Anyone got a 981 Boxster (S)? I'm thinking about pulling the trigger (daily driver)

[scootermaster]

Short version = thread title.

If you're interested in how we got here -- and how if you keep waiting to buy a car, you'll spend ever-increasing amounts of money! -- keep reading

I've been ideating about buying a new car for the better part of two years. I currently have a 2001 Honda Accord v6 Coupe, but with only 95k on it (I work from home a lot).

My first thought was a BRZ. I remember the release reviews, and I was intrigued. I figured it'd be maybe $22,000ish for a used one. I sat in one, and it seemed like I didn't fit (I'm about 6'5", although more on this in a bit) so I gave up on it.

Then I started reading reviews of the 2013+ Accord v6 Coupe, and thought I'd try that out. Liked the styling, and the integration features (no CarPlay yet, however). Drove one, and was reasonably impressed. Figured a a used one would go for maybe $26,000ish

Then I started thinking a little bigger. Started looking at the 370z. Read reviews that said it was a pretty shitty daily driver, and one of its biggest downfalls was a lack of "modern" features (BT, iPhone integration, nav, etc.) Never drove one. That woulda been around $35k.

Then I went back and actually drove the BRZ (actually, that ugly yellow special edition FR-S, but same thing). Turns out, I fit in it. Also turns out, that whole "underpowered" thing is horribly true. Compared to the Accord, it just didn't move. Granted, I didn't get a chance to do what the car is good at, but I just wasn't impressed (although the thing certainly looks gorgeous).

So I started thinking about the Accord again.

But then I made the mistake of talking to my dad (who's an exotic car guy and cruises around in a newer Morgan Plus 8, among others, if anyone knows what that is). Long story short, I started thinking about a Cayman. Looked at some listings, and saw that I could do a reasonable one for around $40,000. I even went and drove one.

But I made a HUGE mistake and drove the Cayman S first, instead of starting at the base. Oops. It was a 2009, so not a 981, but still. The thing was pretty damn amazing.

Then, I saw a 330i Convertible and thought to myself, "Self, I bet you'd get more of a chance to make use of a convertible during your drive to work -- which is pretty much along the ocean in southern California -- than you would make use of whatever makes a Porsche a Porsche". In other words, I'd get more bang for my particular buck with a convertible. I figured an M3 was too pricey, but the 33Xi were around the same price ($45k-ish)

Then, I finally saw the 981. Soccer mom/"not a real Porsche" sentiment aside, I've never liked the styling of the previous Boxsters. They looked like cute little roadsters, which isn't my thing.

But the 981 changed that. It looks like a sports car that just happens to be a convertible. I'm digging it.

So here we are. I'm looking at 2013+ Boxsters, to get the best of all possible worlds (convertible, fast, Porsche, "new" features, etc.).

I need to test drive the base to see if I really "need" the S (before you start, you're right, nobody NEEDS the S, but some people want red calipers, right?)

Just wondering if anyone here wants to share there experiences, or offer comparable cars. No, I don't want an older 911. I'd LOVE a F-Type but that's probably too expensive, since there's no used market yet (this is why I'm not buying a Tesla). Same with some of the RC series Lexii. I'm not sold on a TTS (reliability) and I don't think the Z4 would keep up.

To be truthful, if I could wait until August, and maybe Suburu comes out with a OEM Turbo for the BRZ or something, that might make sense, given that'd it'd be half the price, but I don't know that I want to wait that long.

But I'm open to ideas. Thoughts?

(Thanks!)

 

[JulesMaximus]

Dude... you're all over the place. My advice to you would be to lay off the coffee.

And now that I have the humor out of the way, which will almost certainly earn me another infraction if not a vacation, I'd say that I think the 2013+ Boxster is a fantastic car and if you can afford it I'd say go for it! Everything else you're comparing it to is crap. Subaru BRZ? Seriously? Are you 15 years old?

 

[RichieZ]

I used to have a 2005 Z4, then a 2008 boxster and now a 2012.5 991 Carrera S

the boxster is fine as a daily driver if you don't need to carry a lot of stuff, one thing though is that is loud since the engine is right behind you and it has quite a bit of tire roar. watch out for the options b/c they add up fast, i have upwards of $25K, but the only ones that actually matter on the boxster are:
- infotainment package
- premium package plus

nice to haves:
- PSE
- PASM

 

[tortillasoup]

OP obviously loves spending money, why not lease a Tesla Model S? If he gets his hands on the performance dual motor version, he won't want any other vehicle.

 

[scootermaster]

I used to have a 2005 Z4, then a 2008 boxster and now a 2012.5 991 Carrera S

the boxster is fine as a daily driver if you don't need to carry a lot of stuff, one thing though is that is loud since the engine is right behind you and it has quite a bit of tire roar. watch out for the options b/c they add up fast, i have upwards of $25K, but the only ones that actually matter on the boxster are:
- infotainment package
- premium package plus

nice to haves:
- PSE
- PASM

RE: Options, I remember reading an article that sort of ran down which options they recommended and which were unnecessary. But I've read so many now (and on so many devices) I don't remember/can't find it.

Any idea?

 

[halik]

I like you taste, other than the accord v6 thing. The F types are gorgeous!

I would imagine boxster ends up being too small as a daily driver; I had a 911 for a couple years for that purpose and ended up selling it for an S8, due to the size thing. I also had an E46 m3 for while as a daily driver and that one proved to be a lot more practical, albeit with a hasher ride.

 

[halik]

OP obviously loves spending money, why not lease a Tesla Model S? If he gets his hands on the performance dual motor version, he won't want any other vehicle.

Leasing is a waste of money and you can't really use a tesla as the only vehicle? If you have 100K budget on a car, you don't have 12 hours to waste on a 3-400mile on a road trip. (if you're one of those people that makes 70K and leases a tesla, because elon musks twitter told you to, you're just an idiot... but that's besides the point).

 

[MongGrel]

Someone on my drive home from work has a Porsche like that for sale that I noticed, just parked near the road.

I look a lot, then think about it and tell myself no I guess

They are nice looking.

 

[tortillasoup]

Leasing is a waste of money and you can't really use a tesla as the only vehicle? If you have 100K budget on a car, you don't have 12 hours to waste on a 3-400mile on a road trip. (if you're one of those people that makes 70K and leases a tesla, because elon musks twitter told you to, you're just an idiot... but that's besides the point).

It doesn't take 12 hours to charge a car at a super charger station. It takes only half an hour to get 170 miles of charge. Also in the future, you'll be able to upgrade the battery packs to something that takes more charge and probably charges faster as well. Most people don't do road trips in their vehicles anyhow. As for talking about wasting money on a lease, OP obviously doesn't care about money and thats why he keeps talking about stupid expensive vehicles with poor resale value. At least the Tesla is guaranteed 50% resale value.

 

[halik]

It doesn't take 12 hours to charge a car at a super charger station. It takes only half an hour to get 170 miles of charge. Also in the future, you'll be able to upgrade the battery packs to something that takes more charge and probably charges faster as well. Most people don't do road trips in their vehicles anyhow. As for talking about wasting money on a lease, OP obviously doesn't care about money and thats why he keeps talking about stupid expensive vehicles with poor resale value. At least the Tesla is guaranteed 50% resale value.

Most people don't do road trips? I assume you're referring to the weight average trip distance (~10 miles) which is somewhat akin to fording a river that's on average 3ft deep. Per my original argument, having a Tesla as your only vehicle exposes you to the tails of that distribution - I don't see why you'd spend $100K on a car that you'll need a rental the time you're going long distance or waste a bunch of time planning a trip around waiting for supercharging stations. If you have the money, you don't have the time and vice versa.

Also I can already tell you're one of the Musk marketing nutters - the average residual value for a leased car is ~50%, so having a 50% "guarantee" is nothing more than a marketing gimmick. And what may or may not happen in the future isn't exactly a compelling argument to buy something now...

 

[tortillasoup]

Most people don't do road trips? I assume you're referring to the weight average trip distance (~10 miles) which is somewhat akin to fording a river that's on average 3ft deep. Per my original argument, having a Tesla as your only vehicle exposes you to the tails of that distribution - I don't see why you'd spend $100K on a car that you'll need a rental the time you're going long distance or waste a bunch of time planning a trip around waiting for supercharging stations. If you have the money, you don't have the time and vice versa.

Also I can already tell you're one of the Musk marketing nutters - the average residual value for a leased car is ~50%, so having a 50% "guarantee" is nothing more than a marketing gimmick. And what may or may not happen in the future isn't exactly a compelling argument to buy something now...

Have you looked at the map of superchargers? They're littered across the country and if you look at the future map, they'll really be covering the whole country. You focus on what I'd consider to be a minor problem, the potential of wanting to drive across the country and not wait more than 10-20 minutes to charge your vehicle for FREE I might add. Doing long road trips like that is an unusual driving pattern for most people's driving habits. For $100K, you can get a car that is so significantly different and faster than anything on the road, it's an experience unlike any other. This isn't me suggesting OP buy a Nissan leaf or some low range, not a really special driving experience but a Telsa Model S.

The cars OP has listed aren't exactly highway cruisers nor are they vehicles you'd want to take a road trip in so I think your point about road trips is rather stupid.

 

[halik]

Have you looked at the map of superchargers? They're littered across the country and if you look at the future map, they'll really be covering the whole country. You focus on what I'd consider to be a minor problem, the potential of wanting to drive across the country and not wait more than 10-20 minutes to charge your vehicle for FREE I might add. Doing long road trips like that is an unusual driving pattern for most people's driving habits. For $100K, you can get a car that is so significantly different and faster than anything on the road, it's an experience unlike any other. This isn't me suggesting OP buy a Nissan leaf or some low range, not a really special driving experience but a Telsa Model S.

The cars OP has listed aren't exactly highway cruisers nor are they vehicles you'd want to take a road trip in so I think your point about road trips is rather stupid.

Wow fanboi city here.

Future map ought to play very little role in your decision making when it comes to usability of something you spend $100K today.

Similarly, cost of gas/ free charging doesn't really matter to someone spending $100K on car. My S8 gets ~12mpg city and maybe 22mpg on a highway and the far bigger upside is I can do detroit-chicago and halfway back before i need to stop, year around, stuck in snow storm etc etc.

Having to play around with the route due superchargers/weather/whatever is way bigger deterrent. Especially when it comes to winter conditions, that's a completely killer for anyone in the midwest.

Also as far as competition, both the M5 and S7 are faster than than the Tesla (other than the awd one, that's stupid fast and competes with the RS7s), despite all the bullshit videos you see. The only real upside i see the cargo space on the Tesla is awesome and I guess the electric novelty that doesn't really matter to people with money. The interior on them is so-so from what I've hear.

 

[tortillasoup]

Wow fanboi city here.

Future map ought to play very little role in your decision making when it comes to usability of something you spend $100K today.

Similarly, cost of gas/ free charging doesn't really matter to someone spending $100K on car. My S8 gets ~12mpg city and maybe 22mpg on a highway and the far bigger upside is I can do detroit-chicago and halfway back before i need to stop, year around, stuck in snow storm etc etc.

Having to play around with the route due superchargers/weather/whatever is way bigger deterrent. Especially when it comes to winter conditions, that's a completely killer for anyone in the midwest.

Also as far as competition, both the M5 and S7 are faster than than the Tesla (other than the awd one, that's stupid fast and competes with the RS7s), despite all the bullshit videos you see. The only real upside i see the cargo space on the Tesla is awesome and I guess the electric novelty that doesn't really matter to people with money. The interior on them is so-so from what I've hear.

But why would you not buy the AWD version? The premium is like $4K and you get improved range. You point out your horrible fuel economy in your shitbox but that's ok because you can go from detroit to chicago by filling up with gasoline for 10 minutes or so, going between two places I never want to be. But the rest of the time, your vehicle will be a high cost maintenance nightmare and will cost significantly more to own over the lifetime than even a $100K Tesla. You will not own your vehicle longer than 7 years because it will be prohibitively expensive to do so and wouldn't be worth it. Enjoy your eurotrash vehicle.

You really have no right to be calling me a fanboy when I was simply defending the Tesla but you've basically regressed this discussion to attacks so I feel I should reply in kind by pointing out the pimping of your $110K+ eurotrash vehicle like as if it's superior to a Nissan Leaf. Faster than a Nissan leaf? sure, but more reliable? I don't think so. Meanwhile one can buy a Tesla Model S AWD and they'll get the reliability of an Electric car with the performance of a super car with a fairly reasonable price to boot.

 

[scootermaster]

It doesn't take 12 hours to charge a car at a super charger station. It takes only half an hour to get 170 miles of charge. Also in the future, you'll be able to upgrade the battery packs to something that takes more charge and probably charges faster as well. Most people don't do road trips in their vehicles anyhow. As for talking about wasting money on a lease, OP obviously doesn't care about money and thats why he keeps talking about stupid expensive vehicles with poor resale value. At least the Tesla is guaranteed 50% resale value.

So anyone who spends money means they don't care about it?

Do you know what money is used for? Goods and services. Some goods are handy, like food and whatnot. Some services are nice to have too, like, y'know, energy and running water. But once you've got that covered, then it just really amounts to what good/services you choose to purchase.

Just because I have money, doesn't mean I don't care about it. I'm not going to imply you don't have any, because I've never met you, and unlike some morons -- i.e. you -- I'm not the sort to make assumptions about a person I've never even met.

Suffice it to say that I care very much about money, and have acquired enough to where I can by a Boxster -- pay cash, even! -- if I want one. And you know what? I think I might want one! Life is for living, no?

At any rate, back to the car...this: http://www.stasales.com/vehicle-details/2013-porsche-boxster-s-4ee2e85e3bb2564e84d9c658bcfc1853/ seems like a decent option. It actually has MORE options than I think I need/want (I'm thinking 19" wheels might be a decent compromise for ride, and I'm pretty sure from what I've read I don't need PSM if I'm not gonna track it. Headlights, convenience/audio options and park assist seem nice. Sport Chrono is intriguing, but buying a used one without it may be better, since you'd know the previous owner didn't abuse the launch button. :-D

Anyway, I thought I read some article awhile back on the 981s that detailed which options made "sense". For example, they unequivocally said skip the fancy brakes; that even if you track the car, the normal brakes are fine. I think they suggested that PASM was a bit of a waste too; the Sport+ mode wasn't really suitable for daily driving. I don't remember their stance on PTV, and I think they said Sport Chrono was nice to have, even if you're not going to track.

I know that's not a lot to go on, but for whatever reason, I can't seem to find that post. I should probably stop deleting my browser history every time I look at pr0n.


Edit: Enough of the Tesla vs. Not Tesla stuff. I'd love to have one, and no, I don't think "road trips" is any reason not to buy one. I just think that $55,000 is probably enough to spend on a car. I can spend $90,000 on my next one. :-D

 

[nk215]

you don't drive a lot, why not just get a Accord.

I personally would go with the Lexus. If that's my only car.

I would not buy a Model S (and I have no problem affording one). I've known people with model S and they get screwed with the repair costs for minor accidents/incidents. So far, insurances make it right but it's only the matter of time before their policies get canceled (directly or indirectly). There's not a lot of choices when it come to body work for Tesla aluminum body.

I love the idea of plug-in. I'll take a look at the Chevy Bolt or the Model 3 (must investigate the repair situation first).

 

[JulesMaximus]

Most people don't do road trips? I assume you're referring to the weight average trip distance (~10 miles) which is somewhat akin to fording a river that's on average 3ft deep. Per my original argument, having a Tesla as your only vehicle exposes you to the tails of that distribution - I don't see why you'd spend $100K on a car that you'll need a rental the time you're going long distance or waste a bunch of time planning a trip around waiting for supercharging stations. If you have the money, you don't have the time and vice versa.

Also I can already tell you're one of the Musk marketing nutters - the average residual value for a leased car is ~50%, so having a 50% "guarantee" is nothing more than a marketing gimmick. And what may or may not happen in the future isn't exactly a compelling argument to buy something now...

In the last 15 years the farthest I've travelled at any one time by car was 160 miles. Well within the range of a Tesla S.

But why would you not buy the AWD version? The premium is like $4K and you get improved range. You point out your horrible fuel economy in your shitbox but that's ok because you can go from detroit to chicago by filling up with gasoline for 10 minutes or so, going between two places I never want to be. But the rest of the time, your vehicle will be a high cost maintenance nightmare and will cost significantly more to own over the lifetime than even a $100K Tesla. You will not own your vehicle longer than 7 years because it will be prohibitively expensive to do so and wouldn't be worth it. Enjoy your eurotrash vehicle.

You really have no right to be calling me a fanboy when I was simply defending the Tesla but you've basically regressed this discussion to attacks so I feel I should reply in kind by pointing out the pimping of your $110K+ eurotrash vehicle like as if it's superior to a Nissan Leaf. Faster than a Nissan leaf? sure, but more reliable? I don't think so. Meanwhile one can buy a Tesla Model S AWD and they'll get the reliability of an Electric car with the performance of a super car with a fairly reasonable price to boot.

It was a 2007 model he bought used last year so he didn't have any choice in things like color, options, AWD, etc. And I guarantee you he didn't spend anywhere near $110k on it as those cars depreciate faster than they go from 0-60. I'd be surprised if he spent $30k on it.

 

[scootermaster]

Guys? Stay on topic here?

(please?)

 

[Insomniator]

you don't drive a lot, why not just get a Accord.

This would make me more inclined to get a fun car, you aren't going to drive into the ground. Almost like a DD weekend fun car. The few times you do need to drive it a lot will be a pleasure. I guess that's the less practical way of looking at it though.

I drive less then 100 miles a month and have been debating a car like this because - gas, tires, depreciation won't matter, comfort won't matter (so much), repairs will be less frequent (hopefully) etc... if I didn't have a wedding coming up I'd be more seriously looking at a used cayman/boxster/911.

If I had 100 mile commute every day then hell yeah give me a reliable accord.

 

[tortillasoup]

Guys? Stay on topic here?

(please?)

The reason I feel you do not value money is mostly because you're looking at toys that have a high rate of depreciation, are not reliable, are not practical, etc. etc. You have enough dough to "waste" $50K but not $100K? Like I said, you could lease a very expensive car vs. BUYING a $50K car outright. I would not ordinarily recommend such an expensive car OP nor recommend leasing as I'm a very practical person but considering the number of vehicles you've looked at and what you're looking for in a vehicle, I'd say the Tesla is very relevant.


The real question OP is, how much do you plan on spending on a vehicle? Are you buying New or Used? I mean a NEW Porsche Boxster S is an $80K+ vehicle, no?

It was a 2007 model he bought used last year so he didn't have any choice in things like color, options, AWD, etc. And I guarantee you he didn't spend anywhere near $110k on it as those cars depreciate faster than they go from 0-60. I'd be surprised if he spent $30k on it.

The AWD was in reference to the Tesla... He was saying yeah the Tesla is cool and all but it really gets insane when you get the AWD version. Then I said, but why would you NOT get the AWD Tesla as the Premium is only $4k, etc. Yeah, did not know he had an older model.

 

[JulesMaximus]

The reason I feel you do not value money is mostly because you're looking at toys that have a high rate of depreciation, are not reliable, are not practical, etc. etc. You have enough dough to "waste" $50K but not $100K? Like I said, you could lease a very expensive car vs. BUYING a $50K car outright. I would not ordinarily recommend such an expensive car OP nor recommend leasing as I'm a very practical person but considering the number of vehicles you've looked at and what you're looking for in a vehicle, I'd say the Tesla is very relevant.


The real question OP is, how much do you plan on spending on a vehicle? Are you buying New or Used? I mean a NEW Porsche Boxster S is an $80K+ vehicle, no?

The AWD was in reference to the Tesla... He was saying yeah the Tesla is cool and all but it really gets insane when you get the AWD version. Then I said, but why would you NOT get the AWD Tesla as the Premium is only $4k, etc. Yeah, did not know he had an older model.

I sat in a Cayman at the auto show back in November. It was a $60k car with $25k in options, so $85k and it wasn't even an S model! Nice car but holy crap is that expensive!

I'm still baffled that the OP is comparing a Subaru BRZ with a Honda Accord and a Porsche Boxster.

 

[tortillasoup]

I sat in a Cayman at the auto show back in November. It was a $60k car with $25k in options, so $85k and it wasn't even an S model! Nice car but holy crap is that expensive!

I'm still baffled that the OP is comparing a Subaru BRZ with a Honda Accord and a Porsche Boxster.

He wants a fun car, doesn't care too much about the price, trying to find the right balance...which is why I threw the Tesla out there. Who knows what he'll end up doing, but I do know he hasn't test driven a Tesla yet and when he does, I think he'll change his mind and "Make" it work if he gets the chance to try an AWD Model S. I mean $100K for what is basically a super low maintenance Supercar? The only thing he'll get raped on is tires and that's if he sticks with the humongous 21" rims, the 19" rims can have reasonably priced rubber applied to them.

 

[scootermaster]

The reason I feel you do not value money is mostly because you're looking at toys that have a high rate of depreciation, are not reliable, are not practical, etc. etc. You have enough dough to "waste" $50K but not $100K? Like I said, you could lease a very expensive car vs. BUYING a $50K car outright. I would not ordinarily recommend such an expensive car OP nor recommend leasing as I'm a very practical person but considering the number of vehicles you've looked at and what you're looking for in a vehicle, I'd say the Tesla is very relevant.


The real question OP is, how much do you plan on spending on a vehicle? Are you buying New or Used? I mean a NEW Porsche Boxster S is an $80K+ vehicle, no?



The AWD was in reference to the Tesla... He was saying yeah the Tesla is cool and all but it really gets insane when you get the AWD version. Then I said, but why would you NOT get the AWD Tesla as the Premium is only $4k, etc. Yeah, did not know he had an older model.

I guess I didn't specify this -- although I did say the price is "about $55,000" -- but I'm looking at 2013 Boxsters, so, yes, we're talking used. And when you're paying cash, there is a huge different between $55,000 and $100,000.

It's approximately $45,000.

Could I make the Tesla "work"? Sure. Does it make a hell of a lot of sense? Probably not.

I've set a reasonable ceiling for myself at around $55,000, which should buy me a HELL of a lot of car. I may not even get the "S", if I drive a base Boxster and feel like it's "enough". (There are other reasons why a Tesla is impractical for me, but we don't need to get into those).

 

[JulesMaximus]

I guess I didn't specify this -- although I did say the price is "about $55,000" -- but I'm looking at 2013 Boxsters, so, yes, we're talking used. And when you're paying cash, there is a huge different between $55,000 and $100,000.

It's approximately $45,000.

Could I make the Tesla "work"? Sure. Does it make a hell of a lot of sense? Probably not.

I've set a reasonable ceiling for myself at around $55,000, which should buy me a HELL of a lot of car. I may not even get the "S", if I drive a base Boxster and feel like it's "enough". (There are other reasons why a Tesla is impractical for me, but we don't need to get into those).

I'd definitely get the Boxster S. You should be able to pick up a nice low mileage example for around that price.

So, did you win the lottery? Rich uncle pass away and leave you some money?

 

[gus6464]

Corvette? The new Mustang is also very nice with a much upgraded interior than older models and miles better than the Camaro. A pretty decked out GT would be around the $40k mark with 6sp manual.

 

[tortillasoup]

I know you've made a point about not getting an electric car, but I felt obligated to point out this listing: http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-...TESLA[TESMODS[]][]]&listingId=386002787&Log=0

2013 Tesla Model S, P85, 35K miles, $75K.

I think there is going to be a heavy price drop on the non AWD versions of the Model S because everyone is going to want the 'D'.