bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

I live in Ocala, FL, also known as 'slowcala' - a small but growing town mostly known for horse farms, and also many retiree communities.

I'm not retired so my wife and I moved here to a place where we can have a couple of horses cuz that's her passion and I like the privacy and space and peace and quiet (and NO TRAFFIC).

So she likes horses and I like cars and I thought Ocala wasn't going to have much going on here, and alas, there's no Lexus dealer (yet). But this area is growing pretty fast and there's definitely a lot of money in parts of the area. With money comes nice cars, right?

Anyway, my neighbor who lives here in the winter months (PA in the summer) has a 911 (he had an 01 or 02 yellow convertible 996 last time he was here, which he left for me to drive a couple of days when he left before someone came to pick it up, and now he's upgraded to a 996 turbo which I hope to have the opportunity to enjoy when he comes back in a couple of months ). When he was here last he went to a Porsche dealer HERE IN OCALA that I now know had only been open a couple of months when he went. He went for service and wasn't thrilled (long story).

So today my wife and I decided we really needed a relaxing day away from our 'farmette' so this morning we went to play a 9 hole golf course nearby (I play golf about twice a year but I needed to try to remember how to play because I'll be playing golf with my brother-in-law soon over a long weekend. So after a fun bit of golf (score wasn't important or impressive but I hit a few decent shots, so no complaints there), we had a nice lunch at the restaurant next to the course and then I said to my wife "mind if we drop by that Porsche dealer?" and she said 'no', so off we go.

Pull into the Porsche dealership with my GS400 which in itself feels a bit awkward! I notice the parking lot is FILLED with awesome cars. E55, Viper, loads of Porsches, droooool. Get out, look around the small lot, and a young guy comes out and of course says "May I help you?" So I say I'd like to get a Porsche some day and wanted to see how both the new Boxster and 911 (997) compare to the prior versions. He was very polished and we went into the showroom to get into the air conditioning and look at a Boxster S first. I sat in this 'midnight blue' (GORGEOUS color) Boxster S with factory 19s and about every option there is.

The interior is a zillion times better than the prior cheap Boxster interior. The new Boxster interior is very similar to the new 997 and I'd describe it as 'techie' but classy and definitely not cheap looking. A 'chronograph' sat in the middle of the dash on top (yes, an actual stop watch guage, controllable from a stalk behind on the left of the steering wheel. Slick. The guages are awesome with white numbers on black LCD digital read outs in addition to analog guages that come on as soon as you open the door.

This Boxster is roomier than the older one, but still not roomy. I 'fit' in it ok (I'm about 6'3", 200lbs). It has a small glove box (the original Boxster shipped without one, but they eventually added one), a small space under the center armrest, and they've even snuck cup holders which are 'revealed' by pressing an unmarked metallic colored 'strip' in the passenger dash area - very slick. The nav/climate/audio cluster looks awesome although I didn't get to see it in action. This loaded Boxster S also has the built in hands free phone. I asked about how this works and he pointed to a tiny black strip on the dash you press and it pops out allowing you to put any cell phone service provider's SIM car in and push it in. SLIIIIIIIIIIIIICK.

So I was impressed with the look and feel of the new Boxster. I then asked if I could see a 997 and he said 'sorry, sold out!'. A bit bummed, he followed up with 'but would you like to take the Boxster for a spin?' I said 'is the pope Catholic?'and minutes later he'd pulled up one of the Boxsters outside for my wife and I to tool around in. Nice thing about a test drive in a 2 seater, unless he wanted to **** off my wife (bad move) there was no way he was coming with us. He never mentioned any of this, just copied my license and said enjoy yourselves.

So, depress clutch on the 6 speed manual, make sure it's in neutral, other foot on brake, and started the Boxster with the key on the LEFT of the steering wheel (their tradition, although it's a bit off if you ask me - I guess when they go keyless there will just be a button on the left). Started right up with a nice fairly quiet rumble behind our heads. This Boxster was a very basic one, 17" rims, no nav, not an 'S' so 'just' 240HP from the boxster horizontally opposed 6 (also known as a 'boxer' configuration, hence the car name).

Pull out to the road, wait for a gap in the light traffic, and pull out not too crazy. This engine is WAY smoother than I would have expected. Sounds GREAT, and the clutch and shifter are VERY light, smooth, and precise. Great stuff. But I have to say, I was underwhelmed by the engine's power and responsiveness below 4000rpms. Maybe I'm just spoiled by the GS400's V8 with the upgraded torque converter and Supra gearing but this still felt relatively slow. But looking at the speedometer showed the car was quicker than it felt. The torque curve feels like it's getting progressively steeper. But because the good power seems to come at high rpms, 'punching' the gas in say 4th at 60mph has my mind saying "that's it?".

Now on handling, I leave the main road and onto a back country road. The car was wonderful, pretty flat cornering, although I think the weakest wheel/tire package they offer on the car was giving it a bit more lean than the 18s or 19s would provide. The Boxster offers no sport package - the regular and S versions only differ in the engine size/power according to the sales guy.

So we return to the dealership. Our friendly sales guy asks what I thought of it, and in particular if I thought the handling was better than I had expected it to be. I said 'no, perhaps because of the taller tires on this one and the fact that I've driven a 911 a couple of times before, plus (as I pointed to my GS400) I'm used to coilovers and other tweaks on my car. I didn't want him too excited about the prospects for a sale!

I took a couple of pics I'll share in a minute, the sales guy gave me some brochures (they're more like BOOKS), we talk about the upcoming launch of the Cayman and he said he will invite me to their unveiling there soon (COOOL!).

Before we left, I also relayed me neighbor's problems with their service just so they knew he wasn't happy (I didn't give his name of course) and the guy said they've revamped their whole service since then and the sales guy also told me he's the son of the owner and to tell my neighbor to ask for him if he comes back and they'll take good care of him. This was good PR at least.

We get into my GS, out to the road, and blast off. Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! My GS400 *feels* much quicker than the Boxster, maybe it is, maybe it isn't, but that low end grunt is fun either way.

BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE... I then come to a turn I need to take, and I brake, and I turn, and THEN it hits me what's so unbelievable about the Boxster - the steering and brakes!!!!! Previous experience in the 911 showed me how wonderfully precise and 'simple' and direct the 911 steering feels, and the Boxster feels at least as good. The GS feels like steering the Titanic in comparison. Then there's the brakes. I have 14" StopTech front brake kit so my brakes are nothing to sneeze at but the feel of the Porsche brakes is still far superior - immediate, precise, progressive, PERFECT.

I said the brochures were like books - check out my 'homework'.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

So I said Ocala has a Porsche dealer... big deal, right?

Well, inside the show room was something that REALLY surprised me.

Check it out.

tofu_house

iTrader: (2)

sounds sooo awesome !

that porche is the hotness

jet864

Bit, I was expecting you to come back with
...and this is what I came home with, my brand new 997!

Very cool, I have yet to drive ANY Porsche in my life, so listening to your stories is the closest I'm gonna get

So do you think that the next car in maybe a few years will be a 911? That seems like an appropriate step up. I say go big up to the 911(4?)S if you can.

James

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

LOL - I wish!

Hey James - I've no doubt you'll check out a Porsche one day and probably soon.

Yes, I'd *love* a Porsche 911S, or even better, a 4S. Right now it's not likely for a while. Here's a pic I took recently that I have a printout of right above my computer monitor as MOTIVATION for the self-employment endeavor I'm involved in.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

Forgot to mention - the sales guy will call me when a 997 comes in for me to drive. I'll report back with my impressions!

chuckb

this thing is amazing

mmarshall

Welcome to the world of mid-engine cars. I see you've had your baptism.....and a good write-up.


Their handling and braking, as you have found out, is as different from a typical front-engine vehicle ( particularly with front-drive ) as night is from day. But the downside to those lightning-quick reactions to steering input and increased road feel is the fact that mid and rear-engine vehicles are generally less stable as well, don't track as straight, and require a lot of small steering corrections to stay in one lane.

RX469

iTrader: (1)

Wow....when I first looked at your post, I was overwhelmed with the lenght of it, but after the first few sentences, it was like a good novel that I had to read to conclusion.

Very nice write up!

Johnny Rad

"Legend" has it that the ignition is to the left of the steering wheel for racing purposes. Back in the good old days of racing, the drivers ran to their cars at the sound of the starter's gun rather than today's style. As the Porsche driver jumped into their car, their right hand went to the shifter and left hand went to the ignition. Both hands working at the same time and allegedly faster. Much like Saab's center mounted ignition, this is now an accepted bit of quirkiness. Take it away and I'm sure the purists will protest!

* Can anyone confirm or deny this legend?

mmarshall

Confirmed.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

I think you're referring to the "Le Mans start" where as you say, the drivers ran to their cars. I think it was a very exciting way to start a race.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

Having also driven an NSX (another mid-engined car) and 911's, I have found they all track perfectly, and don't require steering corrections. And less stable? The older 'whale tail' Porsches could certainly be a handful, but any recent Porsches are incredibly stable.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

Yeah it was longer than most of my posts, but a lot of the great reviews I read on here have some background so I thought I'd share some. Glad you liked it though! Thanks.

Richie

Great writeup bit but there is one thing I have to point out.

It's called a boxer engine configuration.