Porsche Boxter - I have to admit, I have never really been a Porsche fan. Shock, Horror, and its probably due to a very distant boyfriend many moons ago who thought far more of his precious Porsche than he did me thus I became a little jealous and sub-consciously decided to take an instant dislike to them. After all, what is all the fuss about I used to moan?
But over the years the Porsche has won over many hearts that include females so it was time to put my childish antics behind me and face up to the fact the Porsche cars have something special and as a journalist need to find out more.
So to kick-start me off, the Porsche Boxster arrived thankfully not in red but a very subtle Meteor Grey metallic paint and I have to admit, my heart began to melt. This is a car with real ‘cool’ status leaving the neighbours with lockjaw as they gazed in wonderment and my street cred went though the roof.
The new design for 2007 generation of Boxster’s, sees new Bi- Xenon headlights, a larger air intake and striking new lines around the front while to the rear the optional 18 inch wheels taken from the Boxster S certainly accentuated a strong masculine body along with the new protruding door handles. The rear bumper is now positioned higher, the dividing seam moves up an angle and the tailpipe has been redesigned.
Although the car is only slightly larger outside, the Boxster offers more space in the completely redesigned interior by moving the pedals further to the front and lowering the seating position. These new electrically heated leather seats have fantastic lumber support that includes enhanced side support, which proved very useful when I came to the driving part.
The three circular dials with the rev counter in the middle and black faces are now further apart in the new instrument cluster, ensuring even greater clarity, particularly with white LED illumination at night. Other on board toys as optional extras fitted to my test car included the Porsche Communications Management, complete with 5.8 inch colour display, a navigation module and separate DVD player, a telephone module for the PCM, automatic climate control,
Bose sound system complimenting the six disc CD autochanger to which Top Gear’s all time favourite driving songs were positively apt to listen to - how sad am I getting here girls. These could also be operated via the multifunctional leather sports steering wheel.
A girls got to do what a girls got to do and despite October, I had to unleash the Boxster into a cabriolet by pulling down a lever then pressing a button, and the soft top (hardtop is another optional extra) roof opens up in 12 seconds. In case you get caught out with a sudden downpour, the roof can close whilst driving at low speeds.
Enough talking now, lets get driving. And as this beauty burst into life, I fell in lust. Who needs a man when you have a Porsche Boxster? The result was, I did not do any work last week except ‘research’ as I drove this car all day and every day. The Boxster’ s 2.7-litre petrol engine with variable VarioCam Plus valve management increases the output of this outstanding six-cylinder engine to 180kW or 245bhp. 0- 60 mph takes just 6.1 seconds and top speed is a licence banning 161 mph. Yet fuel consumption has improved to 30.4 mpg on a combined cycle but the best news of all is CO2 emissions are at 229 g/km thus, the Boxster outperforms both the EU 4 and ULEV II emission standards.
The second-generation Boxster is even more superior in terms of aerodynamics, with the drag coefficient down from 0.31 to 0.29. At the same time Porsche engineers have minimised lift forces on the front and rear axle in the interest of superior safety and stability even at very high speeds. I could go on and on about the technology under this cars bonnet but take it from me, the result is a stupendous ride and handling with the five speed (could have done with a sixth) manual gearbox tearing up the tarmac and the utterly precise steering that gave me total assurance as I pushed this car further and further. For drivers who want even more, there is another option - Porsche Active Suspension Management that gives a choice of Normal mode or Sports mode with the six speed manual gearbox, which would probably be worth the extra £1,400.
As I clocked up mile after mile, I relished in the thought of the amazing safety and security features this new Boxster comes with as standard. The active safety package now includes Porsche Stability Management (PSM) comprising of ABS, ASC (anti-slip control), EDC (engine drag control), and ABD (automatic brake differential) functions. Developed to an even higher standard with even more precise control quality and optimised ABS components, these superior systems, in conjunction with the new tyres, make stopping distances even shorter.
The Boxster is the first open car to feature a new head airbag concealed within the side panels on the doors. Together with the thorax airbags in the seat backrest, this ensures a very high standard of safety in collisions from the side. Frontal airbags for the driver and front passenger complete with a belt latch tensioners and a belt force limiter are standard.
The Boxster is also the leader in structural safety, its bodyshell complying with all international standards and requirements in terms of occupant and partner protection plus coming with a redesigned rollbar. The so-called ‘upper load path’ has been optimised in order to stiffen the passenger cell in a head-on or offset collision. To ensure this effect, the doors are reinforced by an additional steel profile plate at the top and rest against an optimised side panel structure in the event of a collision.
But in case you are thinking, this is all very well but is the Boxster practical for our needs? The answer is a resounding yes with not just internal storage solutions including a nifty pop out cup holder above the lockable glove box but a good-sized rear boot and a fabulous deep front boot, so deep, in fact, my son fitted in beautifully. Don’t worry I did not drive with him in there, but merely demonstrating its capabilities for the shopping bags.
So we come to crunch time and what would this Boxster cost? Well, initially £33,170 but there is a huge list of optional extras that resulted in my test car jumping to £43,083. So be prepared for those but I guess when you are spending over 30K on a car what’s another 10K when you are investing in a car of such high calibre and driving dynamics to die for. I now declare my self a Porsche convert. Enjoy.
FemaleFirst - Jackie Violet - the converted
Porsche Boxter - I have to admit, I have never really been a Porsche fan. Shock, Horror, and its probably due to a very distant boyfriend many moons ago who thought far more of his precious Porsche than he did me thus I became a little jealous and sub-consciously decided to take an instant dislike to them. After all, what is all the fuss about I used to moan?
But over the years the Porsche has won over many hearts that include females so it was time to put my childish antics behind me and face up to the fact the Porsche cars have something special and as a journalist need to find out more.
So to kick-start me off, the Porsche Boxster arrived thankfully not in red but a very subtle Meteor Grey metallic paint and I have to admit, my heart began to melt. This is a car with real ‘cool’ status leaving the neighbours with lockjaw as they gazed in wonderment and my street cred went though the roof.
The new design for 2007 generation of Boxster’s, sees new Bi- Xenon headlights, a larger air intake and striking new lines around the front while to the rear the optional 18 inch wheels taken from the Boxster S certainly accentuated a strong masculine body along with the new protruding door handles. The rear bumper is now positioned higher, the dividing seam moves up an angle and the tailpipe has been redesigned.
Although the car is only slightly larger outside, the Boxster offers more space in the completely redesigned interior by moving the pedals further to the front and lowering the seating position. These new electrically heated leather seats have fantastic lumber support that includes enhanced side support, which proved very useful when I came to the driving part.