hacker-pschorr

They are fun to drive, period. The fact that they are also comfortable and useful is a bonus.

Every car isn't for everybody. What I don't get is the opposition to real sports cars. For those who don't fit in the category of people who want one, whey are they so hell bent on fighting their existence? It's like the joke about Vegetarians "How do you know if someone is a Vegetarian? They'll tell you every 5 minutes" - same thing here.

People who cannot appreciate cars like the Boxster, Miata, BR-Z etc..... cannot help themselves to prove how much faster X is or how much more power full Y is.....don't care. Bugger off already. If I wanted that, I would buy that.

The 944 saved Porsche, and there were other cars more powerful & faster on the market, for less money. They sold because there was a niche market for a lightweight, simple sports car & Porsche filled it. So did Mazda later with the Miata.......

docmirror

Wow. Your defense of the Box over the 996 is 'pure sports car'? I'll have to go look up the results for all the SCCA/GT/IMSA championships the Box won, and the 911s failed in.

oh - wait...

As for the 'any part can fail' argument, with respect to the IMS that doesn't hold any water. Porsche was finally forced to admit that the IMS was a defective component. It took a long time, and a lot of lawyers but they finally admitted it publicly. This bearing is not, and was not intended to be a wear item like a clutch plate. If you ask Porsche today - they will tell you with a straight face that the IMS bearing is not a discrete serviceable component. Which means, its life was expected to fit the life of the rest of the non-discrete serviceable components of the engine, like a valve, or an oil pump. History shows that it's failure rate is at least 20 times greater than the MTBF of comparable discrete components in an engine. It was the wrong bearing in the application. We don't see major repair or parts centers stocking and replacing oil pumps, or exh valves proactively, or kits which remove an offending engine component because we know that the failure mode almost always causes catastrophic engine damage. The IMS is a turd in an otherwise decent punchbowl.

Edit to add: Spend some time over on 996. It's damn heartbreaking to have a noob come in with; "my engine started making a rattling noise...". Most of us want to put a fist through the nearest wall. If I can do anything of value when discussing the 996/Box engine, it would be derelict of me not to offer advice relevant. BTW, I did my own IMS bearing, and all the other mods I've mentioned above. Heat kills, and the IMS kills very quickly. I don't want to see ONE MORE thread about some poor bas with a useless car, selling as a roller because Porsche fkuked up on their engineering.

Shawn Stanford

Yeah, that's a completely different thing. Kind of like saying for $30 you'd rather have the steak than the lobster. Depends on what you're in the mood for, the two aren't really comparable.

I'm in 100% agreement here. I wanted a little sports car to drive on nice days. The 996 is not that: It's more of a GT car. Weights and measures are closer to a 928 than to a 986 (or early 911, for that matter). Don't get me wrong, I'm a fan of the 996; I prefer it to the more recent 911 models. It's just not what I want. (Although I don't care for the cab. I've never liked 911 cabs of any generation. The 986 was designed as a soft top, and it looks right.)

I honestly didn't expect this to create quite so much discussion. I thought it was a pretty simple idea: If you have any interest in adding a Boxster or a small convertible to your stable, now is a good time.

Petza914

Absolutely correct. It is an alternator bearing that was designed to be used where the center race is stationary and the outer race spins, but the Intermediate shaft application has the outer race stationary and the inner race spinning. The bearing fails because the oil it sits in penetrates the grease seal on the bearing, which washes out the sealed lubrication grease, but with the seal in place, it also does not allow for enough fresh oil to lubricate the bearing so the oil that's trapped in the bearing by the seals wears down, gets too hot, and fails to lubricate. This is why on the larger, non-serviceable bearing cars, removing the outer grease seal is a good idea as it exposes the bearing to a constant source of fresh oil.

There are two very demanding circumstances for the IMS bearing, which the worst and harshest condition when the car is idling. Because there's no centrifugal force to allow the internal bearing components to self-center, thus reducing the load, the bearing is under the greatest load when the engine is spinning the slowest. The other situation that effects the larger, single row bearing is continuous high-RPM track work. Because the bearing type used is an incorrect spec, running at high RPMs for extended periods actually has the surface speed of the bearing exceed it's design parameters because of it's larger diameter. For exclusive track duty, the small, double-row bearing is the best choice and for street cars, the latest larger, single row bearing is the best choice - the small, single-row bearing is the worst of the 3 that were ever offered. The one advantage to either of the smaller bearings is that they can be replaced, and should be if you have or buy a car where this hasn't been done yet.

I've never pursued a Boxster myself, because my modified mid-engine 914 fills that pure sportscar slot for me with the mid-engine handling, and go-cart like feel. Each of my Porsches is very different which is why I have each one - the 914 is the pure, analog sportscar, the 928 does double-duty as both a comfortable GT car that is also a drop-top, the Cayenne is the family trip car, but with it's mods is actually extremely fast, and my RUF 997 is head and shoulders above any of the others, besting all the other in every category except cargo capacity.

Darklands

On the 996 I like the widebody, I don´t like the Cabrio! I think it has a humpback over the engine which destroy the lines! But that´s my taste, other ppl feel different!
For tall people the boxter is a little bit small. I´m 6 feet and 5 1/2 Inch tall and I´m not comfortable in the car.

newcollector

So everyone's in agreement then. Get a Boxster and swap your 928 for a 996?
(JOKE)

Mongo

Hope ya'll know that the 928 will be cemented in history still and always as Porsche's German Muscle Car (not just GT), which spawned other German car makers to spit out similar 2+2 coupes after its inception (see Mercedes CLK).

bureau13

I actually think I probably should have thought more about getting a Boxster when I got the 924 Turbo. The 924 is "cooler," at least in my rather narrow definition of that term, and it was still a little cheaper, but I know the Boxster will be a better performer in pretty much every category, plus it's a drop-top, which would be great here (S. Florida) for a good part of the year. Maybe next time!

XS29L9B

Understood. I just have no desire for a Boxster. Does nothing for me, and isn't really my idea of a sporty car. But for others, it's perfect. Also, you are right, they are cheap as dirt for now, but for good reason, given the IMS issue and lack of overall respect for the cars. I've always thought of them as a Rodney Dangerfield, kinda car - and I like his kind of humor.

That said, if it works for you, don't worry about what others say.

hacker-pschorr

Typical irrelevant nonsense that always comes up in this discussion.

You know what other vehicles that have one races? Diesel VW's, Volvo station wagons......if that is your criteria, are those sports cars too?
You know what car dominated SCCA so much they got their own racing class? C4 Corvettes.
You know what car will be cheaper to own, operate, easier to work on and will blow the living doors off a 996? Yes, the Corvette. So why are we not talking about Corvette's? Because this topic of discussion is Boxsters, not Corvette's or the 996.

That's the "go to" argument in the "whats a sports car" debate - racing results. Yawn.....you don't get it. Has been hashed to death around here.

But no, sadly the Boxster isn't a true sports car in my opinion either. Too many creature comforts and still to heavy. But in the modern era we take what we can get if we want something "newer", the Boxster is the closest thing Porsche has built since the 944. It is what it is.....
The GT3 is the sports car the 911 should be but too many people want their cup holders, surround sound, full leather.....

If you want to continue this discussion, I suggest you jump into these threads instead of continuing to drag this one down:
https://rennlist.com/forums/997-foru...ports-car.html
https://rennlist.com/forums/off-topi...ports-car.html
https://rennlist.com/forums/991/9351...ports-car.html

Yea yea yea...IMS, we all know what a crap-fest of design it is. You act like this is 2004 and this is all new to us. There are multiple replacements out there, my local shop has done quite a few and makes no big deal out of it, cost isn't much either and as you know, an experienced DIY'er can do it.

Back to the point - Boxsters are dirt cheap fun, snag a good one now before all that is left is basket cases. Simple enough?

newcollector

Agreed, if you can't afford something better then do it.
Its up there for fun in the price-bracket.

hacker-pschorr

Better is relative. If that is the kind of car you are after, there isn't much else out there for even 3x's the price.

Unless you must have something newer then look at the Miata.

GT6ixer

C'mon guys, this is what you really want. Admit it.

hacker-pschorr

I looked into buying the Saturn Sky version when they came out. Since it shared most of it's body panels with the original Opal GT, I inquired on the Saturn forum about sourcing the Opal badges to rid myself of the Saturn logo. I was promptly banned, and I wasn't even trolling!!!!

A friend of mine has purchased so many cars from the local Chevy / Pontiac dealership they gave him one for free for the summer just to get it off the lot. He loved it (one of his other cars is a C5 ZO6 with a Katech 427). Only complaint is with the top down there is only room for a briefcase in the trunk.

Local shop, Beyond Redline dropped an LS2 into a Solstice Coupe a few years ago.

Mongo

Wasn't that car Jazz from Transformers? That was a pity move on Bay's part...