Seeking advice on purchase of '01 - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

Have been browsing forum for a couple of days. Best place I have seen for new Boxster owners. So many friendly, knowledgable folks. So I am seeking advice regarding a purchase of a '01 Boxster w/ 33K mi. Owned by lady who i'm sure never drove past 3000rpm. Sounds good on the road and don't see any obvious problems from a once over. What things do I need to check out? Thanks in advance.

I'm new here too ( current 911 owner thinking of buying as Boxster). FWIW, the fact that the lady never went over 3k RPM(if it's true) could be more of a bad thing than a good one, especially with Porsche engines. Constant low rpm running is bad for engine lubricstion and wear and some think it can contribute to IMS failure. Porsches are meant to be driven hard with skill and maintained diligently. I'm sure more Boxster savvy peole wil chime in.

+1 on that. high revs does not damage engines. High revs 10seconds after a cold start or leaving the oil in for 60k miles damages engines.

Welcome future Boxster owner! You should check out Mike Focke's webpage on Boxsters: MikeFockeBoxster He gives info for new buyers, sellers, and info on maintenance and DIYs. You definitely want a PPI done by a competent Porsche mechanic. Also the fact that a lady babied the car is nice, but IMS failure can occur regardless. You'll want to check if there's any oil between the engine and trans area, RMS and IMS are above this area and these are two of the more important things you'll want to check. Despite some problems, Boxsters are great fun to drive and own.

You should get a PPI (pre-purchase inspection) by a knowledgable tech (not necessarily at a Porsche dealership). Ask around your city. When I bought my '01 3 years ago, being as anal as I am, I used this to separate the chaff before spending $hundreds on the PPI: http://www.911secrets.com/Boxster.html

Thanks to all for the input. Didn't spot any oil where the car is always parked (garage). Would IMS - RMS problems leave a sign under the car? Any other things I can look for myself before taking it to a Porsche mechanic?

The RMS will leave a spot of oil. Since this car was driven by a lady, is it a Tiptronic trans (no offense to all the gear-shifting female forum members)? If so, the Tips seem to have fewer RMS failures. Something you should ask for are maintenance records. Check to see how often the oil was changed. With that low of mileage, the oil should have been changed at least once per year. Not changing oil often enough is believed to contribute to IMS failure (along with a poor design). Speaking of the dreaded IMS, there's not really a way to externally determine its condition, so a PPI could give the car a clean bill of health and the IMS could shoot craps 5 mi down the road. No way to know unless the engine is torn apart. Check the maintenance records for brake fluid changes (every 2 yrs), antifreeze changes (4-5 yrs), and look for documentation on replacement window regulators and rear wheel bearings. These are a few of the items that wear out on 01s. If the owner doesn't have documentation, you may want to think about spending good money on a PPI. Porsches are expensive and if you get one that's neglected normal maintenance, you could end up spending a fortune getting it back up to snuff. Porsche is VERY proud of their replacement parts - they're generally about 4x normal cost. Let the previous owner pay the maintenance bills, not you. Good luck with your find, but don't feel like you like have to jump on this particular car. You're only 3hrs away from a source of many other options (Dallas). Take your time. Boxsters aren't hot property in winter. It's a buyer's mkt. Use this to your advantage.

Husker, thanks for the info. All good advice and it helps alot. Owner doesn't seem to know anything about cars in general. This Boxster was a second vechicle for her, hence the low miles. But with all the good input offered on this forum, I bet it would be best for me to get a PPI. Thanks again to all. Porsche owners seem to be a great group to assoc. with.