What options SHOULD Porsche add to Boxster list
 

I know that Porsche is King of the options list (read-way to jack up PP).

My questions is, what option SHOULD Porsche make available that they now do not?

:matchup:

Keyless ignition for Boxster's and 911's
Bluetooth
Voice Activation
Ventillated/Massage Seats

That would hold me.

Serius or XM radio.

1. 350 hp motor for Boxster.
2. Limited slip diff.
3. MP3 player/changer option.


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doesn't the boxster S come with a limited slip LuX?

Supercharger

Tilt Wheel

Real cup holders

Memory Seats?????

Seems like I am the only gadget lover here. Yesterday I ordered a 525, and I got all the gadgets!

Your partially in luck Bruce. The 987 finally has a Tilt/telescoping wheel!

As shocking as this might be, Porsche...the manufacturer of sports cars, does not offer a limited slip diff on the Boxster. :matchup: The closest thing to a mechanical LSD is the PSM system that electronically employs the brakes. :rolleyes:

This is the one thing that really bugs me. And it really bugged me during the rainy season. From what I understand, Guard makes a mechanical LSD for the Boxster. Once I get some funds (and find some shorter gears for the diff) I'm gonna throw one in.


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Definately memory seats. Every time it goes to the dealer or someone else drives it it's impossible to ever find the place the seat used to be in....

"Your partially in luck Bruce. The 987 finally has a Tilt/telescoping wheel!"

Cool I did not know that.

Good stuff. Optional or standard?

As stated above, integrated sattelite radio would be very nice I think. IPOD or MP3 integration also.

That is an option, mine has it.

I'm really surprised they don't offer LSD. Damn, even my 93 Altima SE had LSD (even though it was a rare and expensive option.).

My car has some sort of Limited Slip device due to the sometimes severe axel tramp or wheel hop that occurs when trying to launch the car and even on 1-2 shifts sometimes. My reasoning is that a limited slip device limits one wheel from spinning faster than the other one. Cars without a limited slip device allow one wheel spin and the other to hook up which reduces acceleration and traction and the wheel hop condition shouldn't exist. I've never experienced this one-wheel hookup with my car. Either they both spin or they both hookup which is precisely what happens with POSI traction.

Bruce, it is now a standard thing I believe.

At my local autocross yesterday many of my fellow club drivers were remarking on how few BoxsterS there were and how strange it was given the amazing handling and more than adequate power. Anyhooo I would like to see an option package that would have things like the lightest Porsche approved wheels with trackable rubber, approved lowering springs,harness belts, Kevlar seats(like the Cobra Suzuka, a urethane front bumper lip, stone guards around the wheel arches. And maybe some tasteful graphics like the old RS cars used to have.
I wouldn't expect all of these options from another car make but given Porsche's racing cred. I think it would be cheaper for them to negotiate deals than for me to pay retail or sifting through ebay.

These are neat ideas. Very well done!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Adam My car has some sort of Limited Slip device...

As stated prior, unless you have PSM then there is no LSD. The Boxster has an open differential. Here's a blurb on diffs I found:

The most commonly employed type of differential (because it is simple and thus inexpensive and durable) is the open differential, which simply consists of a series of gears. Provided that they have minimal friction and deflection, open differentials are an effective method of avoiding wheel hop of the driven wheels in turns. They do have some serious disadvantages, however; If one wheel is off the ground, then it will spin freely, and the other wheel will not apply any meaningful amount of power to the ground. Also, they tend to slip in wet conditions, which can be hazardous; When they begin to slip, they tend to continue to slip. Because the slipping wheel gets all the power they are not useful for off-road use, either.

I think adding an LSD will be as almost as good as adding the B&M short shift, in relation to the bang-for-the-buck ratio. I really can't wait to do mine.


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I am going to do some research on this topic. Like I said before though when when my tires slip or spin they both do...and this is not characteristic of an open diff as your post points out. I'm sure you've had wheel hop before on your S right lux? This is a result of a limited slip or POSI diff as your post also points out. Am I the only one here that has gotten some wheel hop? I'm sure I can't be the only one here that has tried to launch my car..at least I hope not.

Yeah i get the wheel hop when I'm being an idiot and not paying attention. A bad mix of too heavy on the right foot and and too lazy with the left foot.
But I seem to recall a review of the BoxsterS in Road and Track and they were getting big time wheel hop on the 0-60 test.

I'm not surprised, anytime you try an agressive launch like over 3,500rpm and drop the clutch too fast you will get wheel hop...at least I will.

I did verify with the dealer today that there is NO LSD option for the Boxster, never has been. He was at a loss to explain why and candidly, I think we were both stumped.

That is strange indeed. I'm still perplexed as to why the boxsters backend behaves like it has a LSD. Wheel hop occurs(at least this is what I thought) when torque is being distributed to the tires equally and sometimes when tires spin at the same speed they "hop" or skip on the pavement. I used to do burnouts/peelouts/donuts in my old 528i and it wasn't hard to do so because only one tire would spin! That car absolutely did not have a limited slip, that is precisely what LSD's are designed to prevent. The boxster S on the other hand doesn't seem to have the one wheel spin thing going on depite having oh about 100 more hp. I have a feeling if I ever did a successful burnout in my boxster S, I would see two black strips, not one like the old Bimmer. Are there more kinds of diffs than just limited slip and open on modern cars? Sorry to beat a dead horse but I'm very interested in certain technical aspects of my car and perhaps someone out there on this board can shed some light on the subject. Things just don't seem to add up right...but I'm sure it's something simple.

Many factors contribute to wheel hop. Suspension dampening, weight transfer, traction, etc.

Anyway, maybe we can set up a group buy on some LSD's and a shorter rear gear while we're at it. IMHO, this would be better than any intake/chip/header mod.

I have a feeling a Boxster with a proper mechanical LSD would be awesome powering out of corners. And with a shorter rear, I'm betting much improved 0-100 mph acceleration.


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I'll except that. I wonder if the Carrera has a LSD?

Well, as a mid-engine car, you would have to do some serious clutch dropping to lay any sort of serious patch down.

No so in a RWD BMW, no?

As my tech and I were speculating as to why no LSD , this thought did come up. Also, he mentioned that the tract control option does exist and that this might be why Porsche did not incorp LSD in the axle.

Hey, we can sell this as an OPTION!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don’t really want to step on anyone’s foot again and I have not gotten my Boxster S yet. Therefore I don’t know much about Porsche.

In general, one can determine if car has a LSD or locker is by jacking up the axle and spin the tire. If the opposite side of the wheel spins the same direction, it has LSD or locker. If it spins in the opposite direction, it is an open diff.

For a high performance car like Porsche, I am not sure if LSD will be helpful. I think it will be extremely dangerous when cornering. The LSD will prevent the car to turn. The mechanical LSD (friction) has a long (delayed) activation time; it will not help a Porsche much. As a result, the Porsche will just fishtail all over the place. I think using the stability control makes more sense to me. The ABS can modulate the brake in microsec interval while LSD works in a few sec interval.

My 2 cents.

Interesting. That makes sense. This is good stuff.

Underdawg,

You're not understanding the various limited slips and what they do. Proper sports cars do indeed come with limited slip diffs. They help you in a corner by allowing the 2 wheels to turn at independent speeds. The amount of torque that gets directed/proportioned is also controlled by the LSD. As a matter of fact, the 911 does indeed have an LSD as an option. Same as every other sports car (M3, Corvette, etc). You would be hard pressed to find a sports car without one. The only reason it is not on the Boxster is because of Porsche's cheap ass. OOh, sell them stability control. :rolleyes:

I don't know why you think an LSD would inhibit turning? :confused: Perhaps what you're thinking about is a straight locking diff (found on 4x4's). These make horrendous noise when you're trying to turn. But they have their purpose for 4 wheeling as they assure a 50/50 torque split between the 2 wheels at all times, even if one wheel is up in the air while you're traversing rocks.


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Well we have determined that whatever LSD really does, it does NOT do it in a Boxster.

:cheers:

That is one thing we can say for certain now Bruce. :)

Now 30 yrs ago, this LSD conversation would have gone in a totally different direction.

Times have changed for the better!

:confused: :eek:

Perhaps the Porsche people were on LSD when they decided to leave the LSD out.

:p :matchup:


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That would explain it. Can you imagine a German engineer on LSD????????????

:dance:

Tilt teering wheel is standard on both the Base and S 987, memory seats are part of the electric seats package also on the 987
How about real floor mats that are priced fairly or are free as they should be on a car in this price range.

" How about real floor mats that are priced fairly or are free as they should be on a car in this price range."

Yes, I think they could throw in a set of $50 mats.