SleepRM3
07-27-2005, 10:37 PM
Just got back from driving the 2005 Boxster S at my local Indy Porsche dealer. My sales guy was very helpful, and invited me to drive the Boxster S on an "extended" test drive.
I was drawn to the silver exterior, black interior and soft top--so we took that one.
I test-fitted myself wearing my Bell M3 helmet to see if I pass PCA's "broomstick" test. I passed with a healthy margin of my index and middle fingers; I will be able to opentrack the Boxster S without additional rollover protection. The rest of the test drive was driven with the helmet off.
The motor sounds fabulous especially at full song throttle. No need for an aftermarket exhaust system. The flat-six's powerplant is silky smooth. The flywheel is relatively light, for easy throttle blips.
Steering is razor-sharp. Turn-in is crisp. Through a sweeper, the Boxster S takes a wonderful set, and holds the line until you give it more throttle, as you unwind the steering wheel, and feel the back end rotate as you clip the apex, and track out briskly.
The handling balance is superb-almost unsettling if you're used to lots of understeer! The mid-engined layout really lends itself to outstanding handling--especially compared with the 911's screwed-up rear-weight distribution (Porsche makes the 911 work by dialing in gobs of understeer).
The suspension was supple enough for daily use, and tight enough for a fun time through your favorite backroad twisties. The model I test-drove was a nonPASM suspensioned S with stock 18-inch wheels/tires.
Stock S brakes were superb. The PCCB versions would be overkill for normal road driving IMO. Pedal pressure was firm and high. Gas pedal was set up for easy heel-toe-downshifts. Clutch pedal pressure is about right (about the same as my M3's).
We drove with the top down. It was warm and humid, so we ran the A/C full blast too. Wind noise masks the motor sound volume at speed.
Interior design is very clean, with controls intuitively placed. The shift throws were short (compared with my E36 BMW M3's), with smooth gear selections. The Boxster's steering wheel is "smallish".
In passing a long line of traffic on the interstate, we hit 120 mph--easy in 6th gear.
Over bumps, I felt the looseness of an open-topped roadster. The car felt a bit jiggly, but not nearly as bad as a Spartansburg BMW roadster. Porsche engineers stiffened the Boxster body with high-strength steel in the central tunnel, floorpan and subframe. The rollbar is super high-strength austinetic stainless steel, and is beefy enough to pass SCCA Solo I requirements for opentrack use (Boxster is the only production roadster that passes SCCA's rollbar requirement without needing additional rollover protection).
Porsche's 3.2-L F6 motor has a strange torque band. Compared with my '97 3.2-L M3/4's I-6, the low-end of the Porsche's motor seems lacking. There's a slight torque dip between 3100 and 3600 rpm. Torque climbs again, and peaks at 4700 rpm, staying flat (@ 236 lb.ft) to 6200 rpm.
With my M3, there's low-end torque available as low as 2000 rpm, peaks at 240 lb.ft, at 3000 rpm, and flattens out to 5000 rpm. At 5000 rpm, BMW's 3.2-L I6's torque dips, while the Porsche's 3.2-L F6 is just hitting its torque peak.
In straightline accelerations, the Boxster does not pin me to the seat, like the M3 does (Dinan intake and exhaust).
Overall, the Boxster S is a GREAT sports car, and I see why 85% of the Road & Track editors picked the 2005 Boxster S as the "backdoor winner" in their "Best Overall Sports Car" comparo (see March isue)--eventhough the C6 Corvette (with Z51 package) was dubbed "Best Overall Sports Car" by virtue of its price-to-performance ratio.
I was drawn to the silver exterior, black interior and soft top--so we took that one.
I test-fitted myself wearing my Bell M3 helmet to see if I pass PCA's "broomstick" test. I passed with a healthy margin of my index and middle fingers; I will be able to opentrack the Boxster S without additional rollover protection. The rest of the test drive was driven with the helmet off.
The motor sounds fabulous especially at full song throttle. No need for an aftermarket exhaust system. The flat-six's powerplant is silky smooth. The flywheel is relatively light, for easy throttle blips.
Steering is razor-sharp. Turn-in is crisp. Through a sweeper, the Boxster S takes a wonderful set, and holds the line until you give it more throttle, as you unwind the steering wheel, and feel the back end rotate as you clip the apex, and track out briskly.
The handling balance is superb-almost unsettling if you're used to lots of understeer! The mid-engined layout really lends itself to outstanding handling--especially compared with the 911's screwed-up rear-weight distribution (Porsche makes the 911 work by dialing in gobs of understeer).
The suspension was supple enough for daily use, and tight enough for a fun time through your favorite backroad twisties. The model I test-drove was a nonPASM suspensioned S with stock 18-inch wheels/tires.
Stock S brakes were superb. The PCCB versions would be overkill for normal road driving IMO. Pedal pressure was firm and high. Gas pedal was set up for easy heel-toe-downshifts. Clutch pedal pressure is about right (about the same as my M3's).
We drove with the top down. It was warm and humid, so we ran the A/C full blast too. Wind noise masks the motor sound volume at speed.
Interior design is very clean, with controls intuitively placed. The shift throws were short (compared with my E36 BMW M3's), with smooth gear selections. The Boxster's steering wheel is "smallish".
In passing a long line of traffic on the interstate, we hit 120 mph--easy in 6th gear.
Over bumps, I felt the looseness of an open-topped roadster. The car felt a bit jiggly, but not nearly as bad as a Spartansburg BMW roadster. Porsche engineers stiffened the Boxster body with high-strength steel in the central tunnel, floorpan and subframe. The rollbar is super high-strength austinetic stainless steel, and is beefy enough to pass SCCA Solo I requirements for opentrack use (Boxster is the only production roadster that passes SCCA's rollbar requirement without needing additional rollover protection).
Porsche's 3.2-L F6 motor has a strange torque band. Compared with my '97 3.2-L M3/4's I-6, the low-end of the Porsche's motor seems lacking. There's a slight torque dip between 3100 and 3600 rpm. Torque climbs again, and peaks at 4700 rpm, staying flat (@ 236 lb.ft) to 6200 rpm.
With my M3, there's low-end torque available as low as 2000 rpm, peaks at 240 lb.ft, at 3000 rpm, and flattens out to 5000 rpm. At 5000 rpm, BMW's 3.2-L I6's torque dips, while the Porsche's 3.2-L F6 is just hitting its torque peak.
In straightline accelerations, the Boxster does not pin me to the seat, like the M3 does (Dinan intake and exhaust).
Overall, the Boxster S is a GREAT sports car, and I see why 85% of the Road & Track editors picked the 2005 Boxster S as the "backdoor winner" in their "Best Overall Sports Car" comparo (see March isue)--eventhough the C6 Corvette (with Z51 package) was dubbed "Best Overall Sports Car" by virtue of its price-to-performance ratio.