When it comes to Porsche sports cars, conventional wisdom suggests you’ll either pay through the nose to get a new one—or get a used one and sacrifice two vital appendages to keep it running. Well, here’s a case in which conventional wisdom does not hold true. Having acquired my 2013 Porsche Boxster in 2023—some 10 years after it was constructed— the car is running just fine, and all of my vital appendages are still attached.
Now, this is not to say there have been no unplanned expenditures, because there have been quite a few. However, only two of them have been the result of failures on the part of the Boxster—neither of which sidelined it. But I’m getting ahead of myself here. Let’s do this in a more orderly fashion.
In the opening dispatch of this series, I noted the majority of the expenditures were for things I wanted to do—rather than needed to do. Given that the Boxster sailed through its pre-purchase inspection with no mechanical problems, I chose to correct a few aesthetic concerns and do some upgrades. Rather than recap them all here, I’ll refer you to part one of the saga of my experiences with the Mahogany Metallic over Luxor Beige 2013 Porsche 981 roadster.
In order to provide you with an honest and unbiased review, the vehicle reviewed in this article has been driven throughout the course of daily life for a period of two years.
- Base Trim Engine
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2.7L Gas
- Base Trim Transmission
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6-Speed Manual
- Base Trim Drivetrain
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Rear-Wheel Drive
- Base Trim Horsepower
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265 hp
- Base Trim Torque
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206 lb-ft @ 4500-6500 rpm
The “Squeech”
Getting back to those unplanned outlays; about eight months into my time with the Boxster, I noticed a pronounced “squeech” coming from the front end when driving over irregular pavement, railroad crossings, and the like. Researching the issue, I learned the fuel tank rests upon pads that cushion it against the bay in which it sits. The pads are known to perish over time, allowing the fuel tank to rub against that bay, which results in an incredibly annoying “squeech” when the tank is more than half full. Granted, I could have just run the car with less than half a tank of gas, but that would have eventually compromised the fuel pump if I consistently let the fuel level get too low.
I also learned that Porsche recommends the disassembly of a significant portion of the front end of the car to affect the repair. And yes, this would be insanely expensive when you take labor costs into consideration—especially if you go to a dealership. Meanwhile, the foam pads that needed replacement cost next to nothing. In other words, it would have cost grands to replace $20 worth of parts. Happily, I found a guy on YouTube who had figured out how to fix it without taking the car apart. My independent tech was so excited to try the technique when I showed him the video. He repaired it for $90, which is slightly less than he charges for half an hour of labor.
Stuck HVAC Blend Door
Last summer, I activated the A/C and discovered it was blowing hot air rather than cold. My guy diagnosed the issue as a stuck blend door, which was preventing the cold air from making its way into the passenger compartment. Holding one of his techs upside-down by his heels, the repair was affected without disassembling the dash. No parts were needed, but it took a few hours to diagnose the problem and fix it, so the cost was $400. Here again, creative thinking saved me from what could have been a ginormous repair bill. Well, sort of; this issue set a series of events into motion that became rather spendy.
Brake Job
Inspecting the car while it was in for the blend door repair, my tech noted the brake pads were about 75 percent gone and the rotors were showing a bit of a “lip.” I was aware of this, as it was noted that the brakes were about 70 percent gone during the PPI. Figuring I might as well go ahead and get it done while the car was there, the total cost came to $2200, with new OEM rotors and pads. But wait, there’s more.
Rear Tire Replacement
On the way home from the workshop, the right rear tire suffered a puncture near its inside shoulder, so patching it was not an option. This was one of the four tires I purchased right after I got the car, so it had been in service for about a year. While that wasn’t long enough for the left tire to also need replacing, I was concerned the Boxster’s handling might have been compromised because the rear tires would have had uneven tread depths, so I replaced both of them. The cost, with mounting, balancing, and sales tax, was $1,119.41. However, the Tire Rack’s road hazard policy spotted me $400 for the punctured tire. So, what started out as a $400 blend door problem triggered $3,319 in expenditures when all was said and done.
Oil And Filter Change
The Boxster got its annual oil and filter change in March, which cost $314.41. That included eight quarts of Motul 5w-40, one Mahle oil filter, and an hour of labor to conduct the change. This falls under the heading of regular maintenance in my book, so I look at it as one of the inherent costs of driving a Boxster. Now, granted, Jiffy Lube will do an oil and filter change on a Camry for somewhere around $90. But who dreams of driving a Camry up the Pacific Coast Highway?
Fuel, Insurance, And Registration
As of this writing, the Mahogany Metallic 2013 Porsche Boxster is showing an odometer reading of roughly 72,800 miles, which is up some 10,800 miles from the time of my purchase two years ago. This means I’ve averaged around 5,400 miles annually. Given the Boxster returns some 23 miles per gallon, and premium fuel is about five dollars a gallon here in Northern California, I’ve spent approximately $1,173 on fuel. Full coverage declared value insurance for the Boxster cost $614 last year, as the 981 was stated as “pleasure use only”. Plus, the State of California required a payment of $272 for the privilege of operating the Boxster on its roads for the year.
The Bottom Line
Taking all of that into consideration, the total cost of having the Porsche over the course of the past 12 months came to $6,277.82. While that might sound like a lot, keep in mind the tire replacement was something of a fluke, as it was more an “act of God” than something the car would have otherwise required. Similarly, the brake job was a choice, rather than an absolute necessity. After all, the pads had only deteriorated by five percent over the course of the preceding year.
I could have gotten at least a couple of more years out of them, given that my driving style is extremely light on brake usage. Backing those costs out, the total comes to $3,358, which is less than many people are paying annually to insure far more pedestrian new cars these days. So yeah, I’m feeling pretty good about the Boxster, particularly since my arms and legs are still attached.