[husker boxster]

I traded an 01S in on my LE S, so I've owned both a 986S & 987S. Didn't track the 01S and not planning to track the LE, so I can't give you data on the outskirts of their limits. I do drive in a spirited mode and hopefully can give you some insight in the differences as I see them.

HP
I went from 255 to 295 and the butt dyno can feel the difference. An 05S would be 285, but what's 10hp? Going from a 986S to a 987S is basically the same jump as the difference between a base 986 to a 986S.

Shifter
1000x better in a 987S. If you haven't done anything to your shifter, you know it's vague and sloppy. While the 987S isn't up to Honda level crispness, you feel way more confident that you're going to land in the proper gear. Tremendous improvement here.

Ride
The ride seems a bit harsher in the 987S, even with my 18" snows on. My 01S had 18's and my LE came with 19's but I think it's more suspension than tires. It's certainly not bone jarring, but a bit harsher.

Steering
I can't tell much difference in steering feel between the two. My 01S would occasionally snap sideways but I was always able to catch it. The LE has traction control which has eliminated that. When you feel a bit of sideways motion in the LE, the TC steps in and kicks it back in line.

Brakes
No discernable difference to me.

Exhaust
The 01S' exhaust was OK but left me wanting more. The LE has Porsche Sport Exhaust and it sounds GREAT. The only problem was you had to activate it every time you started the car. I fixed that with a simple hack to permanently leave it on.

Thought I might miss my 01S but the LE has virtually erased the memory it.

Hope this helps. Others can certainly chime in with their opinions.