Good deal on a Boxster?

[Rot 911]

My wife really wants a Boxster, but I don't really want to put out a ton of money on one. Found one about 60 miles from here that sounds like it may be worth looking at. I have the Porsche 911 World article on what to look for in a Boxster, but thought I would run it through this board as I consider you guys to be brutally honest.

1998 Boxster, 42K miles, silver exterior with what dealer calls "burnt orange or tan" leather interior. Has new clutch. Apparently clutch went out at the dealership and they payed $1200.00 to replace it. Unfortunately replaced at a local garage so not sure how good the job was. On the other hand the dealer is more than willing to let me go talk to the guy that did the work. Not sure about service records. Local previous owner that they will give me phone number to call if I want to. Dealer is not a Porsche Dealer. Keep in mind there are no Porsche mechanics (except me) within 150 miles of here so I will be the one deciding if the car is a good deal or not.

Now the interesting part, the price. They are asking $21,888 and from what I have seen that seems to be way below what 98 Boxsters are going for.

So what advice do you guys have? What should I be looking for when I go to see it? Is the '98 known for any common problems?
Is '98 a bad year for a Boxster?

[Dantilla]

you can find 97's in the high teens if you look around, but there were some upgrades for 98 that make them more desirable.

If the car is in good shape, it sounds like a good deal, but probably not the steal of a lifetime.

[MuffinMan]

Porsche Pete's Boxster Board (PPBB) is probably a better place to ask this question, but to answer it here the 98's don't have any alarming maladies. The major thing to look for a leaking RMS (Rear Main Seal). Crawl underneath and look for any seaping oil between the engine and the transmission. Chances are if it isn't leaking by 4X k miles, it is fine. Some engines were machined out of spec, and I believe they also came out with an updated seal to fix the problem. If it exists, it's roughly $800 to repair, from what I hear. There was an issue with faulty seatbelt receptacle sensors, and Porsche issued a TSB for cars that showed the fault in the computer. Oh, and check the rear window for scratches and cracking.

As far as price, I often look at ebay as a guideline. The selling prices are usually around market wholesale, perhaps a touch above. Autotrader.com is also a great place to reference for prices. I haven't followed the Boxster market since purchasing mine early last year, so any input I have on the asking price would just be a swag.

[nostatic]

that isn't a ragin' price...seems to be about the market these days, although there are people asking a lot more. If it is clean and checks out though, should be a fun car.

[gregk1]

there is a 97 in the seattle PI today at around 18k with 35k miles on it

[atlporsche]

I offered a dealer 15 for a silver with turquoise interior.....BLECH....the guy actually asked "what would it take for you to be color blind?"

LOL!!!

I had fun test driving it....

sjd

[Zeke]

Give the Boxster board here a chance. Yes, low traffic, and this isn't helping. I'll reply over there if this is moved or you cross post.

[s_wilwerding]

I haven't had one problem with my 1998 - no RMS, nothing. 1998 is actually a pretty good year - they fixed a lot of the niggling problems from 97, and the RMS problems generally came on the later ones. Plus, any 98s that still run well are pretty much "over the hump" as far as problems.

$22K is not a great price, unless the car is optioned out. I'd offer $20-21K.

[RickM]

Originally posted by Kurt V
Has new clutch. Apparently clutch went out at the dealership and they payed $1200.00 to replace it.

Hmmm, mechanics use the car at lunch?...if we only knew.

Did you run a Carfax? Always good to exclude the obvious up front.

[Elombard]

I would not worry about the clutch job I think Panorama did a thing on that repair and it is amazingly simple. I agree, decent price but not the steal of the century. I love that color combo on the boxster - I believe the interior is like a base ball glove. Very cool.