Second Generation Porsche Boxster Review

Changing a Porsche is always a tricky business. There are fans out there that will haul you over the coals for having the wrong shape of headlights, or using the wrong shade of trim in the glove box. Porsche seems to have done right with the new 997 model 911 Carrera and now it's the Boxster's turn.

Porsche's smallest sports car exceeded the company's expectations when it was launched in 1996. In 1991, when work on the original Boxster began, Porsche only built 13,000 cars and the company was a financial wreck. It was thought by Porsche management that the Boxster could help global sales reach 15,000. In 2001- 2002 - Porsche's best sales year yet - the Boxster alone sold 28,000 units. The car was a hit, and it helped that the car had a better drivetrain layout than the 911. Instead of hanging the engine out behind the rear axle as in the 911 the Boxster was mid engined, a much better starting point for a sports car.

The only problem I had with the original Boxster was that you could never tell whether it was coming or going. The front end looked remarkably like the rear end and the fried egg headlights - shared with the 911 - were just wrong.

For the new Boxster Porsche new the model needed more differentiation from the 911 and despite sharing 50 percent of its parts with the 911 the Boxster manages to look like a new car in its own right.

The headlights are the most obvious change, ditching the fried egg look for an almost but not quite round shape, but the body, as well as the front and rear tracks, is wider. There's more rubber on the road as well, with the adoption of bigger tyres front and rear. The Boxster now rides on 17-inch wheels as standard, up from 16-inch and the Boxster S comes standard with 18-inch alloys.

Nineteen inch alloys are available, but the 18s offer the best combination of road-holding and ride quality. The Sports Chrono Package, first seen on the new 911, is an option on the Boxster. It adds a lap timing clock on the dashboard, but more importantly it offers the change to change settings such as the throttle response to tune the car more to your liking.

The brakes have been upgraded to match better the better performance of the car. The rear brake discs are now perforated for better cooling efficiency and to keep the discs clean of brake dust.

Probably of most interest though, is a handy increase in power for both the Boxster and Boxster S. The engine capacities remains the same but work on the engine has yielded an extra 8kW for the Boxster, which now puts out 172kW (230hp), and the Boxster S gains 15kW (20hp) to 206kW (275hp). Porsche claims that the Boxster will sprint to 100-km/h (62mph) in 6.2 seconds while the Boxster S slashes that to 5.5 seconds.

Even better than that, the engines sound even better than before, thanks to a redesigned induction and exhaust system. The Australian launch gave us the opportunity to scream rudely down through a steep canyon, flicking the Boxster S manual into second at every possible moment and hearing the rasping howl of the 3.2 litre flat six echo off the walls.

It's a deep bellow rising to a guttural scream and all the time with that off beat sound of a horizontally opposed engine. It was also helped by the other seven cars doing exactly the same thing in close succession. I bet that entire valley is still echoing to the sound of eight Boxsters ripping through it.

The Boxster S's six speed gearbox is a new Getrag unit, and the throw has been reduced by 15 percent. If you desire, there's an optional short shift kit which takes another 15 percent off. The shift is buttery smooth and takes very little effort to change gear, which is good because you tend to do it all the time. The new engines boast more muscular plateaus of torque, but the car comes alive when you row through the gears, right up to the red line each time.

That six speed box is also optional on the Boxster, which otherwise makes do with a five speed manual, although the six speed is optional on the standard car. The Tiptronic gearbox carries over into the new cars, still sporting five ratios. I never liked the Tiptronic in the old Boxster, but this one feels much more crisp and responsive. I'd still pick the manual every time though.

Also new on the Boxster is the option of Porsche's PASM suspension control system. This constantly monitors the shock absorber performance and adjusts when necessary. Slap it into Sport and the result is absolutely unkillable chassis dynamics. A car fitted with PASM shames the standard suspension on the Boxster which is itself in the upper reaches of sports car performance. It's like comparing a surgeon's blade to a high powered laser. Good is good, but better is obviously better.

You won't find many cars that will cover ground as quickly as the Boxster, in standard or S guise. The mid mounted engine gives the car fantastic steering response and there's so much traction that you can plant your foot on the throttle well before you have exited from a corner.

Porsche's PSM stability control system is standard on all the cars and this acts as the final safety net, allowing to do dig far deeper than you would normally go into a corner, and whip around the bend at whiplash inducing g forces. The PSM can be turned off, and then it will only kick into action if both the front tyres begin to lock up when you're hard on the brakes after drastically overcooking a corner.

All of this adds up to a car that can probably outrun Vin Diesel on a rocket sled. The Boxster has always been called a hairdressers car, but I'll tell you now, don't challenge that hairdresser to a race down a winding road.

The only thing more embarrassing than being called a hairdresser for driving a Boxster is to be totally thrashed by one within two corners. I won't tell you how quickly we travelled on the drive, because the Aussie police will probably deport me back there to face charges, and quite possibly execution.

We travelled an awfully long way in such a short period of time that it turned into a sort of time travel, warping us to our destination along with absolutely impeccable handling. What's better is that the new Boxster is set at exactly the same price as the previous one; despite all the upgrades that turn it into a car that can rightfully challenge the Porsche 911 as the company's most driveable sports car.