[RandallNeighbour]

And I respectfully disagree.

S model 986s are not that much more these days, and they feel quite a bit faster behind the wheel.

I can't think of a single S boxster owner I've visited with that looks at the base model when driving by and says, "Gee, I wish I'd bought the one with a smaller motor."

However, many* of the guys who buy the base model will look over at the S in a parking lot or driving by and think, "I should have held out and found an S."

*"Many" does not mean every base boxster owner. But if you polled this forum asking non-S owners if they wish they had more HP and also wished they'd held out and found an S, you'd discover what I know oh so well—a sizable percentage would say their 2.5 box just doesn't have enough low end grunt for a car they plan to keep a long time.

I've owned a 2.5 200 hp Boxster for eight years now. I've spent wads of cash eeking out 20+ hp in an effort to get more power out of my motor and it's futile. Had I just waited a year and saved more for an S...