718 2.0 as daily driver - Reliability - Page 2 - Boxster/Cayman - PistonHeads UK

Hi Folks My current daily driver is a GR Yaris and after 2 years & 20k miles I fancy a change. I don’t really want to spend more than £40 to £43k and because I get a car allowance and can reclaim business miles the company has a restriction of 190grams of CO2/ km. I was thinking of a 718 Boxster 2.0 PDK. I can get a 2018 with 20 to 30k miles on the clock for the budget and this has the advantage of no additional VED as it’s near the 5 year threshold. The one I like is outside the franchise network so hasn’t a Porsche warranty. I was wondering what real world experiences people had from a reliability and MPG point of view as I have seen very different views across buying guides. I am keeping the GT3 so hopefully I won’t be banned off the Porsche pages for considering a 4 cylinder... Thanks Ed

I had a 2.0 for 18 months and did just over 6k miles in it. I didn't use it as a daily but it never has any mechanical or electrical issues at all. The only issue I did have was the standard stereo rattled the door panels so had to have additional padding put in the doors to compensate. This was done by our local OPC under warranty. We took it down to the west coast of France and from memory on that trip we averaged around 40MPG over about 1500 miles which I thought was quite astonishing considering the performance it was capable of. I have heard that the turbo waste gate can get stuck so this would be a concern but if you stuck a Porsche Warranty on it I'd think you'd have the perfect sidekick to your GT3

Only things to be wary of on the 2.0 is turbo actuator failure and turbo pressure converter failure. The latter isn't a massive job but means you'll need to take the interior trim out of the back similar to when you change the air filter. The former is a bit of a bigger job however you can free it up as a DIY. A link is here https://www.718forum.com/threads/turbo-fail.19030/

Thanks for the responses guys. Any other opinions?

Had two 2.0 718s as dailies. Did almost 25k in the first and 19k in the second. Both were faultless.

I'm on my second 718 2.0 Cayman. First one (2017) did 17k miles in 18 months. Completely faultless in every way, never missed a beat nor felt less than perfect throughout. Probably the best daily driver I have ever had. Would have kept it longer, but I wanted a GT4, and couldn't afford both at the time. Think I lasted all of 2 1/2 years' gap before ordering the second. This one (2021) has had something a little weird with the way it runs from cold from new. It runs normally as soon as the blue "engine cold" light on the dash goes out (probably within the first minute after setting off), but feels like it's on the verge of "weak mis-fire" at 2k rpm for the first few hundred yards. Just got it back from OPC on Friday from the last investigation and parts changes. After much back and forth between OPC and Porsche UK, and then Porsche technical department in Germany, they have asked me to get some miles on it and see if the issue reappears, because they are pretty sure it is gone now. Evidently mine is the only one with this issue reported worldwide, but it does strike me that from September 2018 they got a GPF (gasoline particulate filter) added to the exhaust system. So they are a bound to be a little different. To be frank, if the OPC had told me that's just how they are now, I'd have lived with it quite happily. But I am even happier that they have compared it with a couple of others of similar spec, and decided that something isn't quite right. I'll reserve judgement on how I feel about post GPF cars for a few weeks yet, but aside from that minor issue, it has run perfectly for 7k miles. My experience with the earlier model was absolute perfection in every way. Liam

Thanks for the input. Great feedback that has given me the confidence to go forward. I have agreed a number to swap subject to looking through the service history and a test drive in the next couple days. Thanks again Ed

Currently have a 718 2.0 PDK Cayman as a daily. No issues. On long motorway runs and being sensible with cruise I get 38-40mpg. Regular servicing and everything has been good. Done 25k and all its needed is one service, a full set of new rubber (approx. £1k) and a service. Go get one, life is too short.

You could put a Porsche warranty on it yourself if you got the servicing done and a 111 point inspection, and paid the warranty schedule price. Additional peace of mind if that floats your boat. I'm 22k miles in on a 718GTS 4 pot with no issues at all FWIW.

Not a 2.0L but a 2017 S used as a daily since day1, 32K and has never missed a beat. Changing in a month for a 4.0L GTS

Thanks folks, good info. Test driven today and deposit paid. I have agreed the top warranty, Platinum Plus, for 12 months so I can perhaps back to main dealer at that time if I wish. Although it's just over 5 years being a Jan '18 it's only done 22k, the second service was a bit late but has just been done but its had major one including brake fluid and two new front N rated tyres. Probably pick it up next Monday.

Very nice

Excellent choice. Here’s to some sunny days for you.

Yes it’s a good looking car. Looking forward to using it plenty.

LemonTart said: Yes it’s a good looking car. Looking forward to using it plenty. Looks absolutely great. I'm sure you will get a lot of pleasure from it. I felt guilty about racking the miles up so fast on my 2017 Cayman 2.0, but now feel like my 2021 Cayman 2.0 isn't getting all the use it deserves. Can't win, but it's a 1st World problem without a doubt. Use it plenty, I am sure you will absolutely love it. It will be a pre-GPF version, and while there's not a lot in it, I am sure the older ones ran a little nicer at lower engine speeds. However, with either version, the mid-range torque and acceleration seems almost obscene for a 2.0 turbo that can comfortably manage over 40 mpg on a longer trip. As for my one running a little rough from cold. Definitely seems a whole lot better now; might get better still as the DME gets around to learning a little more from all the sensors. I think what I am left with might just be how the post-GPF cars are. Nothing you will need to worry about I am sure, my 2017 Cayman 2.0 drove like a very fast and competent handling "tiny limousine". I'm certain your Boxster will be very much the same. Hard to believe a genuinely sporty sports car can be quite so civilised! Liam

Congrats OP. Despite all the YouTubers making a killing deriding the F4T, for actual owners they're proving to be an exceptional car. Really hard to pick fault with them. Hope this rain sods off and you can get that top down

Thanks everyone for the direct feedback and opinions. Yes, there does appear to be a disconnect between Youtubers opinions and owners. It sounds like it will make a great daily driver and am looking forward to picking it up next week.

LemonTart said: Thanks folks, good info. Test driven today and deposit paid. I have agreed the top warranty, Platinum Plus, for 12 months so I can perhaps back to main dealer at that time if I wish. Although it's just over 5 years being a Jan '18 it's only done 22k, the second service was a bit late but has just been done but its had major one including brake fluid and two new front N rated tyres. Probably pick it up next Monday. Nice colour - enjoy the car!

I think you will love it. The front / back boot arrangement is magic (assuming that you may not already know this !) ... I had 2 x boxsters which always lived outside and were a pleasure to drive on every journey. It's also really nice enjoying a Porsche which is not designed to maximise speed and yet will do the comfort things as well as you could wish and be as fast as you may ever want in your every day

LemonTart said: Thanks folks, good info. Test driven today and deposit paid. I have agreed the top warranty, Platinum Plus, for 12 months so I can perhaps back to main dealer at that time if I wish. Although it's just over 5 years being a Jan '18 it's only done 22k, the second service was a bit late but has just been done but its had major one including brake fluid and two new front N rated tyres. Probably pick it up next Monday. Congratulations. They are brilliant cars. Enjoy

Picked it up this afternoon. Its very smart, alot more comfortable than the Yaris (i was getting rather tired of that) it handles, brakes, steers nicely and i put the roof down for the trip home. Sounds different than a flat 6 but that's the price of eco progress. Still got the old GT3 for a more exciting drives and road trips. The 718 will be perfect for commuting and general stuff. Overall very happy so far, thank you folks for your real world comments and assistance.

A pleasure if I helped, and while I've gone for Caymans throughout, I think you hit the nail firmly on the head. They are just great for everyday commuting and bimbling about, but are still proper sports cars when you want them to be. Looks lovely, hope you enjoy it for a good long while. Liam

Looks great. Coming from my 60k miles 2.0 owned from new, I have to say they are pretty reliable in my experience. I won't name names, but you can ignore the usual troll accounts on here spewing the usual bile about the F4, it's actually a pretty good engine- even my 981 owning colleague was quite surprised after being given a lift, having read so much forum nonsense. Acceleration is great for real world use and the handling is just exceptional, very little can match it.

Nice feedback. Hope the Beemer is good.

End of term report. After a couple of difficulties I sold the Boxster to WBAC for £25.6k. A fair chunk down from the £40k I paid for it but I didn’t have a 100% confidence in it to sell it privately for a bit more. During my two years of ownership I increased the mileage by just over 21k miles to 42k miles. I enjoyed the car pretty much every trip including a lovely trip down to Austria and an early run up the Grosglockner a very fine and early July morning. The car felt light and nimble, was responsive, comfortable and handled well and at 32mpg pretty economical. I even liked the PDK but never really liked the paddles but liked using the gearstick to shift up and down the gears almost instantly. Other things.. The fan got stuck a few times but could be spun free in a few minutes, first time I did it I noticed some of the plastic lugs on the plenum box were broken so someone had done this before. I hit a pot hole (more like a 4” deep trench in the tarmac) at about 50mph and that buckled two wheels and knocked it all out of alignment, 2 trips to ATS but in the end it had to go to Centre Gravity to get it right again. I ended up with big over steer on the exit of a wet roundabout which was a surprise.. the rears went from ok to smooth very quickly, during my mileage I finished off a half worn pair and another set of Pirelli N rated rears in the end swapping to Conti 7s which seemed much grippier in the wet. It did seem to get through rear tyres quicker than I ever expected, the front Pirelli N rated never seemed to wear. I had a stone damaged windscreen which needed replacing but that was smooth with Autoglass via my insurance company. The biggest car issue was I had a starting problem appear, blooming thing would just click when the key was turned when hot never from cold. I ended up changing the battery, then next time a relay in the boot, then the strap on the battery in the end it was the tracker causing it not to start. I spent a fair bit of time and four figures chasing that around but was pretty sure it was resolved in the end, but by then I was disillusioned with it so sold it and bought a 9 month and 3k mile old BMW M240i just because I need my daily to be reliable. Overall I really liked it, I even didn’t mind the 4 cylinder noises it made and had the starting issue not appeared I would still have it and would be enjoying the sunny days roof down. Edited by LemonTart on Friday 2nd May 21:34