- Much more potential.
996 for me. Never warmed up to the boxster. Don't know why.
I've wanted a 911 since I first realized what cars were back when I was a kid.
My vote is for the 996, based on nothing factual whatsoever.
Tom_Spangler wrote:Adrian_Thompson wrote:The convertible thing I will concede because it's personal preference, but on what planet is any variety of Boxster/Cayman a better car than the same year 911? Having the engine a bit farther forward doesn't make up for the power deficit, lack of interior space, or the fact that one of them is a berkeleyING NINE ELEVEN!Tom_Spangler wrote:Both so so utterly totally wrongSwank Force One wrote: I'd want the one that isn't a convertible. Because convertibles are awful.QFT. Also, 911 > Boxster all day every day.
I love 911's and I think you'd agree that I'm way more of an all round Porsche geek than you are.
YEs you have a point, year for year the 911 will always win in terms of power. I don't give a rats ass about the 911's back seat, it's useless. But $ for $ the Boxster will always win out I think. For the price of a 'nice' 3.4L 996 you can get a 'nice' 3.2L 987 Boxster S, be close on hp and have a much better platform and nicer interior materials. Don't forget for the early 996's they were identical to the 986 from the A pillar forwards and the interiors were essentially identical too.
As usual I'm right, you're wrong. Na na na na naaa naaaaa
P.S. This place of all places just badge snobbery just doesn't cut it. Hell, there will be someone on this board who would honestly with no irony prefer a berkeleying Yugo to a 911 8 days out of 7!
IMHO (which comes to just about 30 minutes of seat time on the street in each) I like the 911 better from an ergonomics situation. The back seats, although torture for adults, make it a great "pick the kids up from school" set up. Big one in front, little one in back and backpacks behind the driver.
In a drag race and top speed the 911 wins, in the twisties, from all I can tell, who ever does the "behind the wheel" mod the best wins.
Boxster because you can put an F2T in one and no purist is really going to get too upset about it. I think the dorky headlights look less dorky on the Boxster than they do on the 996.
Flight Service wrote: The back seats, although torture for adults, make it a great "pick the kids up from school" set up. Big one in front, little one in back and backpacks behind the driver.
Run that by me again. My youngest daughter is 5'9" and my shrimp of a wife is only 5'8". Back seats would be good for the dog though.
Watch this guys, after all my 911 bashing what's the odds of me getting one in a couple of years over a Boxster?
In reply to Adrian_Thompson:
"$ for $ the Boxster will always win out I think. For the price of a 'nice' 3.4L 996 you can get a 'nice' 3.2L 987 Boxster S, be close on hp and have a much better platform and nicer interior materials. Don't forget for the early 996's they were identical to the 986 from the A pillar forwards and the interiors were essentially identical too."
I fully agree with this. Although I would rather have a Cayman over either of them 
However if I'm playing along with the premise of the original post I pick the 996.
Adrian_Thompson wrote:Flight Service wrote: The back seats, although torture for adults, make it a great "pick the kids up from school" set up. Big one in front, little one in back and backpacks behind the driver.Run that by me again. My youngest daughter is 5'9" and my shrimp of a wife is only 5'8". Back seats would be good for the dog though. Watch this guys, after all my 911 bashing what's the odds of me getting one in a couple of years over a Boxster?
My oldest is 5'4" and the young one is in the 4'10" range
get younger kids
Tom_Spangler wrote: The convertible thing I will concede because it's personal preference, but on what planet is any variety of Boxster/Cayman a better car than the same year 911? Having the engine a bit farther forward doesn't make up for the power deficit, lack of interior space, or the fact that one of them is a berkeleyING NINE ELEVEN!
Regarding the bold portion, lap times suggest otherwise. The 911 is a great car, but it is also guilty of the fanatic hype-machine. There is a cult among Porsche nuts that think the 911 is the end-all, be-all car bar none, and it's laughable how much they hate on other Porsche models despite the fact that most of them were better cars than the 911. The 914-6, 944 turbo, and 928 were all arguably better cars than the 911, but the 911 snobs turn their noses up as if the slower, less ergonomic car with the engine in the wrong place and a tendency to oversteer after it was done understeering was God's gift to the road. Now that Porsche has reduced the amount of purposeful engine neutering in the Boxster/Cayman, it's becoming harder to make excuses for the 911. The 911 is still a great car, but there are better ones for performance, some from the same company.
A 911's back seats may be useless for humans, but they are still a place to put stuff, and to put a sideways human in a pinch. I've done it. Try that in a Boxster or any other 2-seater. I get the whole "pure sports car" thing, but I can't see myself owning another 2-seater. There are too many times when I need my car to be a car and get me, my stuff, and one or more people from one place to another.
I will concede that dollar for dollar, you will always get more car in a Boxster/Cayman than a 911. In fact, I'll go further and admit that in the case of the Cayman, it's prettier than a 911. But a 911 is a 911. Call it badge-snobbery if you want, but it's arguably the most iconic sports car of all time for a reason. Also, the Boxster/Cayman S maybe close to a base 911 in power, and I might concede that the platform is "better", but the 911 platform also has things like GT2s, GT3s, Turbos, AWD, etc. Granted, those cost a lot more money, but they add to the "mystique" of the 911, even the lower models, and they make further upgrades easier.
Ade, you're not right, you're just on a huge Boxster kick ever since you drove Brent's last summer. Just admit it. 
Tom_Spangler wrote: I will concede that dollar for dollar, you will always get more car in a Boxster/Cayman than a 911. In fact, I'll go further and admit that in the case of the Cayman, it's prettier than a 911. But a 911 is a 911. Call it badge-snobbery if you want, but it's arguably the most iconic sports car of all time for a reason. Also, the Boxster/Cayman S maybe close to a base 911 in power, and I might concede that the platform is "better", but the 911 platform also has things like GT2s, GT3s, Turbos, AWD, etc. Granted, those cost a lot more money, but they add to the "mystique" of the 911, even the lower models, and they make further upgrades easier.
My argument is that it's a better car, price independent, unless you have an absolute need for the "+2" seats. Even with less power the 987s will outlap the 997s at most tracks. The '89 951 was a faster car than the 930, on track and on the road. The 914-6 was better than the 911T/E. And the 928 was a better GT cruiser. The 911 was never the pure sportscar, it was a GT car that accumulated a following. It accumulated the following because it was a well-done car, but the "911 crowd" is more responsible for the 911's reputation than the car itself. I've worked on plenty of them of multiple generations. The 911 snobs and the attitudes of a few executives at Porsche are the core of the car's hyped-up status. If Porsche hadn't neutered so many of its other cars to protect the 911, the 911's reputation would be more muted. Hell, the fact that it had to be protected in the first place tells you enough.
And the engine's still in the wrong place
I would rather have the 911. I'm also not a huge fan of convertibles. Cayman S vs. base 911 would be a tougher choice.
Flight Service wrote: My oldest is 5'4" and the young one is in the 4'10" range get younger kids
YOungest is only 13, but I am about to be a grandfather thanks to the eldest. A baby would fit!!
Tom_Spangler wrote: Ade, you're not right, you're just on a huge Boxster kick ever since you drove Brent's last summer. Just admit it.
This makes no sense, it would require the possibility that I am not right all the time. This does not compute
Can we throw in the 911 3.2 Carrera? Because if we do that I'm changing my answer. And I want a top that goes down.
If they're both really 1999 models, the 996 wins because there was no Boxster S in 99. The first year for the S model was 2000. All that being said, I wouldn't trade my Boxster for ANY 911 save for a GT3. In fact, I sold an aircooled 911 to buy my Boxster. I want to also go on record as being one of the four Boxster owners who doesn't aspire to replace it with a Cayman.
I owned an 01 boxster s, I can't imagine the 996 being worth the extra ten grand in today's prices. I owned mine from 2003-2006 and at the time the prices were about double also, the 986s is a great all around sports car and I hate convertibles.
I've driven both, and the only place a 996 is better is in build quality. The ones I've seen, for whatever reason, appear to be screwed together a bit better, and with a somewhat nicer materials. After than that, its Boxster hands down. A much better driver, without the wandering front end you get in many 911's, regardless of vintage.
If someone were giving them to me, I'd probably go 996 however, simply because it is worth more money. Personally, I'd still like to have another 951. Of all the Porsches I have driven or owned, I still think they rank among the best in terms of outright driving joy. It never had that "tank" feeling of a 911, but is was more fun to drive, at least in my opinion.
996 only for one reason. The Boxster is just a little too small for me. So I end up sitting straight up and down and its really uncomfortable for anything longer than about 30 minutes. If I'm paying that much, I need to be able to drive it daily.
I prefer the 993 over the 996 any day of the week.. but if I had to chose between Boxster and 996.. it would be the 996.. Now a 996 vs the Cayman.. I would be all over the mid-engine hatchback in less than a heartbeat
Flight Service wrote:BoxheadTim wrote:You can pick up a clean 996 in the $14k range or a similar mileage Boxster S in the $9k so yeah the 911 is more, but is it that much more car? I found more than a few 50k mile Turbos in the mid$30s and one that was PCA owner owned with logs and multiple mods for an ask of $45k (Blue wrap and super cool if you ask me.) 580 hp and one of a kind look for $45k, that is a hard bargain to beat.Opti wrote: If its the same price, 911.They aren't, though. The 911 is usually about twice as expensive.
"45k?" "Bargain?" Who let this guy in here?
Would prefer the 911 but if I had to pay to upkeep then the Boxster.
What am I saying, can't afford upkeep on either one. 
I would go with a Cayman. It has more power than the Boxster and the engine is in the correct place compared to the 911. 
Is it already that time again? To argue whether or not GRM is ONLY about $2000 cars, beaters and miatas? That discussion is getting pretty tired.
plance1 wrote: "45k?" "Bargain?" Who let this guy in here?
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