buying a damaged 2001 boxster?

[twsarch]

I am considering buying a damaged 01 boxster. Damaged is the only way I may afford one. It was hit in the front driver’s side but I think it looks worse than it is. I am considering buying this as a DIY driveway repair and was looking for any comments and suggestions from members, including what you think the car may be worth, has 50K on the clock (assuming all else is ok, there is a small tear in the rear top vision panel). see atached photos. I have done things like this in the past on American cars from the ’70. Thanks

[geoff]

I have an '01 Boxster that I bought used in late 2001 for a healthy chunk of change. It now has just over 67K miles and has been a wonderful car. I have no intention of getting rid of it. It runs perfect, but has a few rock chips in front because I drive it. I figure I could probably realistically hope to get about $9 to $13K if I was going to sell it. Molested cars are worth less.

From your pictures, it looks like you're looking at several thousand dollars in parts even if you go through Sunset for a great deal and buy some parts used. Front bumper cover, radiator, fender, mounting parts and who knows what else. Porsche parts can be expensive, even at a discount. Even if you restore it perfectly, the engine could crap out at any time depending on how the car was maintained, so definitely get a pre-purchase inspection on the mechanicals before you buy. Unless you're getting the car for next to nothing, you might want to shop around for a better car that doesn't need much work. Heck, if you're getting the car for next to nothing, grab it, part it out to some of the spec Boxster racers, and use the proceeds to buy something in one piece that runs.

[saxman61]

It looks pretty good..(You might have to check to see if the frame is bent.. it could be a write-off.). If it is secure it really doesnt look that bad.. do not purchase parts from the dealer unless you have to.. It will be costly because the part might have to be brought in from the germany plant.. junk yards on occasion do get porsches.. you will have to get a repair manual.. It's a car and DIY should be no probs, for alignment of headlights follow the manual and alignment of the front wheels should get done by a professional.

[twsarch]

Thanks for the replies. If I wind up with this car my plan was to get used parts (already have some price info from a breaker in CA, but no shipping cost yet) bolt it together then have a body shop check the alignment points and adjust as needed. I would then remove the fender and bumper cover again and send them out to get painted (unless the used parts match, I had that happen one time before with a door on a ford!). Any paint required under the exterior skin I will do myself, I have painted a few cars before but don’t have a decent place to do something like that at the moment. To help speed up finical recovery from this project, I may skip repairing the AC until latter; it’s a soft top after all. Does anyone know where to get a shop manual without spending thousands?

Nothing will happen with this until I get the thing up on a lift to look at the undercarriage; the seller has agreed to do this.

I hope to get more comments on this if anyone wants to chime in, thanks

[twsarch]

BTW, from breaker:

Front Bumper is $350 (only 2 in stock)

Front Driver side fender $350

Inner fender liner $75

$250 Amber Headlight

$450 Clear

$900 Xenon/clear

$150 Condenser brackets

Yes, I know some things are missing, side marker light for example

Edited October 13, 2010 by twsarch

[twsarch]

Here are some more photos

[Loren]

I would look for cracks (or hairline cracks) in the upper and lower suspension control arms - and tie rods.

Is this a salvage title car? If so, you should realize it may be hard to re-license and/or sell.

[twsarch]

If I buy the car I was going to do a Fluorescent UV Dye Penetrant Crack test on the suspension components and mounting points on the hit side. Kits for that cost something like $60 plus a UV light (I already have a UV light from the last time). One kit should do one suspension corner. It’s not a lab test but better than an educated guess. If something is cracked, I’ll have to replace it.

I am chasing down the title now. The car is at a used car dealer; as far as I can figure they got it with a “lot” of cars and didn’t really want it, I am not sure and a bit suspicious. They don’t have the title yet. I am almost hoping it is a salvage title, if so I can bargain the price down more, at the moment I can’t really afford any of this so it may make or break the deal. I see an opportunity to obtain a car I always wanted on the cheap so I am investigating giving it a try. Except for the hit it’s a pretty clean 2001 car with 51K miles on it. I could never afford one like this without the damage. I am hoping “sweat equity” on my part will make owning a car like this possible.

Anyway, a salvage title will only add about $300 to the cost of getting it registered here in NY State and will require a trailer trip to a state inspection station. It will make it worth less if and when it’s time to sell it but I am not trying this to make a buck, I want a Porsche to drive to work on nice days. My commute includes twisty mountain roads along the Hudson River that were made for this car, and I wanted some sort of Porsche since I was 9 years old.

[geoff]

... Does anyone know where to get a shop manual without spending thousands?

Check out the Bentley Boxster Service Manual from the Renntech Amazon store

[phillipj]

Good luck.. I hope this works out for you. I think we all know about wanting a Porsche since we were 9 years old lol! :clapping:

[twsarch]

Good luck.. I hope this works out for you. I think we all know about wanting a Porsche since we were 9 years old lol! :clapping:

Unfortunately my wife never wanted a Porsche. “You have money for an unpractical car? We need a dining room set” we don’t even have a dining room, eat-in kitchen. We are kind of broke but if you waited till you could afford everything you will never get it.

I took another look at the car last night in the dark and started it up for a bit. It looks like the radiator bracket didn’t even get damaged, a little hard to tell with the damaged condenser and radiator stuck to it. I hope I didn’t run it too long in case the coolant is empty, it was leaking some. Just waiting on the title to see what state that is in to start haggling with the seller. They want $9950, I think it is worth $7000 tops with a clear title, I’ll start at $5500 (if my wife will give me the $$). The interior is a bit rough, looks like the previous owner had a dog that needed nails trimmed.

[whall]

Check with Pelican Parts and Sunset Porsche. They have had factory manuals on sale in the recent past in the $250 -$300 price range.

Bill

[saxman61]

... Does anyone know where to get a shop manual without spending thousands?

Check out the Bentley Boxster Service Manual from the Renntech Amazon store

Here is a site to find the area your looking for..

http://www.cannell.co.uk/Manuals.htm B)

[aron in toronto]

Good luck.. I hope this works out for you. I think we all know about wanting a Porsche since we were 9 years old lol! :clapping:

Unfortunately my wife never wanted a Porsche. "You have money for an unpractical car? We need a dining room set" we don't even have a dining room, eat-in kitchen. We are kind of broke but if you waited till you could afford everything you will never get it.

I took another look at the car last night in the dark and started it up for a bit. It looks like the radiator bracket didn't even get damaged, a little hard to tell with the damaged condenser and radiator stuck to it. I hope I didn't run it too long in case the coolant is empty, it was leaking some. Just waiting on the title to see what state that is in to start haggling with the seller. They want $9950, I think it is worth $7000 tops with a clear title, I'll start at $5500 (if my wife will give me the $). The interior is a bit rough, looks like the previous owner had a dog that needed nails trimmed.

At that price it doesn't seem worth it. As an owner of a '97, it pains me to say it, but you should be able to find a clean car for less that what they are asking for this one.

From a quick look at your photos it looks like the front tub may have been pushed toward the passengers side. If this is the case, you'll need to have the "frame" pulled back into shape and this requires a specialized jig to bring everything back into spec. These jigs, Celetteis is the maker most Porsche specialty shops use, are $$$ to get access to unless you know someone with one (and they owe you a favor).

Before you go to far with this one, look around to see what nice running Boxsters are going for. You may be surprised. :)

[twsarch]

Thanks for the advice. I have been looking around for others. It looks to me like the tub is straight but I have been looking for a shop that will put it up on a jig for me, so far I cant find one that will do it unless they do all the work, its all or nothing. The appeal of this one to me is if I can get it for a cheap price I can collect parts over the winter as I find them and spread out the cost. The first part will be the radiator assembly, I found one with the bracket and AC condenser. I would do that one first just so I can move the thing around my driveway. But anyway, this one is not looking as good as it was a few days ago.

[twsarch]

Aron, how are these things in the snow?

[aron in toronto]

Aron, how are these things in the snow?

They are fine in the snow as long as you have snow tires installed. The limiting factor is their low ground clearance. In my area of Central Toronto the city does not clear the majority of side streets and what snow we do get tends to stay around for quite a while. The residential streets end up filled with chunks of ice that have fallen off other vehicles and street parking becomes scarce with all the surplus snow accumulation.

I will say (and many will disagree) that other cars, including my Volvo V70- and a Mazda CX9 also equipped with snow tires, handle much better in the sloppy stuff.

Without snow tires my Boxster barely makes it out of my driveway if there is more than a 1/4" of snow on the ground.

Aron

Edited October 15, 2010 by aron in toronto

[twsarch]

I was wondering, I never drove any Porsche in bad weather and as you know I am trying to buy one. 15 or 20 years ago I didn’t have a place to work on cars so I was going to use a friend’s garage. He had a modified trans-am at the time, the thing made over 400 HP and depending on the gears in the rear would hit 200 MPH. When we tried to back it out of his garage so I could get my car in to work on it those big fat performance tires hit 3” of snow they just spun, it was going nowhere. It was just as easy to push the car with the engine off as on. My car was a ford escort, it was fine in the snow, had snow tires.

I looked at the banged boxster today and was talking to the owner of the dealer. He agrees it is worth between $5 and $7K as it is. It needs a power steering pump in addition to the body work. If my wife gives me the OK I will make him an offer starting with $5K and I think I will go up to $6200 or so. I think my wife never thought it would go this far and is having second thoughts, I am waiting for her to call. The seller sent the car off to a body shop to get it fixed, that’s actually where I looked at it today. He says I have until they order the parts some time Monday to make an offer. The guy at the body shop says the tub is straight and it’s all bolt on stuff.

[twsarch]

So close but yet so far. I could have obtained this car for $6K, and put just over $2K in parts into it, and I tracked down all the parts as far as I can tell. This is not including paint, but I would have driven it with mismatched colors if I had to, at least for a while “red-neck Porsche”? But unfortunately my wife isn’t on board with the project so that’s that. Too bad, the car had practicality brand new Michelin pilots on it too. Rats.

[vipola]

Your project abborded, but I think everything happens for a reason, and It may be just a good thing, if you plan your stuff you could probably buy a good shape one within the next few years.. cheer up a bit.. :)

keep in mind that things can go wrong very fast with a damaged car (specially high-end like porsche)..

a P-car handle very well, but NOT IF it's not perfectly straight and alligned..

Maybe your simple math make you think it's a deal.. but if you have any little problem at the end of your project it can grow easily by multiple 100$ and 1000$ at the time..

that damaged car is a waste of time and probably of money.. It's a Gamble.. a dealer can take a gamble, they won't get bancrupt it it cost 3-4K$ more than they tought.. theyw ill just know better next time.. how about you??

You really don't want to end up with a 9K$ Trashed P-Car Brick in your drive way that you can't drive because there is more damage to it that you could afford repairing.. :P

I would'nt buy a car like that to fix it.. to much thing out of your control can go wrong.. even if you really BELIVE into your project and want it to work..

Save up over the winter.. and the next year, take that 6K$ + 2K$ + shipping + Paint + inspections + maybe suspension + alignement + 22L of Coolant + little fee for this + little fee for that + other little fee.. + all the time you'll spend on that.. If you got that much free time get yourself a part-time job to buy your dream car..

Take all that and buy a car in good condiition next fall.. a car that you will buy and be able to enjoy from day one.. for almost the same price but way less trouble..

for the price boxster goes these days, specially in the U.S.

Wait a bit, and buy a better car for your money :)

Keep in mind that the 'acquisition' of a P-Car is just the starting point of the $.. Gas.. Tires.. brakes.. Maintenance.. Insurance!.. Repairs on a 10 year old car that you don't know the story.. you need to have a little extra money in case something happend.. If you don't have the money right now to enjoy it there is no point of putting yourself in that situationa P-Car is supposed to be MINT.. Nice and in Good shape.. no point of riding in a miss-mached boxster that hold with tie-raps and duck tape..

This been said.. Never give up your dreams, and I wish you a P-Car for Xmas next year :)

good luck :)

(Just my opinion)

Edited November 2, 2010 by vipola

[twsarch]

Yea, it may be a good thing after all. I now the engines in these are iffy and if I got a lower priced higher mileage car that I could possibly afford, I think I would change the IMS bearing myself and just drive it and hope for the best, after all this will basically be a toy and if it blows it will have to sit a while. I will pretty much expect the engine to go at some point and to be ready; I have been exchanging email with Jake Raby about engine options. good info to have if I find one with a bad engine from the start too. If I find one like that tomorrow I can get one of his “prepped and inspected” used engines (about $8K more or less depending) and send him the one from the car as a core. This can take all winter if it needs to.

[twsarch]

Update: the dealer had this car fixed and listed it for sale with a clean title and no accident listed on car-fax. If I remember correctly they were asking about $15K. it did sell but I don’t know for how much