Porsche Boxster

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Porsche Boxster
Porsche Boxster
Manufacturer Porsche
Production 1996–present
Predecessor Porsche 968
Class Roadster
Body style(s) 2-door convertible
Layout Rear mid-engine, rear-wheel drive

The Porsche Boxster is a mid-engined roadster built by Porsche. The Boxster is Porsche's first vehicle designed by Raymond Barth from the beginning as a roadster; all previous Porsche convertibles were based on hardtop coupes.

The first-generation Boxster (the 986) was introduced in late 1996 as a 1997 model; it was powered by a 2.5 litre flat six-cylinder engine. In 2000, the new Boxster S variant was introduced with a larger 3.2 litre motor, and the base model received a more powerful 2.7 litre engine. In 2003, styling and engine output was upgraded on both variants.

In 2005, further updates were substantial enough that Porsche internally identified the Boxster as a new 987 model. The 987s were more powerful than the 986s; engine output increased yet further in 2007, when both Boxster models received the motors from the corresponding Porsche Cayman variants.

Production of the 986 began at the former Porsche 928 facility in Stuttgart, Germany in 1996. Valmet Automotive Oy also manufactures Boxsters under contract to Porsche at a facility in Uusikaupunki, Finland. The Boxster was Porsche's biggest volume seller from its introduction in model year 1997 until the company introduced the Cayenne utility vehicle in model year 2003.

The Boxster's name is a combination of the word "boxer", referring to the vehicle's horizontally-opposed or "boxer" engine, and the word "roadster", referring to the vehicle's convertible top.

Contents

[edit] 986

Porsche 986
Porsche 986 Boxster
Manufacturer Porsche
Production 1996–2004
Engine(s) 2.5 L flat-6 (1997-1999)
2.7 L flat-6 (2000-2004)
3.2 L flat-6 (2000-2004)

The styling of the Boxster is due to former "Style Porsche" department head Harm Lagaay. His Boxster design study and the production Boxster stimulated a commercial turnaround for Porsche after several difficult years of falling sales.

The first generation of the Boxster whose visual appearance was heavily inspired by the Porsche Spyder and Speedster as well as the Porsche 550 Spyder. The Boxster was released ahead of the release of its big brother, the 996. Through consultation with Toyota, Porsche greatly decreased the cost of manufacture, and introduced large scale sharing of components between its models. The 986 Boxster had the same bonnet, front wings, and distinctive 'fried-egg' headlight units as the 996. Its original 2.5L M96 engine shared the same architecture with the 3.4L engine used in the 996. Many believe the combination of the new Boxster / 911 styling and the reduced build costs through component sharing saved Porsche from being acquired by another car company.

All 986/987 Boxsters use the M96 water cooled, horizontally opposed ("flat"), six-cylinder engine. The M96 is the first completely water-cooled engine used in a production non-front-engined Porsche. In the Boxster the M96 is placed in a mid-engine configuration as opposed to the rear-engine placement in all 911s. The combination of the M96 and a mid-engine layout provide a low center of gravity, smoothness throughout the rev range, near perfect weight distribution, and neutral handling characteristics. Early production M96 engines had a small but significant number of engine failures due to cracked or slipped cylinder liners, but since a minor redesign in 2000 these problems have been resolved.

Boxster 986 model history

MY 1997
  • 2.5L 150 kW (204 PS/201 hp)
MY 2000
  • 2.7L 162 kW (220 PS/217 hp)
  • 3.2L 186 kW (253 PS/249 hp) Boxster S introduced
MY 2003
  • 2.7L 170 kW (231 PS/228 hp)
  • 3.2L 190 kW (258 PS/255 hp)
MY 2004
  • 3.2L 194 kW (264 PS/260 hp) Boxster S 550 Spyder 50th Anniversary Edition limited to 1953 cars

The model received a minor facelift in 2003. The plastic rear window was replaced by a glass window. Porsche installed a different exhaust pipe and modified air intake. In addition, the often disliked orange "fried egg" front indicators were replaced with clear glass indicators, and the rear light cluster was also changed, with orange turn signals replaced with clear grey. The side marker lights on the front wings were changed from orange to clear, except for on American market cars, where they remained orange. The bumpers were also changed slightly for a more defined, chiselled appearance, and new wheel designs were made available.

In 2004 the 550 Spyder 50th Anniversary Edition was released, a production run of just 1953 cars. The Anniversary Edition cars are painted GT Silver Metallic, the same color as the car show version of the Carrera GT supercar, and had optional cocoa brown leather. Each car also received special interior paint and leather, high end BOSE sound system, two tone grey and silver 18" wheels, 5 mm wheel spacers, the Boxster S sport exhaust, the 030 option sports chassis, and a numbered plate on the center console piece commonly known as the "batwing" at the bottom of the center console. On American market cars the rear turn signals were red, whereas they remained clear for the rest of the world.

50th Anniversary 550 Nose

50th Anniversary 550 Front 3/4

50th Anniversary 550 Rear 3/4

50th Anniversary 550 Cocoa Interior

[edit] 987

Porsche 987
2005 Porsche Boxster S
Manufacturer Porsche
Production 2005–
Engine(s) 2.7 L flat-6 (2005-)
3.2 L flat-6 (2005-2006)
3.4 L flat-6 (2007-)
Wheelbase 95.1 in (2415.5 mm)[1]
Length 171.6 in (4359 mm)[1]
Width 70.9 in (1801 mm)[1]
Height 51.0 in (1295 mm)[1]
Curb weight 3130 lb (1420 kg)[1]
Fuel capacity 16.9 US gallons (64.0 L)[1]
Related Porsche Cayman

The second generation of the Boxster (internally known as the 987) made its debut at the 2004 Paris Motor Show alongside the new 911 (997). The car became available for model year 2005.

In appearance the car remains very similar to the previous generation. The most obvious styling change is to the headlights, which now have a profile similar to those of the Carrera GT, Porsche's mid-engined supercar. The intake vents on the sides of the Boxster are now larger, with more pronounced horizontal slats and are coloured metallic silver, irrespective of the paint colour on the rest of the car. The wheel arches have been enlarged to allow wheels up to 19 inches in diameter, a first for the Boxster series. The most significant updates from the 986 series are in the interior, with a more prominent circular theme evident in the instrument cluster and cooling vents. Porsche claims that the 987 Boxster shares only 20% of its components with its predecessor, despite their being almost identical from the outside. The base engine is a 2.7 L 176 kW (240 hp) flat-6, with the Boxster S getting a 3.2 L 206 kW (280 hp) engine. The Cayman series is derived from the 987.

For the 2007 model year the base Boxster received a revised engine featuring VarioCam Plus to provide a 5 hp boost (245 hp; the same as the Cayman). The Boxster S engine was upgraded from 3.2L to 3.4L, resulting in the production of 15 more hp (295 hp; the same as the Cayman S). These upgrades made the Boxster series and the Cayman series equivalent in terms of horsepower.

Porsche has announced a commemorative RS60 edition of the Boxster to celebrate the history of the Boxster. Only 1960 examples will be produced with a badge on the dash showing each example's production number.

Boxster 987 model history

MY 2005
  • 2.7L 176.5 kW (240 PS/237 hp)
  • 3.2L 206 kW (280 PS/276 hp) Boxster S
MY 2007
  • 2.7L 180 kW (245 PS/241 hp)
  • 3.4L 217 kW (295 PS/291 hp) Boxster S

[edit] 2010 Boxster

The 986 Boxster has been on the market with virtually the same clothes from 1997-2004. The 2005 model (987) brought minor exterior changes, a completely new and improved interior and suspension as well as the typical bump in HP and torque. After many years of production, Porsche has announced it will redesign the Boxster. While it is only speculation, a third generation Boxster could be launched as early as 2009 for the 2010 model year.

[edit] Awards

Within a year of marketplace acceptance in the United States, the original Boxster was the recipient of many awards, including those listed:

  • Car & Driver – One of the 10 Best Cars of 1997
  • Automobile – Automobile of the Year
  • Motor – 1997 Performance Car of the Year
  • Autocar – Best Roadster in the World
  • Motorweek – 1997 Drivers Choice for Best Sports Car
  • The Philadelphia Inquirer – Best Sports Car of the Decade
  • Newsweek – One of the Best New Products of 1997
  • BusinessWeek – One of the Best New Products of 1997
  • American Marketing Association – Best New Product of 1997
  • Automobile Journalists of Canada – 1997 Car of the Year
  • Automobile Journalists of Canada – Best Design of 1997

The Boxster has been on Car and Driver magazine's annual Ten Best list nine times, from 1998 through 2003 and 2006 through 2008.

The Boxster S (986s) was rated as one of the top ten Porsches of all time by Excellence magazine.

The Boxster (in both 986 and 987 guise) is evo magazine's recommended buy in the 'Sports Car' category and has been ever since the model's introduction.

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Best All-Around Sports Car (PDF). Road & Track. Hachette Filipacchi Media U.S., Inc. (March 2005). Retrieved on 2008-03-18.

2. "Into the Sunshine: 2005 Porsche Boxster Revealed", an article in the "News" section on page four of the 10 May 2004 issue of AutoWeek

3. "Cover featuring the 2010 Porsche Boxster. November 2007 issue of Road & Track

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
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Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG road car timeline, 1960–present
Type 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Entry Level Sportscar 912 924 Boxster (986) Boxster (987)
356 914 944 968 Cayman (987c)
911 Series 911 911 (930) 911 (964) 911 (993) 911 (996) 911 (997)
GT 928
Supercar 959 911 GT1 Carrera GT
SUV Cayenne
Concept cars 356/1 · 114 · 695 · 901 · 989 · Panamericana · Panamera · Roxster
Motorsport Porsche in motorsport · Porsche Supercup · 64 · 360 · 550 · 718 · 787 · 804 · 904 · 906 · 907 · 908 · 909 · 910 · 914-6 GT · 917 · 934 · 935 · 936 · 953 · 956 · 961 · 962 · GT1 · GT2 · GT3 · WSC-95 · LMP · RS Spyder
People Ferdinand Porsche · Ferry Porsche · Ferdinand Alexander Porsche · Ferdinand Piëch · Wendelin Wiedeking
Tractors Junior · Super
Other Official Website · Porsche Design Group · Volkswagen Group · List of Porsche engines · Tiptronic · VarioCam