To me, these threads are always interesting reads, but in the end, the brand snobbishness is downright silly. As has been pointed out elsewhere, purists scoff at every new Porsche development, and every new Porsche model (including changes to the 911). Heck, 356 owners looked down at the bloated, heavy 911 when it came out; HECK, 356 owners looked down on the 356A as a perversion of the brand when it came out!

If the car is built by Porsche, it's a Porsche, and Porsche has very rarely made a "bad" car. The 912E had its flaws, as did the 924, but they couldn't be called "bad" cars. The 914 was sort of slow, the Panamera was sort of ugly, and the Boxster has a bit of a stigma attached to it, but those perceptions disappear when one actually drives the car.

So, thinking back at the Porsches I've driven, the list is long and varied. I have owned a 83 944, 84 944, 86 951, and 07 Cayman S; I've also driven a 356 Speedster, 911 mid-year, 911SC, 944S2, 928S, 968, 993 C2, 986 Boxster S, 996 C2, Cayenne, Cayenne S, Panamera 4S, and Cayman GT4. My impression of each car has always sort of been "well, I don't know what I should expect here...", but then I'm always pleasantly surprised by how well the car drives. With the possible exception of the 944/968 and the 928, there is a similarity in how the car "feels" that is distinctly Porsche. I'm not saying anything negative about the front-engined cars, mind you; they just drove differently than the 911/Boxster/Cayman, which seem to have a shared experience.

On the day that I drove the Cayman GT4 a few weeks ago, there was a 986 Boxster S for sale. My mother-in-law ended up buying it. It has aftermarket headers and exhaust, and an ECU tune. I took it for a spin along our twisty CT back roads, and I was absolutely floored by how fun it was. Although my 3.4 Cayman S is undoubtedly faster, there was a kind of unexpected rawness to the lightly-tuned Boxster S that was reminiscent of... and here we go... the air-cooled 911s that I'd driven.

So yes: there is something magical about the air-cooled 911. I hope to own one some day. I'm not sure if I'd want to trade in my Cayman S for one -- they scratch slightly different itches. But driving the Boxster S and being reminded of the earlier 911s reminded me that even though the new cars are softer and more user-friendly to the car-buying masses, there is an essence of Porsche hiding at the core of every P-car; sometimes it just takes a little tuning, or weight-reduction, or a slightly sportier exhaust, to reveal it.

FWIW: My mother-in-law's 986 Boxster S, my 987 Cayman S, and a friend's 981 Cayman GT4. I rather like how the early Boxster has aged...http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1464701163.jpg

The original concept was pictured as about the size of an updated 550 Spyrder. The actual production was an oversized pig.

I was hot for the concept.

Pictures please.......


I had a 1999 that I sold to a member here..... great car; just too small for an appropriate DD for my business needed to seat four.....

Not the best pics but you'll get the general idea. I have Litronic headlights to install and hope to add a small ducktail spoiler in the future. And maybe some ghost stripes.


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1464713975.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1464713988.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1464713999.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1464714009.jpg

So I have a question for the Boxster/ Cayman guys. My left rear intake duct appears to be a dummy as it looks to be blocked from the inside. The airbox is just inside the dummy duct. Do you guys ever open that up, or would it mess up the cooling air flow coming in from the right side duct, which has a fan to force air into the engine compartment? Also, the center front duct is a dummy. I understand that there is an oil cooler option that can be installed there. Has anyone tried that? Is it necessary if you live in hot climates?

I don't know what year yours is, but on my old 98 the left duct wasn't a dummy. There was a 'snorkel' of sorts in there whose purpose was to prevent water intrusion into the intake. Many would just pull that sucker out and free up the airway. I pulled mine and never had water intrusion, but then I never encountered water living in CA. Oh and no snorkel was good for +15 hp ;)

The driver's side duct is an intake, the passenger side is a cooling fan.

Many 987 owners remove the restrictive snorkel in order to allow more air into the engine, especially if they have also upgraded the intake (EVO, etc.) or throttle body/plenum. Apparently, the main reason for the snorkel was not to keep water out, but rather to safeguard against discarded cigarettes getting sucked into the intake. Seriously: in early Boxsters, there were a few cases of discarded cigarettes getting sucked into the intake and igniting the engine.

In order to safeguard against this unlikely eventuality, many owners (myself included) install a layer of protective mesh or screen where the restrictive snorkel used to go.

Interesting. I would have never guessed.

The irony here made me chuckle...

So a Porsche 911 is supposed to make you feel like your 2 inches is 8 inches of real meat...so if you have TWO 911's does that make you feel like you got 16 inches of Salami to swing around? But what does it matter if you are around HRC it still is just Mr Floppy.

Me too.
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1464808237.jpg

Blackout the windshield frame, add some 993 mirrors and bronze speedlines, squint a little and your close.

Two friends of mine bought Boxsters in the last year or two... an '01 S and an '02 S (This car). Both came with the IMS bearings already replaced, and were by all appearances well maintained.

On the '01 the replacement IMS bearing failed. Owner still weighing options.

On the '02 one of the heads cracked, sending oil into the coolant. Owner replaced engine with previously rebuilt engine, and just a few weeks later it's having cam timing issues (to be fair, probably a wiring problem and not rebuilder's fault.) Regardless, a nightmare.

So I have trouble believing anyone that says these motors can be reliable for the long term.

The Boxster gets a warm reception for the same reason as the miata, the stigma. I'm not sure why either one has the stigma, maybe because they are "cute" so women think they are attractive (ie not macho enough looking). And for the Boxster, it's exacerbated by the fact that it's got a big brother that's the big guy on campus, so no matter how good the boxster is, it'll always be the 911s little brother.

I am sadly reading GTC's comments on the engine while looking at this concept, and thinking-

"If only that concept had a 3.6 air cooled engine. It would be the coolest thing ever"

...and then there is the new GTS!

Last of the 6 cylinders. I played with one all weekend WOW!!

Do not underestimate this car.
918 steering wheel was cool, in fact I;d say the entire car is a 918 influenced car.

So much so that I would not call it a boxster at all. That name carries a different connotation than what this thing is. I finally get why they are starting to call them a 718!
(Although the 718 name I think is just the new4 cylinder ones, not this beast)

It is so seriously good with its Jekyl and Hyde magic button, that I could easily be persuaded to move on from my 73 RSR replica to one of these!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1464829837.jpg

Fuchs for one thing
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1464832326.jpg

Hell yeah, I need a set of those for mine. Not that I dislike the wheels that it's got, but that's pretty darn cool. What size are they, 17", 18" or 19". I've currently got 19", and I'd like to stick the stock wheels in storage and go to 18". What can you tell me about them? (not that I am ready to spend a bundle on wheels, but one can dream)



http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1464835423.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1464835433.jpg

Not sure I follow. Are you saying that it's ironic that I'm talking about "brand snobbishness" w/r/t a brand that's inherently snobbish? I guess I should have worded it slightly differently: "intra-brand snobbishness"? :p

On the other hand my hard driven much abused '97 Box has 219K miles on it now with the original IMS bearing as far as I know.

My SC with 125K miles has a broken head stud.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk