I Bought The CHEAPEST 2005 Porsche Boxster S 987, but it has TONS of Issues, & A REALLY BIG PROBLEM

I decided to buy a 2005 Porsche Boxster S to build into a race car, so I found the cheapest one in the country.
I bought the car sight-unseen (NOT Recommended), and ended up finding many hidden problems.

[@grahamrobson9292]

Cautionary tale but I enjoyed the episode

[@rollingstocks]

I'm glad you enjoyed it, and yes, don't buy cars sight unseen, haha!

[@UsRanger]

A battery Tender that goes to the cigarette lighter is a must.. Also the trunk looked wet.. Change both of your caps back there. They may be cracked.

[@rollingstocks]

I didn't know you could charge the battery through the cig lighter - that's good to know!

[@JJL206]

It’s completely stunning how little you know about a car you spent real money on…
Oil does not accumulate in the airbox. It accumulates in the cylinders because it is a flat, six engine. It’s a common issue on startup if the car hasn’t been run in a while. If the issue continues then there is problem and there’s a few things that could be causing it.
There is a release for the frunk. So no, Porsche did not make a car without that feature (as you ultimately found out). You can find that info in the owners manual.
Whenever the battery disconnected, or fails and is reconnected, you always get a PSM light. Drive the car a couple of miles and it automatically resets.
Did you have anyone do a PPI on this car before you bought it?

[@rollingstocks]

I never claimed to be a Porsche expert. On my Porsche, there was a problem with the air/oil separator, which I replaced. During the replacement, I found oil in my air intake pipes, which had reached all the way back to the air box. The new AOS solved the problem and the car eventually stopped smoking. Again, I'm not claiming to know everything, or even anything about the cars I work on - I just like tinkering with them and learning as I go. No PPI was done - I bought the car sight unseen - something I don't think I will ever do again.

[@ducbox572]

So many "Porsche issues" that a simple Google search would have solved.

[@rollingstocks]

Believe me, I Googled and TH-camd the crap out of this car while trying to get it back into useable shape. Many of the unresolvable issues were beyond just the "common" 987 issues, such as the water damaged electronics.

[@ducbox572]

@@rollingstocks oh yeah, flood consequences are next level. Sorry it didn't work out.

[@marts500]

Psm light comes on...goes out & resets after a battery disconnect...👍

[@rollingstocks]

Gotcha. Yeah, I figured that out later on. Not knowing that though, I thought something was broken.

[@cheetos586]

When your battery died, you can use the fuse box to open the frunk, however it can ONLY BE DONE WITH THE KEY FOB
you cant use the switch on the door to open the frunk
i was about to remove my wheel and pull the release, thank god I tried the key

[@rollingstocks]

Good to know!

[@timprice5]

This is a shame but i totally understand getting rid. Ive got the same car with 90k miles on and have had a couple of the common issues but otherwise its been amazing.
that flood damage could result in loads of issues down the line so i think it was the right decision. Dont discount another though, they are excellent to drive and ive just had mine on the Nurburgring. It was stunning to drive there.

[@rollingstocks]

Nice, congrats on your ownership. I definitely would consider getting another one, but I think I'll hold out for a much cleaner and better maintained example.

[@philtaylor5053]

1:01 - Whoa, replace those cracked Pilots buddy.

[@rollingstocks]

Yeah, that was the first thing I did was order tires... Too bad I never got to put them on 😭

[@mmmmm5556]

Isn't that a stick? Why not pop the clutch to get it started and then release the frunk

[@PointNemo9]

It's a manual

[@mmmmm5556]

@@PointNemo9 Yes. so pop the clutch to start the car

[@rollingstocks]

Yes, I thought of this, but the alley behind my house is very rough, short, and has a drop-off into a main street at both ends. It would be very difficult for me to get it moving, started, and stopped in the short distance to the drop-off into the main street. Then, if I wasn't successful in getting it started, it would be nearly impossible to get it back up the drop-off into my alley again. It worked out better the way it did.

[@thefreedomguyuk]

There's a trunk back-up release wire tucked away somewhere on the left side, in behind the fron bumper cover. The smoke is not a fault, it's M96 personality. PSM warning is always triggered after a flat battery incident. It will come off after half an hour of driving 😊
In general, ancient 986/987 are bombproof, and can atm be had for virtually no money. So I'll say you overpaid for yours. I own one at a lower price than yours, 18 months down the line, no problems at all.

[@rollingstocks]

Thank you for the info, and congratulations on your ownership. If I got another 987, it would be a Cayman, so I never have to deal with any of the water-ingress related problems!

[@michaxxx6156]

If you drive 50m PSM goes away :)

[@rollingstocks]

Thanks for the info. I did notice it would go away on it's own eventually.

[@gixersunny]

Sold the car and ditched the project?

[@rollingstocks]

Yeah, after I couldn't fix the electronics, AND the local independent mechanic couldn't do it, I decided I would rather find a new project than have one that couldn't be finished.

[@adamsangels9874]

Your ecu got soaked

[@rollingstocks]

Yep, along with a bunch of other very expensive, fragile things.

[@samuelbriana4542]

😇 Promo`SM