Thoughts on my new 718 Boxster S
06-09-2017, 03:33 AM
#1
Thoughts on my new 718 Boxster S
1200 miles on my new Boxster S so far. Doing my best to stick to the break-in limitation of 4000 RPM. Some miscellaneous thoughts for those considering a purchase.
More (and higher-resolution) pictures here: http://imgur.com/a/elIAh
1. PASM Sport is great, exactly what I wanted in a sports car. In Normal mode, the ride is firm but never uncomfortable, and handling is still amazing. Sport stiffens it up and can be a bit much on rough pavement, but is great on the right road. The 20 mm drop looks fantastic but does lead to occasional scraping of the front lip.
Handling and steering are faultless. The steering feel in particular is what led me to a 718 instead of a 981 GTS, and I'm very happy with that decision.
2. The PDK is also great. I've always owned manual transmission sports cars, but never a Porsche, and did not care for the manual when I drove it in the 718. The PDK suits the character of the car much better, especially in sports mode. Normal mode usually works great too, but is much more willing to lug the engine under moderate throttle acceleration than I would be. I keep wondering if Porsche is sacrificing a little bit of engine longevity to improve fuel economy.
Ditto with the auto start/stop, which is just obnoxious in all respects.
In Sport Mode, the PDK is lightning fast and feels just as aggressive, mechanical and involving as a good manual transmission.
3. The two-tone Bordeaux Red interior looks amazing. It is a very deep, rich color that changes in different lighting and looks almost three-dimensional. Very glad I went with it instead of plain black. An awesome combination with the GT Silver.
4. Engine sound and character. I haven't been able to really open it up yet, but with the sports exhaust on and the top down, I love the sound of the boxer 4. It is loud, deep aggressive and sporty. It sounds less polished and refined than the old 6, but I think that adds character - it's a little bit exotic and snarly. The rough and aggressive sound is a great contrast with how refined the car looks - it sounds like it must be fast.
With the top up, the sound is just okay. A bit flat and boring without being able to hear the exhaust well. In 7th gear doing 85 on the highway, there is no drone or objectionable noise, but when you downshift to 5th or 6th, you hear a lot of engine noise that seems to come through the bulkhead, not the exhaust, and it's just noise, not a pleasing sound really. Might be better if I could take it above 4k in these situations.
Can't imagine this car without the Sports Exhaust. It's a must-have option.
As for the turbos - I love turbos. I love the sound and love the feel of the boost kicking in, and I think the need to anticipate your throttle inputs a little bit to counteract the lag adds a little bit more involvement. The 718 really gives the best of both worlds - if you start at 2000 RPM and a closed throttle, you get a great feeling of the surge of power as the turbo spools up, you hear the little whistle in your ear, and you take off. If you're already at 3500 RPM or higher and driving hard, the turbo almost never comes off boost and there's basically no lag. It's great.
5. Sports Chrono. I am reserving judgement on this until I get past the break-in period, but at the moment, I'm not seeing $2,500 of value here.
6. Adaptive Cruise Control. If you regularly find yourself sitting in traffic and are getting the PDK, this is simply a must-have. It handles all acceleration and braking for you in stop-and-go traffic - all you have to do is steer, and bump the cruise control stalk occasionally to start moving again if you really come to a 100% dead stop. Not much point in it without the PDK though.
More (and higher-resolution) pictures here: http://imgur.com/a/elIAh
1. PASM Sport is great, exactly what I wanted in a sports car. In Normal mode, the ride is firm but never uncomfortable, and handling is still amazing. Sport stiffens it up and can be a bit much on rough pavement, but is great on the right road. The 20 mm drop looks fantastic but does lead to occasional scraping of the front lip.
Handling and steering are faultless. The steering feel in particular is what led me to a 718 instead of a 981 GTS, and I'm very happy with that decision.
2. The PDK is also great. I've always owned manual transmission sports cars, but never a Porsche, and did not care for the manual when I drove it in the 718. The PDK suits the character of the car much better, especially in sports mode. Normal mode usually works great too, but is much more willing to lug the engine under moderate throttle acceleration than I would be. I keep wondering if Porsche is sacrificing a little bit of engine longevity to improve fuel economy.
Ditto with the auto start/stop, which is just obnoxious in all respects.
In Sport Mode, the PDK is lightning fast and feels just as aggressive, mechanical and involving as a good manual transmission.
3. The two-tone Bordeaux Red interior looks amazing. It is a very deep, rich color that changes in different lighting and looks almost three-dimensional. Very glad I went with it instead of plain black. An awesome combination with the GT Silver.
4. Engine sound and character. I haven't been able to really open it up yet, but with the sports exhaust on and the top down, I love the sound of the boxer 4. It is loud, deep aggressive and sporty. It sounds less polished and refined than the old 6, but I think that adds character - it's a little bit exotic and snarly. The rough and aggressive sound is a great contrast with how refined the car looks - it sounds like it must be fast.
With the top up, the sound is just okay. A bit flat and boring without being able to hear the exhaust well. In 7th gear doing 85 on the highway, there is no drone or objectionable noise, but when you downshift to 5th or 6th, you hear a lot of engine noise that seems to come through the bulkhead, not the exhaust, and it's just noise, not a pleasing sound really. Might be better if I could take it above 4k in these situations.
Can't imagine this car without the Sports Exhaust. It's a must-have option.
As for the turbos - I love turbos. I love the sound and love the feel of the boost kicking in, and I think the need to anticipate your throttle inputs a little bit to counteract the lag adds a little bit more involvement. The 718 really gives the best of both worlds - if you start at 2000 RPM and a closed throttle, you get a great feeling of the surge of power as the turbo spools up, you hear the little whistle in your ear, and you take off. If you're already at 3500 RPM or higher and driving hard, the turbo almost never comes off boost and there's basically no lag. It's great.
5. Sports Chrono. I am reserving judgement on this until I get past the break-in period, but at the moment, I'm not seeing $2,500 of value here.
6. Adaptive Cruise Control. If you regularly find yourself sitting in traffic and are getting the PDK, this is simply a must-have. It handles all acceleration and braking for you in stop-and-go traffic - all you have to do is steer, and bump the cruise control stalk occasionally to start moving again if you really come to a 100% dead stop. Not much point in it without the PDK though.
06-09-2017, 09:18 AM
#3
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I have the identical car, except mine is a manual and I replaced the orange corner lights, which I really dislike on silver cars.
I particularly agree with your comment regarding the much dissed sound. With the top down (which is the only way I drive this car), sound on a PSE equipped BS is more than acceptable, at least to these ears. Sounds better than the stock exhaust on my 991 Turbo S.
I particularly agree with your comment regarding the much dissed sound. With the top down (which is the only way I drive this car), sound on a PSE equipped BS is more than acceptable, at least to these ears. Sounds better than the stock exhaust on my 991 Turbo S.
06-09-2017, 11:19 AM
#4
Rennlist Member
THAT'S a beautiful car! Congratulations and welcome to Porsche. Your choice, and the comment before this, is a striking, retro, combination. It's one of Porsche's best.
Again, congrats and enjoy the car. Wait until you can take it above 4000. These cars LOVE to rev high!
Again, congrats and enjoy the car. Wait until you can take it above 4000. These cars LOVE to rev high!
06-09-2017, 11:35 AM
#5
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I'm a newbie to Porsche. Can somebody tell me where I can find all the designations and description of each. A link to a Web site maybe. I'm very confused with all the different names, and years. 991, 996,993, 907, 997.1, 987.2, 981. BTW, I have 2 718 Boxster S's. I love them both. Liked the first one so much, I bought a second. First one is a manual and the second one is a PKD. I AutoX.
06-09-2017, 12:11 PM
#6
Rennlist Member
I'm a newbie to Porsche. Can somebody tell me where I can find all the designations and description of each. A link to a Web site maybe. I'm very confused with all the different names, and years. 991, 996,993, 907, 997.1, 987.2, 981. BTW, I have 2 718 Boxster S's. I love them both. Liked the first one so much, I bought a second. First one is a manual and the second one is a PKD. I AutoX.
Porsche has always had model numbers in addition to names. For example, most notably is the 911 which is the rear-engined, 4-seater, sports cars. But not "name" for this car, just an evolution of the number.
These are all "911's
911
964 (but still a 911)
993
996
997.1 & .2
991.1 & .2
Then there's the mid-engined line of Boxsters a& Caymans
986
987.1 & .2
981
982 but badged as the 718 (in homage to the original 718 flat-four)
The 907 you mention is a race car I believe.
Good reference on all this is Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porsche
Have fun and welcome to Porsche. There's a TON to learn.
06-09-2017, 01:57 PM
#7
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Hey Tief Lernen -
Glad to hear of you're satisfaction with Porsche's neu MY17 Boxster S approach; Given the significant engine change away from a normal aspiration 6 cyl. .. The S models 2.5l 4 cyl w/VGT boxer as with any declared focus,,, of both time and development $ has largely diminished any turbo lag character. .. Ferrari too has expended development efforts with its VGT based induction in the 2016 488GTB, a 3.9l V8 w/VGT. .. Ferrari vehicles have long utilized normal aspiration in its V12 and V8 engine architecture .
Question: A popular approach of the 2.0l & 2.5l 4 cyl w/VGT exhaust's note,, is to raise the acoustic dbm level; i.e. Louder Sports Exhaust option.
What if approach to the exhaust (horrendous) note went in the opposite direction?? To an uber quiet, library quiet exhaust? .. Just an idea. (lipstick on a pig either way... the 4 cyl exhaust strategies) The mid-engine chassis platform experiences a BIG performance gains from the VGT 4 cyl., and even much more with upcoming ECU developments from the aftermarket tuners; MTM Germany, COBB USA, APR USA, REV GB and the like ... (MTM launched an ECU chip mod. already. See YouTube.)
The neu Boxster S / Cayman S w/ 2.5l 4 cyl VGT induction significantly enhances mid-range torque character, not to mention widening the broad RPM band torque availability vs the out going normally aspirated 6 cyl of yore. ..
Your exterior finish choice of GT Silver metallic coupled with aluminium roll bar aesthetic (opt.) is time honored.
Sharp ! .. For the life of the cabriolet, the classic aesthetic details never fade, or bore .
Could you provide a snap shot of your build specifics?
Glad to hear of you're satisfaction with Porsche's neu MY17 Boxster S approach; Given the significant engine change away from a normal aspiration 6 cyl. .. The S models 2.5l 4 cyl w/VGT boxer as with any declared focus,,, of both time and development $ has largely diminished any turbo lag character. .. Ferrari too has expended development efforts with its VGT based induction in the 2016 488GTB, a 3.9l V8 w/VGT. .. Ferrari vehicles have long utilized normal aspiration in its V12 and V8 engine architecture .
Question: A popular approach of the 2.0l & 2.5l 4 cyl w/VGT exhaust's note,, is to raise the acoustic dbm level; i.e. Louder Sports Exhaust option.
What if approach to the exhaust (horrendous) note went in the opposite direction?? To an uber quiet, library quiet exhaust? .. Just an idea. (lipstick on a pig either way... the 4 cyl exhaust strategies) The mid-engine chassis platform experiences a BIG performance gains from the VGT 4 cyl., and even much more with upcoming ECU developments from the aftermarket tuners; MTM Germany, COBB USA, APR USA, REV GB and the like ... (MTM launched an ECU chip mod. already. See YouTube.)
The neu Boxster S / Cayman S w/ 2.5l 4 cyl VGT induction significantly enhances mid-range torque character, not to mention widening the broad RPM band torque availability vs the out going normally aspirated 6 cyl of yore. ..
Your exterior finish choice of GT Silver metallic coupled with aluminium roll bar aesthetic (opt.) is time honored.
Sharp ! .. For the life of the cabriolet, the classic aesthetic details never fade, or bore .
Could you provide a snap shot of your build specifics?
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(I'm going to berate you into not selling yours...) 
06-22-2017, 07:45 AM
#12
Congrats. Loved driving the 718 Boxster S I had as a loaner (lucky).
Can you elaborate more on the difference in steering feel between the 981 Boxster GTS and 718 S? Also, any other impressions you can give via how the two compare?
I'm looking into buying a 981 B GTS and am curious how it stacks up. The main two things I'm hesitant may come short from the 718 S I got used to, are steering feel (I know the 718 uses a different rack, for one thing) and power. I'm not a power "fiend" but I like the torque of the 718 S. I love the wail of the N/A Flat 6. So I've got quite a predicament.
Thanks.
Can you elaborate more on the difference in steering feel between the 981 Boxster GTS and 718 S? Also, any other impressions you can give via how the two compare?
I'm looking into buying a 981 B GTS and am curious how it stacks up. The main two things I'm hesitant may come short from the 718 S I got used to, are steering feel (I know the 718 uses a different rack, for one thing) and power. I'm not a power "fiend" but I like the torque of the 718 S. I love the wail of the N/A Flat 6. So I've got quite a predicament.
Thanks.