Quote:
Originally Posted by JBaez
Guys,
your comments are fantastic. The everyday super car. The other day I was the light and someone asked if the car was new. (it's 8 years oldd) but the design difference between the new and the old from the rear for non Porsche people may be somewhat difficult to tell. I was curious about everyday running and had a question about start up. I have been advised that when starting cold, the 996 / Boxster has about a second or two of light tapping in the lifters until the oil circulates. Do you guys encounter this on first start up? It's only for about a second or so. I am running Mobil 1 0-40. Has anyone heard how long the alternators last? Mine is in good shape but it would be good to note. MyKnot, your car looks exactly like mine on the interior except the white face gauges. Gorgeous and comfy for every day use. What kind of tires is everyone running? I would be curious what tires get the most mileage out of them and what kind of wear you have experienced with yours. My new goal is to run this think 1 million miles and walk into a dealer one day and see if they will give me a new one  I drive about 30k miles a year so I have ways to go |
I have to agree that the color of that car looks superb!
I get asked whether mine's new all the time. People seem amazed when I tell then it's a 2002. That said I have noticed that the quality of everything on these cars, from sheet metal to paint and interior materials, is very noticable when compared to a 'normal' car. I think it is this quality which prevents one from seeing the effects of everyday wear and tear, hence the new apperance compare to say a Ford of the same year/mileage.
I haven't noticed the tapping on start-up to be honest - I'll pay more attention. I run the factory recommended Mobil 0W-40. From what I have read you should stick with that even if you do have to buy 9 seperate quart bottles.
My alternator lasted to about 70k miles. It might be worth mentioning that the alternator itself was fine and all I replaced was the regulator. I did this myself and it was very easy. All up cost was less than $80. The symptoms were that the charge voltage would drop off once the engine comaptment started heating up. It would only take two or three minutes from a cold start to see it dropping significantly. After fifteen minutes it was hardly charging at all and had dragged the battery voltage down to about 11.5 volts. I know it was temerature dependent as at a steady freeway speed the voltage would start to creep up again if I opened up the rear spoiler. With the freshly replaced regulator I am now getting a steady 14.0 - 13.8 V again. (I will do a quick write-up to post here during the week if anyone is interested - it's useful information).
On to tires - My car came fitted with Kumho Ectsa's when I bought it (used). Since then I have put almost 20k miles on it and the tires are still OK. They are getting close to needing replacement, but I have been very happy with their wear rate. Grip seems fine although I have never explored the limits of grip of these. I think it is safe to say that it is well beyong what I would be comfortable with on the public road from what I've experienced so far. I'm undecided over the replacements. Half tempted to go with one more pair of Kumho's on the rear until the fronts wear out and then I'll probably swith to the Conti's as being as they are a Porsche approved and OEM tire.
Good luck with your goal! My only piece of advice is this; If you are comfortable doing a lot of your own repairs then it is going to save you a huge amount of money. Personally I use original or OEM parts most of which are available from our host. None of the things that I have had to do on my car have been difficult but I think I'd have been lucky to get out of the dealer without a significantly lighter wallet on any one of them.