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I think that 914 owners probably got some of the same vibes from the 911 and car community when it came out. At first I thought that the boxster had a soft image because it was offered as a convertible only. But then I recalled that the viper SRT 10 has also been a covertible up until very recently and it is definately not considered a chick car( what car would be with 500 hp right?) I think there are perhaps several variables in this false presumption but the main one must be that the early 2.5L boxsters didn't score big points with the more is better crowd. Some people consider 201hp and a mid 6 sec 0-60 run unimpressive...or downright slow and disappointing for anything wearing a Porsche badge. I think with all the accalades the new Boxster S is receiving the myth of the boxster being a glorified Miata is finally coming to an end. If Porsche would have offered the boxster S around the same time as the original back in 97' this discussion may not have ever taken place. Of course with the 97' 993 putting out barely more HP as the current boxster S, Porsche couldn't allow that kind of threat to the 911 until the performance bar was raised in 99 with the 996. Porsche allowed the boxster to be on the market for almost 3 yrs before they introduced the S model and this allowed some of the car public to perceive the car as weak and inaffective. And as we all know, once some people have made up their minds about something they are very slow to change their minds despite glaring deficientcies in their logic. Just my 002.
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