Another Frivolous Question - 2 seater?
 

Let's say you had a self-imposed budget of about $25k.

Which would you buy, and why?

Glutton for punishment and full of nostalgia, I'd look for a 1962MGA.

That said, I voted Boxster...parts availability and still familiar to current P-car mechanics.

Boxster. Many years ago I was seriously looking at a 356"replicar" . When all was said and done, I bought a real Porsche for less money. Nostalgia doesn't drive me.

Best
Les

Having owned three 914's over the years, I would get another one just to be consistent.
But it would have to be a /6.

If you could get a good 356 replica (or better yet, 550) for $25k, then that's the route that I would go for a "toy". For something that I wanted to drive more, then I vote boxster. But then the climate here has a lot to do with it. I'm a pasty white boy. If I had a speedster/550, I'd probably only be able to drive it at night to avoid the skin cancer. I've got a Boxster S with a hardtop, and the hard top has been installed for several years now.

You forgot to stick ND miata up there.

That's pretty funny, I almost never put the top down. My favorite top down driving is at night or dusk or in super overcast weather. But I've had a drop top car of one sort or another for the past 24 years (911 targa, miata #1, miata #2, boxster). I'd have bought a 911 coupe or cayman if I'd found the right one, but I didn't.

I think you should add
Beck 550 and miata to the list. I don't know that it's possible to get a Beck 550 for 25k. I think they used to be 20k, but I think these days they are at least 30k.

But going on what is in your list, I voted boxster.

Any of your choices, except the Ghia.
I drove two diff ones that were stock in my life....both were slower than an old Beetle.

Real and even converted 6's in good shape are not under $25k cars anymore. A very nice original factory 6 just sold for $130k on BAT. Nice 73+ 2 liter 4 cyl cars are over $25k these days.

Boxster if I could have just one.

I have a sweet 01 box. Love it. It’s simply perfect.

With that said, I tried to get a friend to buy Angela’s AMAZING speedster. That, was a sweet ride.

Yep, I'd have LOVED to have had that car.

But the reminder of Angela is a gut punch. What a great gal, and gone too early.

For a nice weekend only car Id extend my budget to low 30s for a lotus Elise. I am now lotusless but I still love those cars and they are easier to own than a really old car and a real joy to drive in the right setting.

Id personally rather have a really nice ND2 Miata than a high mileage older Boxster as well. Great cars and probably not any slower than a 986 boxster.

Right, ND2 miata, if available for 25k is probably a great car. I think you can get a 987, maybe S for 25k. If so, that would be a lot of car. It's not like you're stuck with an old 2.5L 986 if your budget is 25k.

yeah boxster is a great choice, just thought if this is a second or 3rd car maybe something a bit more uncivilized.

I am not sure what 25k buys in a boxster these days but I have been slightly depressed at how much one has to pay for modernish manual porsche sports cars lately

Boxster is very versatile . Mid engine handling . Two trunks . Drop top . I love my 2002 S . Doors close like a bank vault like most Porsche's . Real heat and AC .

Find the cleanest one you can find with records for 20k . Leaves you 5k for maintenance or customizing . Hard to go wrong .

I loved my 1974 914 2.0 and it was my only car for 25 years. Easy to work on, and loads of fun. But even the 2.0 was a 10 second 0-60. Not fast except in a corner. And the newest 914 is a 1976, and that is a very old car.

A Boxster is a better car by every metric. Every single review I have seen praises the handling. If I had the garage space, or a no cost option to store one, I would likely have one, but I need another car like I need another hobby.

I voted Boxster, but I have to admit I miss my old 914.

Of the list, probably a Boxster. I recently bought myself an A5 but I was VERY tempted to pull the trigger on a Cayman instead that was ~$20k. Only thing that stopped me was it was black.

I've always kinda had a thing for Boxsters, though...even though they're chic cars. Will probably succumb one of these days.

You don't need a boxster with your 911. I had an '88 911 targa. I've now got an '08 Boxster S. The boxster S has better HVAC and stereo, but not as much character, charisma, or soul. It's a great car, and I love it. Your Carrera has great AC, and I believe you've got updated tunes in it as well. The carrera wasn't as fast, but was plenty fast. I thought my old carrera was very comfortable.

If I had to compare your carrera to my boxster, I'm not sure that there's anything about my boxster that would make me want it more than your carrera. My guess is that my boxster and your 911 are probably closer than a boxster and a 914. Your 911 is probably closer to a 914 than a boxster is other than the placement of the motor and orientation of the transmission.

Having recently acquired a newish Cayman, the capabilities of modern cars are amazing, to a point where sane speeds on normal roads can almost be boring. Old and minimalist cars are drama queens which is great much of the time and trying some of the time.

I bought a 2000 Boxster S, 6 speed, with only 62k miles from the original owner here in the SF Bay Area for $8900. No accidents, no oil leaks but it is still on original IMS. No probs so far whatsoever. Best Porsche I’ve ever owned.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1686864290.jpg

Airbags.

Boxster is just all around a safer car.

I love old stuff but the older I get the less it appeals to me.

I thought abort a Boxster because they are really cheap. Make it into a autocross or track day special, and have a disposable car.

I will never part with my Carrera willingly. Only if someone offers me a new 911 Turbo S built to my specs, I might do an even swap. As that odds of that are less than winning the lottery, I will just keep my Carrera.

I love the wheels on it! 18" or 19"?

Wasn't a Speedster. Replica 550 Spyder, flat 6 power. Sure do miss Angela...my nominee for the most mechanically knowledgeable "car girl" to ever post here.

Yep. I'm betting that if I ever got my boxster up to 150, it would be so planted that it wouldn't be scary. (not that I ever would. This is purely hypothetical, of course)

We're back to the old "drive a slow car fast vs a fast car slow" thing. As a kid, I had great fun driving slow cars fast. As an adult, I enjoyed my miata, but I will say that I enjoyed my turbo miata a bit more and my old 217hp 3.2L Carrera even more than the miata. I'm pretty sure that I don't enjoy the 303hp boxster more than the old 217hp 911. I'm not saying that the extra grunt isn't great to have and pleasant. I'm just not sure that it adds to the enjoyment.

I get that. Any of my choices are no match for an inattentive moron in a full size SUV or pickup. But there's just something I miss about a 1800 - 2000 lb car on skinny tires.

And yes, I'd fry in the sun. I went out on the boat with my BIL last weekend, took every precaution I thought I should, still managed to lightly sunburn the backs of my hands.

Yep, 550, not a Beck. I think it may have been a Thunder Ranch.

And what you said is saying something, because I believe several of our ladies have been pretty knowledgeable. But I think she was at home being up to her eyeballs in the mechanical bits.

914 all day long. Mid engine and air cooled, ticks the most important boxes

Yeah, makes my heart feel heavy

There is another one I always think of in June. Guy my age who took his own life, just beyond me how anyone gets to that.

Xj8.

No pics, sorry.

Here is my long winded multi point answer.

My first two seater was, in Ireland, a 1967 MG Midget. Bought in 1984 from my dentist, nicely restored. I drove it for a year to two and sold it to my girlfriend (now wife). I then bought a 1968 MGB roadster. I rebuilt the suspension, engine and brakes, added roll cage etc and entered the Irish Historic Racing Association racing program. Over the next nine years i won the championship 3 times, was 2nd three times and 3rd three times. So I established a strong 2 seater interest into my motoring dna. When I sold the MGB I imported a RHD 67 911 coupe (from Los Angeles) into this mix to keep competitive.

In those years it was popular to import used RHD cars from Japan. One of my buddies was doing this so I ended buying a Jap spec Miata with limited slip diff and sporty stuff. What a hoot. I ended up buying and selling a few Miata’s, and honestly they were great, no mechanical issues and went link stink.

So next thing I’m moving to California with my company. After getting accommodation first thing I do is buy a 1987 white 911 cabrio. Boy what a disaster that was. I traded that into an 85 Targa. I went to get a haircut one day in the Targa and came home in a 1998 Boxster. (I’ve a very understanding wife). Boxster was great, light, manual transmission. I was doing auto cross, so tweaked camber etc. FTOD many times. It was the most planted 2 seater soft top I’ve ever driven. Couple years later ended up with an 88 911 cabrio.

One of my most memorable cabriolet drives was one morning I drove from Carmel to San Jose, Ca leaving at 6 am. I had a “windbreak” installed so you could drive with roof down and no air entered the roof down cabin. I was on it, over 100mph mostly, no hair stirred no cold wind. But great the great flat six exhaust notes I’ll take to my grave.
So long story short, I’ve owned many two seater cars. Nearly all 6 cylinder P cars. Mostly in California, so roof never goes up. I’m not looking for sympathy, just happy to share.

I've had my fill of "old school" Brit roadsters, having owned a TR3A, TR6 & TR8.

My first choice would be a Boxster, but a friend just bought a VERY clean 2nd-gen Miata and it is a very fun car so that would be a close second, especially given that a budget of 25K$ would either get a relatively new one or an older one that the leftover $$$ would go to upgrades.
Hmmm.... a V8 Miata sounds like an interesting project....

18s Cayman wheels

I'd go off the above list and get a Mercedes-Benz SL55 AMG. I've been curious about those for years.

Very nice. I love them. I've thought about "upgrading" my 19" wheels to 18" wheels.

I think those are more of a cruiser, but I've always, since I was a teen loved SLs, of pretty much any time period from the 50s until modern. I've never driven one, but I love the look.

I had a buddy that had and SLK when I had my old '88 911. I think the Merc stuff tends more towards comfy cruiser with a look while Porsche tends more toward capable sporty cars with some comfort. For me, I'll stick with the sportier. If I had an SL it would be for the missus.

BMW Z3. Nice to have an M.

For $25K I'd get a late model Miata.

If I really wanted a Boxster, I'd spend more money for a 2013-2016 S. And for twice the price if not more, I'd get the 2016 Spyder.