Many believe that to get decent handling, the ride
has to be bloody stiff. In fact, if it’s got a good ride, well, it can’t be much
of a handler, can it? Then there’re those who think a two seater sports car
should have very little luggage capacity – after all, it’s a sports car not a
sedan, ain’t it? Steering – well it has to be razor sharp and ultra quick. But
the Porsche Boxster proves these pundits wrong. For here’s a practical two
seater that has an excellent ride, handles extremely well, has an incredibly
tractable and well behaved engine – and these days, is even available at money
that buys far more pedestrian cars.
In this story we drive a 2000 model 2.7-litre
Boxster with the 5-speed manual gearbox. This example – provided courtesy of QSM
on the Gold Coast - was stickered at AUD$65,000 and had full Porsche service
history and 45,000km on the odometer.
The mid-mounted flat six is water-cooled and uses
a single-step variation in valve timing which can be clearly felt at 5500 rpm.
Peak power is 162kW at 6400 rpm and the max torque output is listed at 260Nm at
4750 rpm. However, the torque spec is quite deceptive because the Boxster never
drives like peak torque is developed at just under 5000 rpm. Instead, there’s
highly useable torque available from only 1500 rpm or so – this is truly an
engine that can happily trundle around in fourth or firth gear at low revs,
pulling its way up suburban hills at 60 km/h with no necessity for a
down-change. In fact, you can drive along in second gear at 1000 rpm with no
jerkiness, stutters or other misbehaviour.
It’s an engine that in terms of its idle quality,
torque development and sheer tractability could easily be placed straight into a
normal sedan. No-one could call it highly strung or temperamental.
But floor the throttle and the response is
immediate, the tacho needle swinging around and the aural note becoming
increasingly urgent. At high revs – after that valve timing change – the engine
wails out a glorious note, although you’re usually too busy snatching the next
gear to have much time to listen.
The flat torque curve has two further effects: you
always have power available, even if you’re in the wrong gear for the situation;
and even at full throttle, the Boxster has a curiously unhurried air that is
belied by the mid six 0-100 km/h time. Don’t get us wrong, the Boxster never
feels slow. But if you’re used to the rush of torque from a boosted turbo car,
the linear power development of the Boxster’s six is almost undemonstrative.
However, it is addictive: you very soon get used to having a power band
that stretches over 5500 rpm. We’re sure the majority of people who have not
driven a Boxster will be stunned with the useability of the engine – it’s almost
unparalleled in its ability to effectively do the hum-drum and then when
prodded, pull out the performance necessary to fling 1260kg down the road.
The steering is also as many people would not
expect. It’s not at all nervous around centre and isn’t even all that quick when
there’s some lock on. But what it does have is a weight and feel that allow the
car to placed precisely on the road. As with the engine, it’s very much like
Porsche engineers decided that rather than looking at how other makers do it,
they’d go their own way and develop steering that suits everything from doing a
reverse park to freeway travel to threading the twisties at 150 km/h. And they
have succeeded.
Handling? Well, this car was unfortunately fitted
with narrower than standard rear tyres – they’re meant to be 205/55 sixteens on
the front and 225/50 sixteens on the back, however the test car came shod with
205/55 tyres at both ends. Until we spotted the problem, we wondered why the car
had lift-off and on-power oversteer much greater than we remembered from a
previous Boxster... (Vender QSM will be fixing the tyre size issue before sale.)
But even with the wrong rear tyres, on a difficult road the Boxster would still leave most cars
behind: the throttle control, precise steering and long
wheel travel combine to give excellent grip and handling on a wide range of real
road surfaces. This is certainly not a car that immediately gets out of its
depth when confronted with typical Australian secondary bitumen – potholes,
patches, bumps and all. (And contrast that with a car like a Nissan 350Z which
on the same road is completely out of its depth!)
We also think the ride is excellent. Over small,
sharp bumps there are impacts (noticeable, but not harsh) but over larger bumps
the Boxster rides with absolute aplomb.
Again, as with the engine and steering, the ride
shows this to be a practical sports car that could easily handle the daily
commute to work as well as the fun Sunday morning blasts.
Lots of praise? Yep, and we haven’t even got to
the highlight of the car. Without a doubt, that has to be the body. We’ve
always thought the Boxster a beautiful car and as time passes, that becomes even
more so. The early series – with less styling fussiness – works best in our
eyes. The compound curves are tightly sketched and there’s simply not a line out
of place.
And yet this is a sports car with two usable boots
– one under the front lid...
...and the other under the back. The rear
compartment is relatively wide and long but shallow, while the front compartment
is smaller in width and length but is much deeper. Clearly, when packing, you
pick which end to use!
Inside the cabin there’s plenty of room in all
directions, although it needs to be remembered that this is a two seater
– you can’t throw a coat on the rear seat... cos there isn’t one. However, within
the confines there’s good use of space with a small lockable centre console box,
large door pockets revealed by the lift-up arm rests, and a flat rear storage
space located above the engine in the rear bulkhead.
The roof folds down with the push of a button –
the user need only release a single mechanical catch. Air turbulence with the
roof retracted is well controlled – a polycarbonate filler panel is used between
the two roll-bar hoops. However, the amount your hair gets ruffled is dependent
on your height – above 180cm and it’ll start getting blown around. Visibility is
fine with the hood up.
Criticisms? There are a few. The engine is noisy –
it’s within inches of your ears – although it’s quieter with the roof up (and
much quieter than with the previous model’s unlined roof). The gearshift is an
awful over-centre long-throw movement which irresistibly reminded us of a
mid-70s BMW. You also don’t get much standard equipment – there’s no cruise
control, only a single CD player (but as it’s a single DIN unit it’s easily
upgraded), the steering is only reach adjustable, and the electrics in the seats
are confined to just backrest angle. In fact there are no less than eight switch
blanks in the car! The fabric roof also uses a rear plastic window which is sure
to yellow over time. (That said, the window in the six year old test car still
looked pretty good.) However, four airbags are standard, with the side airbags
integrated into the doors rather than the more usual seat placement.
But the positives comprehensively outweigh any
list of negatives that can be compiled. If you’re in the market for a sporting
two seater, they don’t come much better than this. Performance, practicality,
looks, ride and handling – and all with a badge second to none in sports
cars....
Email a friend
Print article
|