OK. I see my posts are being butchered and put in to wrong context. If I may, I like to recap what I’ve posted in cliff notes. You can go back to verify if you like.
QporscheQ: “…Honda and Nissan sales will be in the millions. So does it really surprise you that there is a 10:1 S2K to Boxster ratio at SCCA? Your Boxster has a lot more Porsche overhead money in it then some guy's Honda or Nissan… One of the things that I really like about my Boxster is that in terms of the automotive world there really aren’t all that many of them (or us owners). I don’t want a car that everybody else has..."
What he said there is just wrong, so I made the below response: “Wait a minute. There are between 8 - 9,000 S2K's for US in each production year. Boxster, began production in '97, outnumbers the S2K on the road. If it is exclusivity that you seek, you bought the wrong car.
Despite that, the number of S2K's in my local auto-x and SCDA track events far outnumbers the 911's and Boxsters combine, though not quite as drastic as the 10:1 ratio aforementioned for the SCCA. I'll leave it to you to figure out why that is.
I also said this: “As for overhead, S2K is the only other RWD car in the company and it shares zero parts w/ its siblings. Everything from its x-bone frame to its mid-engine layout to its interior is designed from scratch... with great success. They were also built - hand-assemble, I might add - in a Japanese plant dedicated to only the S2K and NSX. So they are not exactly saving much money from labor or shipping either.” This was in light of (overhead) cost, not proclaiming S2K’s mid-engine layout is equal to better than Boxster’s.
Lexuspilot: “When someone asks what kind of car I drive, I say "Porsche"....that's it.
Who wants to say "Honda, but it's a S2000, know what that is? It doesn't share components with other hondas, and it outnumbers the other cars at my SCCA"
My response: “That's OK b/c not everyone needs to be a "brand-whore." You see, some people enjoy a car for what it truly is, not how it reflects upon them. Those are the people that I'd like be associated with and be friends with. Sadly, your notion typifies many sports car owners nowadays.” I didn’t “get all high and mighty calling people brand whores.” It was a direct response to Lexuspilot alone, to say that not everyone cares about brand name as much as he does.
Lux: “And seeing more S2K's at the autocross? BFD. Maybe more Boxster owners prefer the track to driving around in parking lots. Here's the bottom line...the S2K is being discontinued even with a modest price of $30K.
I promptly clarified “SCDA events are road course track events. They run on NHIS, LimeRock, and Watkins Glen.” I still see more S2K’s there than 911 and Boxsters combine. Then you started the “discontinued” talk, based on rumors, to suggest that S2K “don’t sell well.” I said, “There probably won’t be a 2nd gen. S2000. Even if there was, no one would know about it b/c Honda keep info tightly sealed. I’ll bet you dinner though that there will an MY06, and then I’ll bet you dinner again there will be an MY07 S2000.”
Lux: “BTW, short of working for Honda, what makes you so sure that there will be '06 and '07 model S2K's? As far as I'm concerned, your "rumor" of there being cars is just as valid as other rumors of the S2K going into extinction.”
My response: Even most people who work for Honda are kept in the dark about future model plans. My assumption is based on this: Honda just moved MY05 S2000’s production to a different plant to make room for the new RL. From a financial standpoint, I don’t see them move a production infrastructure hundreds of miles just to extend its life for one more year, esp. one that builds less 15,000 units world-wide. I am still willing to bet dinner on it.
Lux: “Porsche is a boutique car maker. They deal with low volumes by having higher prices. An S2K that only sells in the 20K volume range at $30K is a failure for a manufacturer like Honda.”
False presumption, to which I replied, “the plan for S2000 was 5,000 units/year for US. It ballooned to what it is (8-9k/yr) due to stronger demand than expected. I can’t say Honda is disappointed with its success.” You can look that up.
All through out, I was correcting misconceptions about the S2K. I did not say one thing to discredit the Boxster itself. But I get the impression that everyone thinks I am bashing it. I have no incentive to do so, as I have only 2 more months in the S2000 before it will be retired in favor of the 987 BS.
Lux, I appreciate you found the time to list the advantages of rear-mid-engine car. I do owe you a constructive response for further discussion in return. Let me gather my research and respond to you tomorrow night as time has run out on me this evening.
Hybrid Mode
