Just Bought One!

Ouzo12 · 02-02-2008, 02:56 PM

Went to the Mini dealership thinking I was getting a new Cooper S. So I was going to have to get used to FWD and a rather high car payment. Taking a break from the negotiations I saw a white 02 Boxster in the lot with 30K on the clock. With a little help from a friend with connections I able to get it for
20K. Its white with beige top, 1 lady owner, all maintanence and its a manual. I still cant believe I have a Porsche in the drive way.

So what should my mod be? Im leaning torwards an exhaust. Whats the insight on strut braces. Im probably gonna get Ruf pedals bc thats all I can afford from that catalogue. Thanks guys, enjoy the weekend.

Buckterrier · 02-02-2008, 06:03 PM

First time visting this board but congrats! You must post pictures though.

Ouzo12 · 02-02-2008, 06:14 PM

Thanks I appreciate it. I was always on the aircooled forum gaining knowledge in anticipation of a Carrera purchase. I still intend to get into an aircooled 911 one of these days when the bank account increases(not any time soon) but for now I cant stop driving this thing. I have a smile from ear to ear!!! Just need to find a nice exhaust that wont break the bank.

Doug&Julie · 02-03-2008, 07:54 AM

Great find! We've got to see pics!

Whatever you do, don't sell your Boxster to get a 911...wait until you can afford both. Trust me!

Can't help you much with mods...I was always find with stock. Although I did update my second '99 with and '03 front bumper and all clear lenses. It looked sharp! I wouldn't bother with a strut brace. Most bolts ons don't really offer any appreciable hp increase, but a new exhaust might give you a different sound.

Enjoy that car!

Ouzo12 · 02-03-2008, 08:51 AM

I bought a 2year warranty for it too just in case. But I did notice that clutch makes a ratcheting sound when being depresed and on take up. Hope its not anything major. The dealer is going to go through the car on Sat. to make sure everything is ok. Cant wait to take it to the Blue Ridge Parkway!!!

JMatta · 02-03-2008, 08:53 AM

Congrats on the new Boxster...I hope you'll enjoy it for many years to come. As Doug said, don't bother with strut braces and such; they'll only lighten your wallet and add nothing to your car. Boxsters are designed with way more handling capablilty than 95% of the drivers can handle. If you must mod, then do the things that add sound pleasure, such as exhaust and intake. Remember, interior/exterior mods are in the eye of the beholder. In most cases, if Porsche felt the mods were necessary, they would have incorporated them into the design.

Doug&Julie · 02-03-2008, 04:16 PM

Sweet.

Geez I miss my Boxster(s)...

HardDrive · 02-03-2008, 07:59 PM

Congrats!

I am going to be putting my 02 Boxster up for sale this week....so I can buy an 06!

I have spent 2 years with my 02, and it is a fantastic car. For street use, there really is nothing to tweak on the suspension. Its fantastic. And exhaust will give it a more agressive sound. I always thought my car was a bit too quiet, but it really does sound nice outside the car. A dealer took my car to inspect it over the weekend, and I was suprised to hear that it really does have a muffled snarl if you tap the throttle. You can't hear it in the cabin.

I have had precisely ZERO mechanical issues with my car in 2 years.

A few notes:

-You might hear some creaks from the convertable top frame. They all do that.
-The black inserts in the roll bar (the ones right behind your head) can rattle. Take them out and line the edge with black electrical tape.
-Like any other flat six, a boxster can puff some blue smoke on start up once in a while. They all do that.
-If your car is ever running rough or stumbling, clean the MAF (Mass Air Flow) sensor. 10 minutes can save you a trip the dealer and fix the problem immediately. All modern cars can suffer if the MAF is dirty, and the boxster is no exception.
-If you get an engine light, and everything is running fine, try tightening the gas cap until you hear it click. It might take a little while before the light goes off.

ENJOY! You just bought a car great car!

Mike Navarro · 02-09-2008, 08:19 PM

Congrats on your Boxster. You mentioned a different exhaust. If you want, loud, throaty and 911 sounding, go with GHL (but be warned there is a lot of resonance between 2,000-3,000 RPM) I had one and the sound was great, but my wife couldn't stand the resonance and none of my passengers liked it so I got rid of it.

I settled on a factory Porsche Sports Exhaust and removed my "snorkle". Great combination and perfect sound. If you can find one used, you can get it at a good price. Best of luck!

Mike

Rick V · 02-10-2008, 03:29 AM

Forget the mods at first. get some seat time and bond with your car. You will find the car to be set up very well out of the box. And to second Doug, don't sell the Boxster to get a 911. Enjoy both. Just look at my sig and you will know I know what I'm talking about. My only regret about my Boxster is it is the wifes DD and I don't get to spend too much time with it.

Ouzo12 · 02-10-2008, 05:57 PM

I am not really looking to alter the character of the car too much. It is so quiet and refined that it makes a very good daily driver. But it takes one nicely timed downshift to remind you that this is a sports car, I love that. The door rattles I wont ever love though

But I have ordered a SuperSprint exhaust for it, I really think they make a quality kit. Ill keep you guys posted on the sound once I get it installed in 2 weeks. In the mean time I need to get the 30K service done and some other minor things. Have a great week.

96740 · 96740's Garage

Exhaust will give you the most joy IMO. That sound is pure joy. Congrats!

Brillo · Brillo's Garage

Congrats!

I'll echo what has been said. If you can have a 911 and a Boxster, it's great fun. Really different driving. I'm not big on mods either. I did however replace the taillights and side markers to eliminate the orange. I recently got the rear speakers and will be installing them soon. I have thought about doing something with the exhaust to make it sing a bit more.

Have fun and keep us updated.

Ron Cumiford · 02-15-2008, 02:54 PM

Congrats.
I am a former 993 body mod man who is now a Boxster nut. I always liked the Boxster handling but I drove a '98 with a 3.4 conversion, it also had 996 brakes, M030 suspension, Dansk exhaust, and bought it on the spot. It outperformed my '95 widebody 993-hands down. Sold the 993 to a guy in Norway.

Since the purchase I have become involved in the Boxster add-on business, built that boxster to a custom level and am currently building a 2000S with a 3.4 and body mods. I will be offering widebody rear treartments with several optional front treatments.

To answer your questions, you can do inumerable mods depending on your taste and pocketbook. If you want to keep the stock look but clean it up, I suggest you get the clear headlights, tail lights and rear brake light. You can also go with 18" or even 19" wheel packages which will enhance performance and looks.

From there you can go to front bumper treatments which are available in 996 stock, 996 GT2, 996 GT3, 996 turbo, 996 techart, 997 stock, 997 GT3, and various more expensive and upscale mods such as the complete 996 turbo front end, and, just new, the 997 stock and GT3 front end or the new 997 Techart front end. Most bumpers are available in fiberglass OR stocklike urethane.

Rocker treartments look striking on Boxsters and range from the GT2 or GT3 look to the Techart look. The latter is very transitional.

The rear end treatment is the ultimate macho look for the boxster and ours is 3 inches wider on each side with the '05 and newer air vents along with the '04 rear bumper with it's more stylish look and built-in defusers.

Finally you can top it off with the speedster humps which change the cars look dramatically.

On the performance end, strut braces aren't needed unless you are racing or running more power such as a 3.4 or larger and/or you have a more aggressive suspension and a very large tire package. On our 3.4 "Phat Bastard" we are running M030 suspention with 19"X12" rear wheels with 315/25/19 tires. We experienced a lot of body jiggle until we added a mid brace which quelled the problem. The front brace helped with power down to corners also.

On the exhaust, you can go with sound and/or performance. There are numerous muffler packages out there that will give you better sound but the headers are the best place to start as you can improve performance and sound. You have to be careful here as many aftermarket headers don't meet current smog needs and cause problems with the check engine light. We are running Dansk headers with a hollowed muffler in the Phat Bastard and it sounds a lot like a Ferrari. Those headers are 50 state legal and run about $900 from Vertex but you can currently get Schnell headers from Vertex on sale for $379. They are 50 state legal and similar in configuration and quality to Dansk. Figure 10-15 HP gain.

If you want to go crazy, you can add a 3.4 or even a 3.6 or 3.8 for the ultimate street midengine performance car.

I am including pictures of the '98 conversion known as the Phat Bastard to give you an example of the top of the line conversion. This car has a full stock OEM 996 turbo front conversion including xenon lights and a custom mesh grill with techart style rockers, speedster humps and our exclusive wide rear end. It is running a 3.4 996 motor with 996 brakes , M030 suspension, Dansk headers, and Avus 19" wheels. Interior is stock black with some carbon fiber accents, graphite grey door panels, center console, and seats.

The last two pics are of a pretty much stock early boxster with a 996 style turbo front bumper, techart style rockers, and a small spoiler. The front simply requires a bumper replacement. The lights and fenders are stock.

I can get you pics of numerous examples of custom treatments if you PM me your email and have specific requests.

Our website: phatbastardporsche.com will be up and running with pics and options in about a month if you are interested.

Ron Cumiford

DGW · 02-15-2008, 08:20 PM

Hi Ron, I thought I recognized your name. I bought sport seats from you a couple years ago for my SC, you had them recovered in dark brown leather. The seats are still gorgeous.
We bought a 2008 special edition Boxster a few months ago, #2. I haven't dumped the 911's, but the Boxster is our favorite car to drive.
Your car mods are pretty cool although I don't plan to do anything to mine.

Ouzo12 · 02-18-2008, 02:33 PM

Ron thanks for the picks. That 3.4 sounds very tempting in a 986, especially with some nice pipes on it. Im still waiting on installing the SuperSprint, evidently they are on back order from Italy. After that Im gonna keep it pretty stock so I can have a little reserve just in case anything comes up. I did take it on my first road trip this weekend, and my passenger commented on how comfortable it was, she was expecting a teeth rattling ride and no interior room(I think she liked the fact she was riding the a Boxster

)

BigChillWife · 02-18-2008, 07:59 PM

Nice!!!!

RideShoot&Drink · 03-08-2008, 03:39 PM

Wow...Ron, looks very nice. I've been looking at Boxsters myself lately. Are factory 996/GT2/GT3 bumpers bolt ons? Also, what do you think is the best platform to start with? Boxster, BoxsterS? Early Boxsters are cheap now and 3.4 or better 3.6 would be nice. I heard that S model has 6 speed, which is essentially 911 tranny and better brakes. Anyways, it'd be great to hear some thoughts from you. Thanks in advance.

Ron Cumiford · 03-10-2008, 02:16 PM

RideShoot&Drink,
Any stock 1999 through 2001 996 front bumper will directly bolt to any '97-'04 Boxster. From 2002 through 2004, the 996 went with the turbo headlights which requires the different lights and different fenders. That is the look you see on the Phat Bastard car pictured above.
For the 996 GT2,GT3, Turbo, Techart or even the 997GT3 look, we offer bolt up bumpers to the stock 1997-2994 Boxster with their stock lights and bumpers. We offer these in FRP or Polyurethane. You can figure about $1000 for FRP and a little more for polyurethane. Excellent fit. Shipping or labor and paint is extra. We will have our website up in about 2-3 weeks but if you need pics or more info you can email us at teutonics@cox.net or call for inquries at
619 591 9471.
I was a 911/993 man before driving these Boxsters with the 911 motors. The car is lighter and has the better mid engine dynamics. No stock 911 can stay with these cars-street or track. Also with our widebody kit, it looks better and more exotic than the 911. The Phat Bastard looks even better in person. The pics don't do it justice.
Really the top of the line way to go is to start with a Boxster S as you get the 911 brakes, better suspension, and a six speed. If you go this route with a 3.4 you need to find a 1999 -2001 e-gas 996 3.4 motor as all S's are e-gas. If you want a 3.6 or 3.8 it gets a lot more complicated as you need to upgrade the wiring harness and brain for the vario cam motor unless you go with an '03 or'04 S which I understand does not need this upgrade.
We ar currently building a 2000 S with a 3.4 and it runs great with the stock Boxster S brain.
If you want to go more basic, you can find an early Boxster for cheap and mate it with an appropriate 3.4 motor (normal or e-gas according to your donor car).
I am including a couple of pics with our 997 GT3, Techart, 996 GT2 and 996 Turbo front bumpers on stock Boxsters.

Ron
Teutonics