Does anyone else think the 6-speed is not necessary?

[SD987]

I'm in agreement here; 5th gear is the superfluous gear amongst the six in my mind and the S would be just fine with five on the floor.

3rd gear in either tranny takes you into the 90s, at least in the 987.

[John Y]

It's definitely more of a marketing thing than a necessity; my GTI 2.0T has a 6-spd and really doesn't need it - the car has an a--load of torque so the gear you're in isn't all that important. The extra shifting can become annoying. I think the base Box could probably use it more than the 'S', but that's where the marketing comes in - you'll find it as a feature on higher-end, premium cars, not necessarily where it's needed.

[John V]

The synchros are tough in these transmissions. Just skip the superfluous gears when in town. I very rarely use 5th gear.

[Sammy]

When I first met NickCats he asked me about the 6 speed and I commented on how the extra gear seemed pretty worthless to me. I'm glad I'm not the only one who noticed. 5 gears is plenty for me...

[blue2000s]

Wow, total agreement. Is that a 986forum first?

[Perfectlap]

Necessary? Well to reduce the engine wear and promote longevity I think you'll find the lower RPMs you run the longer the engine will last.
Whenver I upchange to 6th gear on the highway the revs come down. May or not be the best for the fuel consumption but its easier on the engine life me thinks.
When I commuting in city traffic I keep the at 3rd and 4th to strike a good balance.

I also try to short shift in the winter as much as possible before the oil temp is in the safe zone.

[blue2000s]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

Whenver I upchange to 6th gear on the highway the revs come down. May or not be the best for the fuel consumption but its easier on the engine life me thinks.
When I commuting in city traffic I keep the at 3rd and 4th to strike a good balance.

That's the same thing all the other posts have noted if you read them.

[BuffaloBoxster]

Originally Posted by blue2000s

Wow, total agreement. Is that a 986forum first?

Not in total agreement.. Even in the 5-speed the ratios are designed for track speeds. 2nd in my base 986 is good for 72 MPH at redline. On the track, your acceleration will be compromised at higher speeds if the gears are spaced further apart.

I've also thought that changing the final drive would be a great bang-for-the-buck performance upgrade, but I don't recall ever seeing one for the Box.

[Gary Gaukler]

The usefulness of the Boxster's six gears and 5th gear in particular really depends on how/where you drive the car. I agree that in the US, where you really ought not to exceed 90mph or so on a public highway, 5th is fairly useless. I shift 4-6.

But the car was not developed exclusively for the US. When trying to accelerate to Autobahn speeds - e.g. past 115mph - 5th gear makes a lot of sense to me. The same can be said for track driving. Even at TWS, which is a fairly slow track, you will run out of 4th gear before the end of the straight.

Gary