2005 Porsche Boxster Transmission and drivetrain Problems
- Complaints
- 3about this part
- Share
- 19%of 16 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 47,000miles
- Trend
- Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.
NHTSA recorded 3 complaints about the transmission and drivetrain of the 2005 Porsche Boxster, 19% of the 16 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 47,000 miles.
Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“Pulling away from a green light in traffic, the engine started to upshift into a higher gear much sooner than normal and the car felt down on power. The engine sounded as though it was running on fewer than normal cylinders. I stopped the vehicle immediately & had it towed to a Porsche specialist. They told me it was an ims (intermediate shaft) bearing failure and that is was a known problem with m96 and m97 Porsche engines. Mine being an m96 engine.”
NHTSA complaint #10525254, filed 2013-07, 90,000 miles“This is a very well know ims failure issue with Porsche Boxster which certainly calls for a recall from Porsche. My 2005 engine will need to be replaced for 20k just because of the very obvious design flaw Porsche has in its m96 engines. I am pretty sure there have been numerous complaints about this in past but nobody has ever heeded to it. I sincerely recommend some one to please look into and ask Porsche to accept and recall m96 engines failing due to ims. Any car expert or mechanic or dealership can vouch for the design flaw Porsche has. Its potentially fatal too. …”
NHTSA complaint #10448412, filed 2012-02, 33,000 miles“The contact owns a 2005 Porsche Boxster. The contact was unable to drive the vehicle because the ignition key was locked inside the ignition. The contact took the vehicle to a certified mechanic who diagnosed that the transmission failed and needed a cable adjustment with the transmission and the key. The contact stated that the failure was directly related to NHTSA campaign number: 03v004000 (power train); however, the vehicle was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 47,000.”
NHTSA complaint #10907121, filed 2016-09, 47,000 milesRelated service bulletins
- 11037816Sep 22, 2026Manufacturer's Certificate for Overview of Approved Porsche C40 Engine Oils. Note that this bulletin covers all models back to model year 1984, for which C40 engine oils are…
- 11037813Sep 22, 2026Manufacturer's Certificate for Overview of Approved Porsche C20 Engine Oils. Note that the bulletin covers all models back to model year 1984, for which C20 engine oils are…
- 11037812Sep 22, 2026Manufacturer's Certificate for Overview of Approved Porsche C30 Engine Oils. Note that the bulletin includes all models back to model year 1984, for which C30 engine oils are…
- 11037808Sep 22, 2026Manufacturer's Certificate for Overview of Approved Porsche A40 Engine Oils. Note that this bulletin covers all vehicles from model year 1997 to 2020, for which A40 engine oils…
- 11032387Apr 17, 2026Parts information for parts withdrawal involving the transmission oil. Part number 00004321012 is affected - the vehicles that use this part number should be included.
- 11032274Apr 8, 2026Parts information for parts withdrawal involving the transmission oil. The vehicles affected are ones that use the part number 00004330563
- 11030909Mar 5, 2026Parts information for parts withdrawal involving the transmission fluid. Part number 00004321048. The cars affected are ones that use the part number listed.
- 11029202Feb 27, 2026Parts information for parts withdrawal involving the (00004321048) Transmission fluid. The vehicles affected are ones that use the part number mentioned.
- 11029150Feb 12, 2026Parts information for parts withdrawal involving the 7 speed dual clutch gear box. Part numbers 0BG300047 and 0BG300047X are affected. Cars that are involved are ones that use…
- 11024071Sep 12, 2025Parts information for parts withdrawal involving the rear axle steering. The part numbers are 992501031H, 992501032H, 992501033AB, 992501033AC. The vehicles affected are cars…
Transmission and drivetrain: other model years
Other parts of the 2005 Porsche Boxster
8 complaintsEngine
3 complaintsAir bags
1 complaintsBrakes
1 complaintsElectrical system
1 complaintsEquipment
1 complaintsFuel system
1 complaintsOther or unknown
1 complaintsVisibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
1 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2005 Porsche Boxster
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 31, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.
To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology