porsche owners manuel vs road and track

well in my 99 boxsters owners manuel is claims the boxster does 60MPH in 6.7sec
but when i was reading a review for the 99 boxster in road and track they say the boxster will hit 60 mph in 6.1.and Car and driver claims 6.2.My question is why is the owners manuel way off.
thanks

[Adam]

Porsche is conservative when it comes to 0-60 times ect. Also, a 0-100 kilometer test is more popular in Europe which is actually 0-62 mph. You may want to check the manual to see if you were reading the 0-62 mph rating. If not, then revert back to my first answer.

[denverpete]

Many car manufacturers also state times that are reasonably achievable without extreme measures. You'll notice vastly differing times for the same car by different magazines. Some magazines take the reasonable approach while others do whatever it takes to get the lowest times. Such approaches would include hi rev or even redline clutch drops and power shifting (full gas, no let-off, clutch in-and-out). Certainly something you can do as well - just don't expect to have a clutch, tranny, or possibly engine for long.....

[MNBoxster]

Originally Posted by denverpete

Many car manufacturers also state times that are reasonably achievable without extreme measures. You'll notice vastly differing times for the same car by different magazines. Some magazines take the reasonable approach while others do whatever it takes to get the lowest times. Such approaches would include hi rev or even redline clutch drops and power shifting (full gas, no let-off, clutch in-and-out). Certainly something you can do as well - just don't expect to have a clutch, tranny, or possibly engine for long.....

Hi,

Agree, but some manufacturers go for the max as well. When Lambo first tested the Murcielago, they wanted specific top speeds for marketing purposes which beat the F-50, Enzo, etc.

It took them a week at Monza, making early morning runs on specially formulated tires using an F1 Test Driver. 5 days, and 6 engines later, they got the results they wanted...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

[BuffaloBoxster]

I remember reading that Lotus once sent along a factory driver to drive the Esprit in a shootout. Lotus claimed it was the fastest car 0-60 in the test. They finally did wind up with the fastest run, but by the time they were done the driver had burnt out the clutch and damaged a gear.

[Sammy]

My experience is that anything that could be considered a performance vehicle will publish the fastest 0-60 time achieved. Differences in 0-60 times can be as simple as the outside temperature combined with the wind speed and direction. It doesn't sound like much but a car being tested in Detroit in 65 deg with 5 mph wind will be faster than a car being tested in Phoenix in 100 deg with 15-20 mph wind. There are so many factors that affect this it's anyone's guess as to what is correct but for a performance car they will publish the fastest time they feel comfortable with.

I would also like to add that most vehicles can and will be modified for better power so I use "performance" vehicle loosely. Ever watch "Trucks" on TNT on weekend mornings? They drag race production F350's that they've added performance enhancers for power.

Most likely a minivan will not be considered a "performance" vehicle and they won't burn through powertrains trying to get that number as low as possible.

[Sammy]

Oh yeah... my vote is for the Road & Track and Car & Driver times not only because they are faster ( ), but they actually test these car in the US and they have no reason to alter the results.

Originally Posted by blkboxster

well in my 99 boxsters owners manuel is claims the boxster does 60MPH in 6.7sec
but when i was reading a review for the 99 boxster in road and track they say the boxster will hit 60 mph in 6.1.and Car and driver claims 6.2.My question is why is the owners manuel way off.
thanks