The Boxster that saved Porsche 25 years ago is a modern classic

By dpa | 24 March 2021


FRANKFURT: The silver two-seat Porsche Boxster sports car grabbed the limelight at the Detroit Motor Show in 1993 but no one realised at the time that this was a game-changer for the premium German carmaker.

In fact without the mid-engined Boxster, Porsche may never have survived at all. Times were hard for Porsche as the 1990s dawned. While customers were still buying the 911, the lack of an entry-level model was hurting the Stuttgart company.

The Audi-powered 924 had been dropped in 1988 after years of being derided as the "housewife’s Porsche". It never managed to convince the purists.

Cheaper sports cars like the Mazda MX-5 were wooing away the punters so Porsche came up with a car that cost half the price of a 911 but offered plenty of thrills. It also came with the marque’s legendary engineering and quality.

The Boxster went on sale in 1996 for 76,500 deutschmarks at a time when fresh men were taking over at the top. Wendelin Wiedeking was the CEO, Horst Marchart head of development, and designer Harm Lagaay penned a car that would have appealed to one of the brand's most famous patrons, US film star James Dean who was killed in a road crash decades earlier.

The styling was a genuine throwback to Dean’s 550 Spyder and the looks were so good that the Boxster was only mildly retouched until the model was facelifted in 2004.

The current fourth generation made its debut in 2016. It seems Porsche just adopted the motto of never change a winning formula and the orders have been rolling in ever since

Providing the necessary grunt and growl expected by Porsche drivers, the Boxster used a water-cooled six-cylinder engine mounted amidships. This provided a low centre of gravity and limpet-like handing. Fans loved the car.

Any doubts that the Boxster might not be a real Porsche are blown into the weeds behind the wheel. With just over 200hp on tap, the engine makes literally light work of the drophead which tips the scales at 1,250km.

Some die-hard 911 fans may smile wearily at a top speed of 240 km/h and sprint benchmarks of 6.9 seconds from 0 to 100: But in this compact, lightweight sports car, with the wind in your hair and the powerplant under the seat of your pants, it all feels much faster, more intense and more authentic.

The Boxster generation got more oomph with a 2.7-litre engine in 1999 (228 hp) and the Boxster S later pushed the envelope to 260 hp.
The Boxster also begat the Cayman Coupe in 2005 which uses much the same technology.

It all adds up to a good buy and with 25 years of production and some 357,000 Boxsters sold there are plenty of second-hand ones to choose from.

The car gets the seal of approval from cherished car expert Frank Wilde from the Classic-Analytics price watching organisation. He thinks it is still one of the most attractive Porsches for fans of the brand.

"The Boxster and its closed sibling, the Cayman are more authentic than the 911, because they have not become such bloated cars for the affluent“ said Wilke.

Prices for a well-handled older Boxster start at 17,000 Euros (20,200 dollars) which is much less than any used 911 would cost. "I would say get one now – if you don't you may bitterly regret it in five years' time.“

Be aware though that the Boxster needs tender loving care and a poorly-maintained one will just eat money. An example with a full service history is to be preferred, especially if the owner can produce genuine repair bills.

Engine failure is not unknown with these cars and timing belts and tensioners can cause problems. Gearboxes can get notchy and they are also prone to misshifts while brake discs will inevitably rust.

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