Some folks here might read the other sections and see that I have other Porsches (and up until today an M3) .

But I never owned a Boxster S and fell head over heels with this beauty and bought it . I don't even have pictures yet so while its still on their site here it is . http://www.thecollectionporschemiami...90532/info.php

This is my first mid engine roadster and I currenly have a modified 997 Turbo and a Cayenne . Coming out of years of various 911 cars I was pleased at how the Boxster has evolved over time and felt the car would be a refreshing addition which I hope to drive often .

Initial impressions are very positive .

1) I love the ergonomics and technology in the car . The top up and down ease was just awesome .

2) The clutch is buttery smooth . It was a huge difference from my stage three clutch in my Turbo or the M3 manual which i found ill positioned and sloppy .

3) i did consider PDK and would consider it too. i happen to like both manual and PDK transmissions but feel that a top down manual for a boxster S works fine with me .

4) The sport exhaust burrble is very impressive and having the mid engine gives a very noticeable feature of balance to the car .

5) As for acceleration .. I did not buy this car for high Hp reasons . I felt this would be a "fun car' that both myself and my girlfriend would enjoy driving . She's thrilled . I drive it home and she wil drive it tomorrow .

I haven't had enough seat time to write more .. but i am very happy and even though I am tired I keep peeking at the new car with a big smile on my face .

I look forward to posting here more .

 

24 hours and no replies . I figured I'll write a bit more because i do see 121 reads .

I drove the car today in the city . the highway , around a few curvy roads , and with both top up as well as top down .

1) Top up Vs Top down - I am just amazed at the contrast . I had always imagined that a convertible mid engine car would have all sorts of ambient noise with the top up . It was almost like driving two different cars.

a) Top Down -- The top down driving had this go cart character to it . Top down provided incredible visibility and even though i am generally not much of a wind in the hair person I had fun . The sport exhaust burble with the top down had this race car sound and i do feel that the door sills are the perfect height to create less of a wind tunnel inside the cabin .

b) Top up ..- I almost felt like i was driving a coupe . Noise levels were amazingly coupe like and the only time I was reminded it was a convertible was when changing lanes and coping with reduced visibility .

2) Cornering - The car is incredible . The balance and precision felt superior to my 911 Turbo and more intuitive than my previous 997.2S . The modded Carrera might have been faster but this car felt more grounded and secure . My car is on stock PASM suspension . The Turbo has coil overs and so did my 997.2S .

3) Impressions compared to my EVT700 Turbo . Well I do love my Turbo more than any other car I ever had and had 6 years of bonding with it and the novelty still hasnt eroded . I had one amazing day with the Boxster S . It wil take time to form an opinion but any car only gets one chance to make that first impression and the Boxster S hit a home run.

3) Road attention ... The car gets positive attention and curiosity .

It's been a great day .

 

Tough crowd around here. As I mentioned before in the 991 section, welcome and congrats. They'll warm up, they just need a little time

 

Congrats! It's a great car and you made the right choice.

 

Read and responded to your post in the 991 section, so you're not being ignored bro. You did well. VERY well!!!

 

Fantastic and beautiful! Curious to hear your thoughts on the power (both around town driving and spirited back road driving) versus the M3. Contemplating the same move.

 

That is one nice Boxster. Welcome to the Porsche family. You will love it.

 

Indeed you will! Congratulations and nice car.

 

Interesting reading your thoughts.

I have had a bunch of fantastic cars, but the joy I had with an orange Boxster S drew me back to the brand. I currently run a V12 Vantage for street driving and sold my R8V10 for a Cayman R. I'm mostly tracking the Cayman R.

I just love these cars, the lightness, the compact feel, the way the pivot into a corner. This chassis is amazing. It's not like the R8 had a bad chassis (it was awesome), but I'm just so much happier throwing the Cayman around. Plus its so much cheaper to mod the Porsche and the track community is much larger.

Enjoy!!

 

My11 M3 was a manual with competition package , performance exhaust and the carbon package . it was my second E92 . The first was an 08 and lacked the performance upgrades as they were not available at the car's launch.

After 5 years and two E92 M3 cars I felt they were becoming dated . I must say that the car got many compliments but I found myself bored . The idrive is just awful , it burned a lot of gas . The worst feature of the M car was the awful position of the gear shifter and the sloppy spacing rowing the gears .

The car was otherwise exceptional . It was reliable (with the exception of the axle lock grind noise which is a known issue) and free service was a great thing.

In terms of driving the M3 is heavy but it is faster in a straight line .. but not by much . It corners well for it's size and the 3 series is a great BMW .. but that's the problem . It's not a Porsche and the driving characteristics (that i find even in my two ton Cayenne )reminded me that I wasn't driving a Porsche .

The Boxster has this go cart feel . The cabin is compact but quite comfortable . The clutch is buttery smooth . Thde cars biggest strength is its balance . It amazes me how balanced the car corners . It's like a figure skater in its graceful agility .

As for acceleration .. coming out of my Evt700 997 Turbo everything feels slow . My M3 was slow but it is faster than the Boxster S . The 991 feels slow . My modded 997.2S felt slow . That's how fast my Turbo is .
I don't race around much but the only cars which can run with it are other modded cars for the most part . Usually I ignore street challenges . A modded black edition GtR on an open road is a heck of a rolling start cometitor making for a close match but at in the higher revs of 3rd gear the highly modified Turbo wins .

I didn't expect trhe Boxster to be a fast car . Its certainly good enough for the street and more importantly its far more agile than my Turbo and the M3 . It's the slow car that can be driven fast because its precise and efficient .

I love the car . But it is only two days so any long term impression will have to wait .

 

I totally can relate to this . Just as I view the Boxster S a fun street car I imagine that thed Cayman R is the equivalent in track form I almost wonder if the Boxster Spyder and Cayman R led to some insights of the current redesign . When I look at the last gen Boxster/Cayman .. the cars which reveal transformation are those last editions .

 

Thanks for taking the time to elaborate. Much appreciated. My M3 is an '11 with DCT. It is a fantastic car for a DD (save for the gas mileage...it is pretty bad). The sound of the V8 in the M3 is wonderful. I actually like the Idrive. The car itself is becoming a bit pedestrian to me. In addition, I find myself hauling people around in my job a bit more so I think the SUV as a DD would work better as well.

I am contemplating selling it and my SUV and picking up newer SUV (Cayenne, Audi Q5 or oddly enough an MDX) and getting a proper sports car for weekend fun. My wife loved my CaymanS when I had it and has always loved the BoxsterS as well. So If I go this route, it would be something that she would very much enjoy as well. I know the PDK is wonderful but I would have to do the manual in the BoxsterS.

 

We have an SUV (2012 Cayenne V6) . It is actually one of the best daily driving vehicles I have ever owned and is my first SUV ever. Much like with the Boxster I saw this curent gen Cayenne and felt it would be ideal .
I don't feel the V6 is underpowered at all and I do feel that if PDK ever makes it way into the Cayenne refresh then the GTS and Turbo will take huge depreciation hit . A highly speced V6 with two tone interior , ventilated seats , upgraded sound, panoramic roof , bose , camera and sensors optioned to 75K which was as much as a modest Cayenne S but i picked the V6 and still feel it was the better choice . One year later and 15K miles its been fantastic and with 300 Hp I dont feel its underpowered at all for practical street driving.

The Boxster S would be a great second car for all the reasons listed in my last post that you noted as well.

I think the hard part might be the absense of a 911 and in my case i do have the Turbo but as much as folks refer to a Turbo as a daily driver I never felt that way about mine . I also feel that if one likes a convertible I would pick the Boxster over a 911 Cab . My reasoning is that sacrificing the structural integrity of a roof in a 130K peformance car is a pefrormance negative . In a 85K roadster its a fun factor positive . I also feel that a 911 Cab has a larger cabin and one of the better features in the Boxster is that a smaller cabin offers that much less of a top down wind tunnel .

 

I couldn't agree more about the top up/top down difference! I haven't had it in the rain yet, but it's impressively quiet top up to me. I bought it as a summer DD, so it will be in the rain at some point soon, I imagine.
Of course, the only other two roadsters I have had were a '70 E type and an '88 Turbo Cab 911. Folding top technology seems to have improved somewhat since the '80s.

 

What year is your new Boxster S? I have a 2009 Boxster S and a 2009 C4S and I feel the same as you - I love the 997.2S but I much prefer the Boxster S top down on a twisty mountain road.