[Biff Bradley]

I owned a 99 Boxster for over two years, and now own a 1989 Carrera Targa.

The Boxster is great fun to drive. It is a very modern car, and the overall feel is much like other modern cars. The controls (clutch, gearshift) are light and very easy to get used to. The car handles in a neutral manner, and the cornering limits are very high in dry conditions (wider rubber than the 89 911 I drive now). So why did I sell it and get the Carrera?

There is very little user maintenance. This may be just what you want, but I wanted something I could work on and not just take to the dealer for everything. You can't even look at the engine without the effort of partially disassembling the roof mechanism. The engines have had some reliability problems, such as leaking rear main seals, and just blowing up.

The interior is much different from the 911, with lots of plastic, and the new gauges don't do anything for me.

The roof is a complicated mechanism with lots of motors and cables to break, and the rear window folds badly with a popping sound. The rear window also offers limited visibility and clouds up.

The depriciation was much greater than what I expected with a Porsche. I decided to get out before it fell further or the car got out of warranty.

I have enjoyed the 1989 911 - that's really what I wanted to start with, and the Boxster decision was a compromise in the first place. The sound of the air cooled flat six, and the power surge at 4K rpm, are a whole different experience. The 911 takes a lot more skill to drive, and is more of a pill in heavy traffic, etc., but I would never go back. However, it's a personnal decision, and Boxsters are nice cars for the non DIY type, and good value at their highly depriciated prices.