subwoofer

You can get a manual Boxster GTS or 25 for 100-110k if you are willing to look for used ones. New allocations are hard to come by. I bought my 2022 Boxster 25 manual last year for 100k. One owner car but it did have 8k miles. I got two new rear tires and an extra year of CPO as part of the deal. I used to own a 2013 Boxster S. Boxsters are wonderful cars. Power top is great. Can be raised and lowered up to 30 mph. Very user-friendly car. Lots of leg room even for tall people. I am about 6 feet tall and I have lots of leg room. Two trunks also makes it quite practical.

Spyders look cool but I don't care for a convertible with a manual roof especially one that is not as easy as a Miata. Too much hassle when you are on a long drive and you just want the convenience of a power top if it starts raining or if gets too hot. Can't go wrong with a Boxster with the 4 liter engine.

Phillip Berk

I have another answer for you that is not Porsche and is easy to get without a wait, first deliveries are any day now I think , and I promise your local dealer will have an allocation- get a new Z4 Handshalter (wtv bs german word they came up with instead of just saying manual) The b58 is an amazing engine, it sounds good, looks good, is very quick ( I had a manual mkv supra and adored it) has a convertible, has a very nice interior with nice tech, is under 75k, it is not limited, they have good clearance in the front ( I had an auto m40i for 3 weeks for a loaner car) and means you can place an order for a 992 that will come in 2041, ( I would just place a deposit for a 992.2 S allocation) and until then go buy one of these, Z4 M40's have held value well, even with higher miles, 20k off sticker is about the most they have dropped for 2020 models, maybe 25k, so it won't depreciate like a pig, and it is brand new with a warranty. Checks all your box's.

thenewrick

Z's are too small for me and already had the BMW convertible experience.

With used prices these days.. I might do the Atlanta delivery experience and order a chronograph as well.

Xxyion

you might be thinking of the old Z4. That is a tiny car. The new car is quite spacious. But you did say you already did the BMW top down stuff.

subwoofer

I used to own a 2005 Z4 before my 2013 Boxster S. That Z4 (like the current one) had a great engine. It was not all that reliable but that's a different story. I never got used to the low seating position coupled with the long hood which made placing the car on a twisty road quite challenging. The new one is no different. Just for that alone, I would skip the Z4. It is not an easy car, at least for me, to drive quickly on a nice backroad. The Boxster is so much easier with great visibility out front.

Xxyion

oh for sure, i was just clearing up the misunderstanding that its a tiny car. I'd choose boxster over Z4 all day every day

Paul S.

I haven't read all of this thread but smiled at the question of why not a Boxster with a GT3 engine--OP should talk to tuners such as RAC Performance about an engine swap and everything else that would need to be done. It won't be cheap but I suspect they and other tuners can produce that kind of performance, just bring a wallet full of fresh cash. I've lived the tuner route with Corvette and cured me from anything other than OEM power but there's a whole lot of customers out there for the performance tuners.

Another thing I found interesting is ride height, buggering up a bumper in a parking lot, bending wheels--OP not trying to offend but you need to change the "nut behind the wheel". I think those sort of mishaps on the road or even track are uncommon unless one is not maintaining their lines and run over lane "armadillos" (those cement, typically painted yellow lane separators) or going over a curb which can bend a wheel, hitting potholes one might avoid if their field of vision is far out in front of the vehicles (HPDE's are excellent at honing such skills--without thinking about it check to see if your gaze behind the wheel is looking through the top half or below the windshield horizontal center line, most folks tend to be looking out through the bottom half of the windshield especially in traffic where they may only be looking at the rear bumper of the car directly in front of them), and as far as damaging bumpers, teach yourself to stop short of feeling the car hit the parking lot cement blocks. I do that in all my vehicles. Yes, on my first or second Porsche I might have misjudged once or twice but no longer (I'm on Porsche #6 and #7 currently). And very steep driveways can be a problem, I'll grant you. I've learned to say nope, and not attempt to go up a driveway or enter a parking lot if I think my front end ground clearance will be an issue driving in on an angle. And when driving, I'm on the lookout for dips that might bottom the car out (and I have a 22 BGTS 4.0 with the 20 mm lowered suspension that's standard on those, not less low 10mm higher option). Sorry if it sounds preachy but there's a lot to be said for how one drives. There are a number of Porsches that were really low, like the Carrera GT in original form equipped without a low speed front end lift. The GT3's are lower and have a front end lift for that reason. Those are super slammed track monsters.

I can remember used car shopping with a friend looking for a car for her 17 year old son. We found and she bought a used Mitsubishi Eclipse. We rode to a restaurant later with her at the wheel, she parks and you guessed it-scraped the bumper because she was used to a higher CUV and got in the habit of inching forward until the tires touch the cement block or curb in front of parking spaces. I smiled and said--you and your son will get used to stopping with space in front of the car. I can put any 911 or Boxster I own or have owned in any parking space stopping just short of the bumper touching those cement blocks and the rear bumper is not sticking out past the end of the parking space (unlike almost all full sized pickups and SUV's these days). And if there's anything in the front trunk I need to get to, back far enough that I can stand between the bumper and concrete block because I'm short.