[Flieger]

Personally, I think driving is just more fun with a manual. Once your wife drives a Boxster instead of a Saab, she'll have much more fun shifting her own gears and will prefer the manual in the Porsche. If you drive a lot in traffic or she needs to have a Tiptronic, than it is acceptable as it is still a Porsche transmission and built for fun. An interesting point is that the design of the Tiptronic with a torque converter puts less stress on the crankshaft so there are fewer instances of rear main seal failure with Tiptronics than manuals. As far as the years you mentioned, 2003 would be best for the glass rear window. I leased my 2002 Arctic Silver Boxster S 6 speed manual and grew to love that car like a family member. It had its problems- the rear main seal had to be replaced once and started leaking again towards the end of the lease. The dealer used the tool to check the crankcase/crankshaft concentricity and said it was in spec,though(pass/fail test). Also, the plastic rear window was a pain to clean and got a crease in it that almost cracked. However, I shed a quiet tear when the lease was up,as was one of the best cars I ever drove. The memories of that car are some of the best. Have a pre-purchase inspection done and when you get it you will be having a blast with one of the best handling cars ever.