How much could Porsche charge for a Tubo Boxster S???

[Perfectlap]

in a straight line I surely would appreciate the 2.5 over the 3.2

But I drove a 1.8 Miata with 150 hp and it had plenty of pep. I believe the 2.5 Boxster and my Miata had similar power to weight ratios, although the Boxster was one or two classes above my Miata for Autocross/time trials.

And let me tell you in the hands of an experienced driver the Miata (and surely a Boxster, a much better engineered car than the first or 2nd gen. Miata) was very fast indeed. As a matter of fact during certain events the Miatas were posting better lap times than higher horsepower cars. Similarly, other lowly powered four bangers were often times (with very moded suspensions) were no more than 1.5 seconds off the higher powered cars. One eastern european driver (who I know is left foot braker) is lightning fast in....An old Honda CIVIC! Ok its had some work but its still NA and nowhere near 200 hp. On a very open 60 second course he was a mere 1 second slower than some older coverttes and 911's!

Now on the road course track with its much longer straights and way less severe directional changes, its another story for 1.8 Miatas and 2.5-2.7 Boxsters. But in Autocross you really get to see the responsiveness of a car's handling and the quickness of its power delivery, as during national SCCA competitions the time gaps between the top times are down to .01 and .001's of seconds. Talk about not making even one mistake!


None of the Boxsters 2.5, 2.7, 3.2 will win any drag races but that's only a bother to someone who doesn't intend to test the handling limits of their Boxster. All of these cars have enough power to go over the "don't go into this turn too hot or you will be in trouble" line. If its possible to cross that line and still post a competitve time then I have to wonder about the need for more power in a sportscar.

I guess its a matter of what sort of driving you intend to do with your Boxster.
And I agree a Turbo Boxster with its lag would compromise its other handling advantages. A SC Boxster would be ok I guess but they sound funny.

[Lux]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

None of the Boxsters 2.5, 2.7, 3.2 will win any drag races but that's only a bother to someone who doesn't intend to test the handling limits of their Boxster.

With all due respect, you don't make any sense. What would going fast in a straight line have anything to do with handling? Taking a corner on a track is a steady-state affair. A 100 hp car taking a corner at 100 mph is the same as a 400 hp car taking the corner at 100 mph.

There's 3 things that make the quintessential sports car:
1. Handle great. Allows you to take the corner at a higher rate.
2. Brake great. Allows you to scrub speed quicker between straights.
3. Have gobs of power. Allows you to get out of corners, down the straight and into the next braking zone quicker.

The elite sports cars do all 3 of the above. Then the 2nd tier cars do 2 out of 3. Then the 3rd tier cars do 1 out of 3.

You seem to be relating a car's power with autocrossing where you rarely get out of second gear. Try running that Civic on a race track with some elevation changes and long straights and there'll be more than a 1 second diff between lap times of that Civic and a Boxster or Corvette or whatever.


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[Perfectlap]

sorry I meant to say I would appreciate the 3.2 over the 2.5 in a straight line.

I mentioned autocross in reference to the statement that a slow car can never be a fast driven car when I brought up the Miata/civic in autcross conditions. There lots of different types of driving where a car can be considered fast.

Autocross is indeed not meant to be 100+mph events like on the road course or drag strips but on most cars frequently AutoX'd, 2nd gear is good for up 75mph, 3rd gear and your up to 100 mph its not really an autocross anymore. Sharp turns between 50-75mph is plenty fast enough to evaluate/improve a non-professional driver and non-dedicated racing car. I hear the tire rack who sell more tires than any retailer around run their own private autocross events to evaluate DOT approved tires.

But back to the straightline. The Boxster S had a 0-60 in the 5 second range. The 2.7 Boxster was maybe a hair over 6 seconds? A $100K 911 is in the 4 second range? Let's say you drop a huge engine in a Boxster and your into 4 seconds, you shaved less than 2 seconds. If I count out loud to the count of 2, it doesn't seem like that bid a deal to me. Certainly not a big enough deal for me to wish I had a more powerful car than my BoxsterS. I generally avoid going much over 75 on roads where these morons in their SUV's are doing 30 mph over the speed limit. At really high straightline speeds for me its too much trust in strangers in cars whose driving experience you have no knowledge of. Even on the road course track with the BoxsterS top speed, unless you can drive the car to the limit and produce a near perfect lap time I wouldn't see a use for more power. The power at hand is already more than non-professional drivers can fully exploit. And more than enough to get you in trouble.

which goes back to my belief that if you want a car to take to your local 1/4 mile track to do some racing, then the 2.7 and 3.2 Boxster wasn't designed for that purpose. Doesn't mean it won't fun if that's all you have!

[Brucelee]

I would still like to drive a 300 HP Boxster and see how I like it.

Hmm, the Cayman?

[Perfectlap]

Well the 987S is already 280? Will another 20-40HP would make that big a difference? That guy I saw whipping the pants off that 987S during the test drive sure was having fun though!
And of course what's HP without the right amount of torque?

I'm fearing the day that the 987S shows up to a local Autocross event, I'll have to decide to ask to ride along for one lap and possibly hate and curse my 986S forever!
(Actually I'm kidding, that new front end is still not rubbing off on me since I first saw it)

[Adam]

Originally Posted by Brucelee

I would still like to drive a 300 HP Boxster and see how I like it.

Hmm, the Cayman?

The Cayman will be the ultimate drivers tool I predict. The boxster S (987) is already doing 0-60 in 5 flat and mid 13 sec 1/4's. A 3.4L cayman will proabbly hit high 4's 0-60 and low 13 sec 1/4 miles. That's C5 territory in the straights plus unreal cornering capabilities.

[Brucelee]

Agreed! A $60K Cayman seems like the ticket. Hmmm, WHEN will they start showing up at the auction?????

Still hate the name.

[scubaguy10]

I would love my 2.5 Boxster to have more power, but lets be realistic here. It may be the slowest of these cars, but it's still plenty fast. At 0-60 in 6.7, 1/4 mile in about 14.5, it's quite adequate for my needs. The first car I ever drove was my father's 1969 Z-28, a legendary muscle car that, for its time, was considered a great handler. The straight line performance was maybe .3/sec faster, top speed not as good , and it got 9 miles/ gallon on Sunoco 260. I think we're well past the point of overkill on horsepower with most of today's performance cars.

With that said, a local Porsche specialists thinks he can install a 3.4 motor with headers in my car for about $12,000. Tempting.......

Mike

[Brucelee]

Does that price include the motor? Used, rebuilt ???

[Adam]

I would seriously consider doing the swap to the 3.4L if you can get it at that price...and the people are competent. I posted a story about a guy who did a FVD 3.4L swap on his 99 and the results were very impressive and I'm sure he paid alot more than what you quoted. He was doing 12.8's in the 1/4 on street tires. That's less than an eyeblink slower than a 400hp C6!