The S2000 was the last car "in the running" for me when I bought the Boxster (yes, I tried them
all, starting with the Mazda Miata, and right on up at the time). The S2000 was a nice car, but definitely not at the same level of refinement and poise as the Boxster. I distinctly remember the shift lever
dancing around madly in my hand while going over a slightly bumpy highway surface in the S2000 - didn't inspire confidence in me for comfort on long drives (if only I'd known about the "2-hour" Porsche seat ache at the time...
) and long-term ownership. May well have been a better "deal" for the money, but the overall difference to me was enough for me to spend the extra $$ for the Porsche. However, I have a co-worker that bought one of the first S2000s delivered and he still loves it...
I will say that the Honda dealership was
way better in terms of customer approach at the time (~April 2001) - I didn't buy the Boxster for the "experience" at the time, that's for sure. Based upon the economy and the number of customer surveys, etc. I've been getting from Porsche lately, I'm hoping that's now improved.
I've now seen several 350Zs around and they definitely appear well constructed. Nissan knows how to package cars well from a Marketing perspective - they look much more than they are (bigger, more expensive, etc.)... not having driven one, I can't comment on whether the performance matches the finish.
Part of my criteria for picking the Boxster was performance
with comfort and usability -- the car I chose had to support the idea of a couple going away for a long weekend together. No other convertible in the category/class at the time had the performance and the luggage space in one package.
For just plain fun at the money, the Toyota MR2 was a blast -- if I was shopping for an all-weather motorcycle replacement that would be it... great around-town handling and pretty good pep, decent headroom, really low $$, but just enough luggage space for your lunchbox - not even a picnic basket, if two people were going!