Is a cheap old Boxster a good buy?

I'm looking to buy my first Porsche for a weekend fun car, either a Boxster or a Cayman (hard to find under $20k). A dealer 90 minutes away has a 1999 Boxster for $6,000 -- 103,000 miles, 8 owners, and some accident damage reported on CarFax. See listing here: Used Cars for Sale – CARFAX The dealer has no record of an IMS replacement, so I'm guessing I'll want that plus clutch, and the tire photos look near to end of life. I'd get a PPI before buying, so more problems might turn up, too. Let's say I need to spend $5,000 to get it into reliable running condition, making it an $11,000 1999 Boxster. Option #1: Spend $11,000 on a 1999 Boxster? If I have the repairs done myself, I know what I've got, so that's good. Option #2: Buy this one as-is and live with the original IMS? I'd have to resign myself to maybe throwing away the $6,000 if the IMS fails and blows the engine. (The 1996-1999 Boxsters have the double-row IMS, which isn't the worst.) Option #3: Or should I keep looking for one in better condition, and pay something more than this $6,000? Any opinions on this?

Proceed with caution.

Frankly, you can't buy an economy car for six grand and expect it to need no sorting so I'd vote option three. Save up more money, buy something with life left in it. You're worried about the IMS but a clutch job, tires , suspension freshening, water-pump and coil packs will cost about the same as the car if you are taking it to the dealer and each of those items can be suspect at that mileage unless otherwise documented replaced. Zero warranty, check it over well if you spin the roulette wheel. Shop for the ten or eleven thousand dollar gem with a better history and lower mileage, and if it's a few grand more save and stretch for that goal, then you have the good car from the get go and can just enjoy it.

There are few things as expensive as a cheap Porsche . These cars are expensive to maintain and those costs don’t decrease with age. If I had your budget and wanted a weekend fun car I would be looking for a used Miata . YRMV.

I hate to see somebody discouraged just because they don't have enough money. There are plenty of old reliable Boxsters and Caymans with high mileage that still have more to give for relatively low cost. And like the OP said if it has a catastrophic failure then so what, scrap it for parts and get another one. Not everybody is going to buy CPO. When I was a kid I bought 50 cars I fixed, drove, sold, and parted out. There are many levels of automotive involvement. The idea of a $5000 Boxster or Cayman just to see if you like it might not be a bad idea if you have a desire to learn, and drive. And a little $ to play with. Something with 100,000 miles on it has passed the IMS test IMHO

Have you driven a 1999 base Boxster ? I would because I did back when they came out and wouldn't buy one. Too weak and lack torque. If you have driven one and you are fine with what they give you then get the PPI done, do what it finds, put new tires on and enjoy. They can test the IMS to see if it's ok. Not sure cost of getting that done but PPI company can probably do it. There is also a warning system you can have installed that will alert you to metal in the IMS area.

In Spring 2016 I bought an absolutely gorgeous '70 Olds Cutlass Convertible, 455, Turbo 400, 12-bolt posi rear, buckets, Hurst Dual Gate shifter, it was a stunner. It also was the biggest goddamn lemon I ever owned by a wide margin. I lived 5.5 miles from work and would pray I'd get there every time. I was on a first name basis with a tow truck driver. I'd call him and instead of hell he would just say, "where is it?". I spent $10,000 in one year keeping it running then finally sold it 1 year later for less than I paid for it. On a whim while on vacation for my wife's 50th in August we bought a 2000 Boxster S with 95k on the odometer as a birthday present for her with a very long list of upgrades including the IMS upgrade. We paid $9,000 for it and then drove it 2,000 miles from Bozeman, MT to New Orleans, LA. It has a few minor issues, but you expect that with a 20 year old car. We love it, it's a blast to own and drive. At half the cost of entry for the Olds we've already gotten far more enjoyment from it. I probably will look at it like I did my last motorcycle, if I drive it for a year with no incident then I'll consider myself lucky and sell it and move on to the next fun car. Know that either of these fates could befall you with a 20yo car. The Olds was a lot older and supposedly GMs are soooo cheap to fix! (ya right). I did all the work myself and still took a bath, you never know, you just have to be prepared to take the risk knowing when you're going in that it could go either way. I say go for it but maybe just not on this particular car, look at all the upgrades I got on a car we paid 9k for

Sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you take a bath. I'm sure other Olds and other Boxas have panned out very differently. Can it happen? Yes. GL

Yep, that's it exactly. I think if a guy is taking care of all his other savings and planning needs and can budget to possibly take a loss then go for it. Life is about experiences more than anything and even the Olds produced a number of good memories,

A 1999 model should have the dual row bearing, better longevity than the single row 2000-2004. I bought my first Porsche 8 yrs ago, a 1999 Boxster base with 84k miles for $9000. I loved that car and had zero issues....wish I would have kept it. 5 Porsche ’s later (many models in between) I’m back in the Boxster . Good luck!

Good point about the better IMS on the 1999 and earlier years. Do you know if the engine casting and cylinder liner problems are a real issue? I read that the factory fixed many of those engines, but I don't know if it's still considered one of the Big Risks of a pre-2000 Boxster .

Beautiful blue one on BaT No Reserve: 1999 Porsche Boxster 5-Speed

I didn't read the add and report carefully but a base with 88k miles, 4 owners, and an accident would make me watch with mild curiosity and not much more. There are lots of these out there with more appealing stats. But your BAT spot may interest the OP since he opened with a 103K, 8 owners, + an accident. lol. At $5k that would have to be throw away money just to see if a Porsche Sports car is something you want to drive or not.

If you want an mid engine car and on a budget buy an MR2 turbo... you can find nice ones with newer motor for 8-12k... just a thought...

Ha! I owned the original MR2 (non-turbo) when it first came out. I loved that car! Now I want another two-seater mid-engine with more power and more fun!

I just sold mine... I had a 2GR V6 in it... it was great! 2500 lbs, 310hp... handled great... some guy offered me a lot for it so I let it go... I did have a big turbo on the I-4 motor, just grew tired of the laggy 4

I didn't read the ad closely either. I'm the 11th owner of mine and I couldn't care less how many people have owned it. it's fun as hell and my exotic car mechanic buddy said there's not a thing wrong with it. I think that these cars are meant to be fun cars that a certain number of us just enjoy them for a while and move on to the next thing. I've never kept a single one of my classic cars or Jeeps for more than two years. If I was looking the Boxster on BaT definitely would be something I'd bid on.