MarkG123

Finally got behind the wheel of a Boxster 718 S today. Just could not get past the motor, what a crappy sound. Car came with a PDK, I put it in Sport mode hoping for the transmission to windout a little bit, but it wants to short shift like a diesel...So uninspiring. Porsche needs to put a flat 6 back into this car before they have zero sales in the Boxster/cayman line up.

Illini675

Sounds like a very different experience than the one I had with the 718S at the Porsche Experience Center. Motor sounded savage (certainly not as symphonic as the flat six of the 981 / 987.2, but a cool sound nonetheless), and transmission was insanely impressive in both auto and manual modes (coming from a hardcore MT guy). Much different experience from the 987 Spyder that I'm used to, but certainly not uninspiring. With that said, perhaps the difference in experience has more to do with the environments in which we tested the cars.

randr

Really, how long did you drive it for - and it doesn't want to shift like a diesel, thats nonsense look at the torque curve . Did you try Sport plus

Basically with any of the PDK cars, if you are simply tootling along, they will tend to go up through the gears. If you drive them more aggressively they upshift much later - it doesn't matter if its a NA or turbo.

I drove a C 718 S over a period of three days including 1 day on track - it pants a M2 by seconds per lap, big big margins - I had the benefit driving of them back to back (and am a 981GTS owner).



And.........Global sales are up 9%

pitt911

Drove the car at the Porsche experience center for 45 min and I really liked it, the sound is not as good as flat 6 but was not bad

MarkG123

I am sure the car would have performed and sounded better on the track. I put the car in sports mode, it would shift into 3rd gear from a dead stop before i could get through an intersection. This 718S has sat on the dealers lot since last July. Beautiful car, but there must be a reason it has not sold. I say it's the engine and the way the PDK short shifts to obtain gas mileage for street use.

rellim

i thin some should drive a 981 to compare shifting manners to a 718 ,,, back to back

i.m.o.

R_Rated

I think the new Boosted engines sound like vacuum cleaners :/ or subarus!

Mrg02D

Haha! Took me a minute to realize what was really going on.

81911

Use the gas pedal. It's the one on the right. It will hold gears then.

Bparrott

They are selling better in large markets. That may explain the car sitting. I have owned both a 14 Cayman S and now have a 17 Cayman S and the performance isn't close. Power is ever present. Steering is quicker as well. I have not noticed much difffernce in shift patterns in automatic modes. No matter, change has always proven very offensive to many Porsche enthusiasts.

R_Rated

The 356 crowd proclaimed that a 911 had no pedigree and could not be considered a real Porsche

Tief Lernen

I have never owned a Porsche, and recently decided I can finally afford to buy one.

I test drove the 718 Boxster S and a pre-owned 2015 Boxster GTS. Both had PDK. The only thing I liked better about the GTS was the exhaust note, and even then, I didn't dislike the 718's, just preferred the GTS. Everything else about the 718 was better, including the steering feel, which is a big deal to me. I ended up ordering a 718.

I could have saved some money and driven away immediately in the GTS, rather than waiting ~4 months, but ultimately I thought the 718 was worth it.

Personally, I like turbo engines. I think they sound cool, I think the engineering involved is cool, and I like the fact that they maintain power better at high altitude. If the 718 had a turbo flat-6, it would be complete perfection, but I'm okay with the turbo 4. In my opinion, stepping on the gas and feeling a short delay while you hear the turbo spool up and the car leap forward is more involving, not less. I guess if I were on the track competing I might be annoyed by the lag - but this is not going to be a track car, and I had a hard time noticing any lag in the 718 anyway.

I have to admit it's a little weird paying $85k for a 4-cylinder car. But, my other hobby is aviation, and guess what you get when you pay $400,000 for one of these things?

http://www.diamondaircraft.com/aircraft/da40-xlt/

A four-cylinder boxer engine.

randr

^^^^^

Nicely put, and the aircraft engine could well be made by Subaru

erik_plus8

Two things:

- The torque curve in a 718(S) looks exactly like a diesel torque curve, in shape. That's why the gearbox can shift up early - lot's of torque available on low revs. That's also what (for me) kills the car, I want the feeling of increasing acceleration through a constantly rising torque curve in an NA engine.

- Happy to see someone more than me acknowledging the fact of a clearly noticable lag.

randr

Nope,
(1) you have to look at the range of the curve relative to a diesel (by your logic so does the TTS, 991.2 GTS, 991.2 S and 991.1)
(2) a BROAD flat torque curve delivers a completely linear HP response over the flat part of the tqe curve
(3) the torque curve in a NA Porsche consists of two hummocks split by the onset of variocam plus
(4) I know this because I have a turbocharged Porsche and a NA Porsche - so honestly, I know you wouldn't be able to tell the difference (except you'd be going much slower in the NA car)
(5) the car that pulls hardest to the redline is the turbo charged Porsche
(6) A modern turbo charged engine is not lag free if you use the wrong gear, it is the case for any car in the wrong gear - that simply is poor driving - in fact modern turbo charged engines deliver a better overall response if you know how to drive
(7) you need to separate throttle response and engine response from your inputs - it shifts early because you haven't got your boot in to it. The NA does exactly the same - this is a dead set fact.

The NA engine is dead before 4000 rpm - I'm not trying to offend you but it is and I own and race a NA GTS in the Porsche sprint series over here.

So as a 981 GTS owner - I am happy tp acknowledge the following the 718S has better brakes and modulation, it has a better steering response, it has a more responsive engine across the entire rev range, it even has better OEM tires. Overall, in all performance metrics it leads the 981 GTS - I have no problem acknowledging this because it is simply the truth.

Frankly, the only reason 981S/GTS owners gripe is because the 718S is clearly a better all round package (as repeated testing and metrics slow) and they are somewhat miffed by the fact a next generation vehicle/refresh ups the ante from the previous model - go figure (this is not directed at you eric - its a general comment).