMS update and anything else a pre-purchase inspection tells you needs to be done. The best buy isn't always the cheapest purchase price but the one that is in the best condition to predict a trouble free ownership period. That can be a combination of what you buy, the previous maintenance it had and the maintenance you give it at the start.

I would get any of the following options a 2.7 a gen 2 or a 2007/8 with more than 70k on the clock.

2008 onwards with 9A1 DFI engine

Buy a Gen 2

981 from 2012 through to almost present.

You haven't said what your budget is? If you can afford one the 981 (2012 on) is the one to get - a much improved car all round to the earlier ones. However, owners of the 986 and 987 models love them so don't be put off, and while you do need to be mindful of things such as IMS the overall condition is more important as you can always get it done yourself for peace of mind.

Gorsh said: You haven't said what your budget is? If you can afford one the 981 (2012 on) is the one to get - a much improved car all round to the earlier ones. However, owners of the 986 and 987 models love them so don't be put off, and while you do need to be mindful of things such as IMS the overall condition is more important as you can always get it done yourself for peace of mind. I would avoid the 981 at all costs myself the 1st gen EPS is dire, but each to their own I guess. sweet spot for still having low miles having real feel and still able to add a warranty would be a nice circa 2010/2011 Model for about £30k and stable values atm. A great modern sports car with hydroilic steering enough BHp and a OPC warranty if that's an issue for you.

Porsche911R said: Gorsh said: You haven't said what your budget is? If you can afford one the 981 (2012 on) is the one to get - a much improved car all round to the earlier ones. However, owners of the 986 and 987 models love them so don't be put off, and while you do need to be mindful of things such as IMS the overall condition is more important as you can always get it done yourself for peace of mind. I would avoid the 981 at all costs myself the 1st gen EPS is dire, but each to their own I guess. sweet spot for still having low miles having real feel and still able to add a warranty would be a nice circa 2010/2011 Model for about £30k and stable values atm. A great modern sports car with hydroilic steering enough BHp and a OPC warranty if that's an issue for you. Same here. I've got a 987S at present, and recently took a test drive in a 981. I won't be changing any time soon. It feels incredibly remote and insulated - lifeless steering and stupidly over-assisted brakes. I can safely say it felt like no other Porsche I've ever driven, and not in a good way. I've never felt so un-involved in a sports car before - incredibly disappointing for me. A last of the line 987.2, for me, is a far more enjoyable drive.

Original 986 3.2 S (99-02)... Don't cost the earth to buy, 'relatively' cheap to insure and maintain... ...and if driven well, still provide evo's mantra...'the thrill of driving'!

these posts now covers all years and models, happy hunting OP :-)

the 981 is such a great looking car ............

Porsche911R said: these posts now covers all years and models, happy hunting OP :-) Its funny how that always happens!

Porsche911R said: A great modern sports car with hydroilic steering enough BHp and a OPC warranty if that's an issue for you. hydraulic adjective 1. denoting or relating to a liquid moving in a confined space under pressure. "hydraulic fluid" 2. relating to the science of hydraulics. "hydraulic analysis of streams"

Put £5k to £8K aside for an engine rebuild, buy the car you fancy and if the engine last then have a great holiday. I replaced my racecar with a 2008 Cayman S 3.4 last year after reading about all the engine failures, and It have now done 10+ trackdays, in 2 weeks time it will do Dutch Time Attack, a few laps of the Ring + a day at Spa. Best car I have had for £15K

v8ksn said: hydraulic adjective 1. denoting or relating to a liquid moving in a confined space under pressure. "hydraulic fluid" 2. relating to the science of hydraulics. "hydraulic analysis of streams" lol epic typo from the biggest know it all on the forums well done MrD

Sorry should have said budget. Ideally 15k but stretch to 17k. 1k reserve on top for imminent bills. Not really any clearer from above posts

And putting 8k aside for an engine rebuild is not, repeat not, feasible. Thanks

anonymous said: [redacted] So a 2006 3.2 fits right inbetween the danger zones?

anonymous said: [redacted] does gen mean mid-model engine updates that happened in 2007 ? So 2006 987 is Gen 1 right ?

And sorry to be a pain but If I want the 3.x engine which are the model years with the big bearing?

Goodness gracious me - precision german engineering and all that! So it's 2.7 or risk basically.Hmmm.

So it's more the scoring to worry about then, note from your profile your cayman is a scoring model, are you brave or had it preventively seen to ?

I would say if you're gonna get paranoid don't buy one. Yes they have their issues on early cars but it's not like it's every car or any worse in reality than other companies. Reading forums like this can give you a very skewed view of reality

j4ck100 said: Goodness gracious me - precision german engineering and all that! So it's 2.7 or risk basically.Hmmm. Or: buy a 2005 3.2S - then take it to Russ @ Revolution Porsche and ask him to fit you the LN Engineering bearing upgrade. Get the clutch replaced while you're at it. You now have a 'known good' 987 - no bore score problems, and an upgraded IMS bearing. What's not to like?? There's a remote chance that a 3.2 might be found to have the later large bearing - but I'd say it's unlikely from the work that various specialists have done upgrading them. I've yet to hear a report of someone going to upgrade the bearing in a 3.2 and discovering the later bearing already installed. That's not to say there aren't any - just that I've never heard of it happening.

I hate to harp on about the 981 - but here I am again - this is why I bought the 981. Yes the steering lacks a bit of feel - some say it is rubbish. But the engines are completely different and for now there are no horror stories going around. So is it the safest when thinking about engine failures - I'd say yes.

ATM said: I hate to harp on about the 981 - but here I am again - this is why I bought the 981. Yes the steering lacks a bit of feel - some say it is rubbish. But the engines are completely different and for now there are no horror stories going around. So is it the safest when thinking about engine failures - I'd say yes. But with a budget of around £15k to £17k, OP is not going to buy a 981. 987 gen 2 also has no known engine issues. The 981 / 987.2 may well develop engine issues as mileage increases, but nothing has been identified yet. The M96 engine is now a known factor in terms of which are good vs which are risky, and there's plenty of options for preventative maintenance - it's possible to run this engine with relatively low risks if you're willing to perform those preventative maintenance steps.

anonymous said: [redacted] Bingo. Then this is the one. Can't these be found for under 17?

Watching this thread as in a year or so I might take the plunge... Last year I went through all this... And the summary of: free'er revving more characterful engine in an 07/08 2.7 or more grunty 3.2S from 2005 with a bit of budget for some upgrade work. After a few test drives I bought an S2000, no regrets... but after owning and enjoying the Honda for a while, if the right spec of Boxster appeared I'd be willing to make the leap. Maundrells near Wantage, had a lovely red 2.7, great spec....but the reds differed a smidge I thought from panel to panel.... nagging doubt I should've got that one....anyway I think my money is quite safe with the 9000rpm and 'best gearchange ever' for now. Book marking this thread though

anonymous said: [redacted] The thing with the LN bearing is that it's a lifed component. It lives for 4 years / 40(or 50)k miles, then you need to replace it again. Personally, I prefer this to the Porsche approach of "it lasts for the life of the engine" - which the small bearing frequently doesn't. The replacement really isn't that expensive, so I'm happy to live with it, and consider it a service item in much that same way that I'd consider the cam belt for a different car.