Are mid engine cars difficult to diy?

Thinking about an early boxster. I've never owned a mid engine vehicle, are they a major pain to get into and maintain? How about an early boxsterr in particular? I really appreciate any thought!

My '88 MR2 was not difficult. Just open the engine cover and the trunk cover made for a nice shelf for resting tools on. I suspect that the Boxter situation may be a bit different since none of the engine can be seen from the top.

all the same equipment just rearranged.

Some sales rep at a dealership was telling me how I won't be able to diy an OIL CHANGE, since I don't have a lift...

I recently sold an S1 Elise and it certainly wasn't as easy to work on as a front-engined car so the air turned blue occasionally.

I think Boxsters are a bit of a special case anyway as the engine isn't really accessible but from underneath the car.

upwardlymobilehome wrote: Some sales rep at a dealership was telling me how I won't be able to diy an OIL CHANGE, since I don't have a lift...

Ask him how you're able to change the oil on a front engine'd car without a lift.....I mean the oil drain and filter have to be removed from under the car, just like the Boxster. And the the fill is up top too, just like a boxster.

I suspect that the sales rep sees the techs standing under the car as they change the oil. Okay, you will not be standing under the car without a lift but I bet it never crossed the sales reps mind that you could use a jack and jackstand to lay (not stand) under a car.

Depends on the car. My MR2 -no, Fiero -no, 914 -kinda. I have no experience with the boxster ($$), but maybe if you want a direct answer for that car you should change your topic to "are-Boxsters-difficult-to-work-on".

Oil fill on a Boxster is in the Rear Trunk.

To access the engine, raise the top half way, flip this pull that and then undo and remove the interior cover.

More like the engine cover in a van, than just popping the hood.

jamscal wrote: Oil fill on a Boxster is in the Rear Trunk. To access the engine, raise the top half way, flip this pull that and then undo and remove the interior cover. More like the engine cover in a van, than just popping the hood.

I didn't know there was ANY top side access. Good to know that I was wrong.

In reply to DILYSI Dave:

Here's a thread on another board with some good pics of the Boxster engine access: http://forums.rennlist.com/rennforums/boxster-and-boxster-s-986-forum/517158-advice-on-buying-a-986-a.html

stan wrote: Depends on the car. My MR2 -no, Fiero -no, 914 -kinda. I have no experience with the boxster ($$), but maybe if you want a direct answer for that car you should change your topic to "are-Boxsters-difficult-to-work-on".

"Fiero no." Interesting. I may have to go ahead and disagree with that statement. Thankfully, all those turds have been melted down around here, but I have no fond memories of working on them at all.

JeffHarbert wrote: In reply to DILYSI Dave: Here's a thread on another board with some good pics of the Boxster engine access: http://forums.rennlist.com/rennforums/boxster-and-boxster-s-986-forum/517158-advice-on-buying-a-986-a.html

Good stuff! Thanks. That's not nearly the nightmare that I envisioned when I heard that Boxters had no hood.

Streetwiseguy wrote:

stan wrote: Depends on the car. My MR2 -no, Fiero -no, 914 -kinda. I have no experience with the boxster ($$), but maybe if you want a direct answer for that car you should change your topic to "are-Boxsters-difficult-to-work-on".

"Fiero no." Interesting. I may have to go ahead and disagree with that statement. Thankfully, all those turds have been melted down around here, but I have no fond memories of working on them at all.

Again, it depends on the car. My Fiero was a (yawn) 4 banger Iron Duke. A guy I work with had told me some horror stories of his 6 cylinder and it makes me never want to work on one of those.

My 86 Fiero GT was no problem to work on. I had the engine and trans axle on the ground in under 2 hours. Of course I had a lift at the time but I am sure I could do it under 3 without one. I thought the car was very easy to work on. I put 100k on the engine and tranny with only maitanance. Drop the entire subframe, engine, and trans axle to replace the clutc. Port and polish the heads and in-take, have them shaved down and "let the cat out" then go have fun.

914s are DIY cars. The engine needs to come out alot, but they made that pretty easy.

Boxsters are less so due mostly to newer electronics a opposed to the mid engine layout.

My 1st gen MR2's - no, 2nd gen turbos - depends on what you wanted to do. X1/9, everything was a breeze in the engine compartment, but not things like the master cylinder. Never worked on a Boxster, but it looks a bit tougher to access some of the components.

Great once you get rid of all the crapola

My MR2 in N/A form was easier to work on than the FX16, now that it's S/C'd, it takes a couple of special tools to do some things. That's more the fact its got a huge supercharger and an early chassis than anything else though.

I found my Fiero's no tougher to work on than any front drive car. The V6 was easier than the 4cly. Shorter motor = more room at the accesory end.

Kinda like what was said above, it's all about access, and some front-engine cars are hell to work on, too. Same with mid-engine setups, some are terrible and some are fine.

My X1/9 was a big part of me improving my four-letter vocabulary.

But the PO hadn't taken care of it so I spent more time under the hood than I would like to believe would be the norm.

Check out these grassroots ramps...

http://www.corvettec3.ca/ramps.htm

I'll be building a set of these next weekend. If they'll hold a vette, my Boxster should be no problem

Fiero = no

Even with a northstar in mine it isn't hard to work on, the only thing I needed to access from the underside was the alternator, and I can get it off in about 30 min.

As boxsters become cheaper and cheaper I keep looking and wondering what the real cost of ownership is.

Nice info fella's, really appreciate it. So maybe I don't need to be to concerned about an early boxster and maint./access...