986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners - View Single Post - New (potential) Boxster owner--confused

Ad Sach · 05-03-2004, 02:00 PM

mr MickeyMouse

re"If so, if you were to put 5-7K into a 996 handling characteristics, you could get close enough to match a Boxster’s handling, sure the Boxster is a mid engine design, do you really think the 996 does not handle that well."

So if I understand your argument correctly, adding 5-7K to a 996 should yield similar performance to adding 15-18K in a Boxster. It sounds like the dollar amounts are about right, so the differences should show up in areas like HP/lb ratios, moment of enertia, etc. By the numbers, the Boxster should have the edge.

996 handling? I haven't aggresively driven a 996. I do feel that the 930 and 964 don't handle that well. Road & Track and car and driver regularly do road tests. Since the days I rode in a Lotus Europa, it has always been about slalom numbers for me - the 996 doesn't seem to have the slalom numbers of the Boxster S w/M030.

>>Think about it, how many championships have a 911 won, how many Boxster championships <<
A reasonable comparison must be 996 to 986, rather than including all of the 911 history. As far as I know that means comparing the Boxster to the GT2/GT3 since that seems to be what has been winning since the 986 was introduced. If you start comparing Boxster with the 993/996 engine to the GT2/GT3 - well yes I can see how the Boxster might not be as good a car. How does this equate to the 996 engine in a Boxster question?

re:>trunks, are we driving or going golfing…<
We are doing all of the above. Saturday I brought home a 9x12 carpet on my roof rack. Saturday the week before I drove at Lime Rock. In between I commuted to work. In the winter I drive in Snow(top down if possible). In the summer I drive in the heat(top down if possible).

If the only goal were to go racing, both the 996 and the 986 fall prey to the lighter body of a 914 with a 600 HP engine and $15,000 dollars in suspension and body mods. But again, this is outside the comparison of a moderately expensive 99x engine swap using genuine Porsche Parts in a 986 vs an unspecified suspension upgrade from somebody or other that makes a 996 handle like a 986.

I'm not the least bit infuriated, but I am confused by the basis of your argument. When I asked "how would you do that?" (and mistakenly inserted 996 in place of 986) your response divided between 'driving records' and 'mods break and are frustrating'. Was there an answer in there about handling that I missed?

As for your statement "folks should start where they want to end up" - I did! I went looking around for a great cornering convertible that was both affordable and reliable- I got that. When my engine is finished, I plan to upgrade to a reliable Porsche engine with more power - and have that too! If my engine never gives up, it will remain a 'someday' thing for me. In the meantime, I am very happy with this car. I sincerely hope things work out as well for you.

05-03-2004, 02:00 PM	#9
Ad Sach Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Niskayuna, NY (near Albany) Posts: 358	mr MickeyMouse re"If so, if you were to put 5-7K into a 996 handling characteristics, you could get close enough to match a Boxster’s handling, sure the Boxster is a mid engine design, do you really think the 996 does not handle that well." So if I understand your argument correctly, adding 5-7K to a 996 should yield similar performance to adding 15-18K in a Boxster. It sounds like the dollar amounts are about right, so the differences should show up in areas like HP/lb ratios, moment of enertia, etc. By the numbers, the Boxster should have the edge. 996 handling? I haven't aggresively driven a 996. I do feel that the 930 and 964 don't handle that well. Road & Track and car and driver regularly do road tests. Since the days I rode in a Lotus Europa, it has always been about slalom numbers for me - the 996 doesn't seem to have the slalom numbers of the Boxster S w/M030. >>Think about it, how many championships have a 911 won, how many Boxster championships << A reasonable comparison must be 996 to 986, rather than including all of the 911 history. As far as I know that means comparing the Boxster to the GT2/GT3 since that seems to be what has been winning since the 986 was introduced. If you start comparing Boxster with the 993/996 engine to the GT2/GT3 - well yes I can see how the Boxster might not be as good a car. How does this equate to the 996 engine in a Boxster question? re:>trunks, are we driving or going golfing…< We are doing all of the above. Saturday I brought home a 9x12 carpet on my roof rack. Saturday the week before I drove at Lime Rock. In between I commuted to work. In the winter I drive in Snow(top down if possible). In the summer I drive in the heat(top down if possible). If the only goal were to go racing, both the 996 and the 986 fall prey to the lighter body of a 914 with a 600 HP engine and $15,000 dollars in suspension and body mods. But again, this is outside the comparison of a moderately expensive 99x engine swap using genuine Porsche Parts in a 986 vs an unspecified suspension upgrade from somebody or other that makes a 996 handle like a 986. I'm not the least bit infuriated, but I am confused by the basis of your argument. When I asked "how would you do that?" (and mistakenly inserted 996 in place of 986) your response divided between 'driving records' and 'mods break and are frustrating'. Was there an answer in there about handling that I missed? As for your statement "folks should start where they want to end up" - I did! I went looking around for a great cornering convertible that was both affordable and reliable- I got that. When my engine is finished, I plan to upgrade to a reliable Porsche engine with more power - and have that too! If my engine never gives up, it will remain a 'someday' thing for me. In the meantime, I am very happy with this car. I sincerely hope things work out as well for you.