Still, as lovely as it is I wouldn't want to have to work on it. Unlike the user-friendly mid-engine 914 that preceded it, this mid-engine is nearly impossible to get at without a hoist. Fortunately all of the regular maintenance bits are within easy reach. Access to the engine compartment is more important when making a decision to buy used than new. A new car owner can leave it up to the manufacturer to pay expensive repair costs, but as soon as that warranty runs out its time to fork over the money, putting unwanted stress on the love affair of man and machine. Fortunately the Boxster has shown extremely good reliability. But still it's a good call to expect higher repair costs for a car that requires the removal of suspension parts to get at the engine. Inevitably it will break as all cars eventually do.
On the positive the Boxster is actually quite practical. Its front trunk is deep and capable of quite a bit of stowage, while a cargo area just aft of the engine bay can take a bag or two as well. A tiny covered shelf behind the seats is adequate for paperwork, car magazines or what-have-you. The owner's manual fits neatly into a tiny bin under the steering column. It's an efficient packaging job.
The power top is relatively easy to operate. Snap open the latch and hold the console-mounted button down until the top is fully hidden underneath its steel tonneau. It's easy to zip around town and hold a steady conversation al fresco. The top itself is water-tight and relatively quiet when upright.
When reviewing its average used prices the first thing noticeable is the Boxster's extremely high resale value. Granted, the base price when new doesn't reflect the options that may or may not be on the specific used car for sale, but pre-owned prices are still quite high. Also, for the most part there's a $10,000 spread from the lowest priced examples to the highest, probably accounting for mileage, options and overall shape. In this particular example the top prices usually came from British Columbia while the lowest from Quebec, usually due to the differences in weather and corresponding wear and tear to the vehicle. No Boxster S models are included in this pricing average.