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A car-oriented friend described my Boxster as having "timeless styling" one day when we were sitting in front of his shop taking in some mid-winter sunshine. I sort of agreed - I like how the car looks and really can't see much in the styling I'd want to change, but I thought it was a nice looking car - but not one that attracts attention.
Today I had lunch at a sidewalk table with some friends in a small very quaint NJ Village (Allentown NJ). I'd parked the car a building away from where we were sitting, I could very easily keep an eye on it (top was down) but I wasn't right on top of it, and no reason for anyone to relate me to the car unless they know what a "Rennlist" hat signifies. So I was keeping an eye on the car mostly to be sure no one backed into it and then ran off. No one did that - but I did notice it actually attracts attention.
First was a 35-40 year old man and I assume his son, probably around 13-14. The father stopped to look, the son went and circled the car once looking at it. Then they both looked inside, and then talked for a bit. I'm guessing they weren't discussing if my scarf was worth stealing (it isn't).. so I'm guessing they were discussing the car.
Next was a young man - if I had to guess 18-23 or so. He looked at it from the curb, then he pulled out an actual camera (not using his phone) and circled the car twice taking photos from all sorts of angles. I assume he isn't from my insurance company documenting the car's condition, so I had to guess that he liked how it looks.
Later - in the gym - a middle-aged* woman came in, walked over to me (we were about the only people in the gym, so it was sort of obvious) to ask if that was my Porsche, and then proceeded to tell me how much she liked it. This has happened a number of times since I've owned it. Women going out of their way to talk about the car, how old is it, how is it to drive, and how much they like it.
So - my conclusion is - my friend is right. Timeless (well at least almost 2 decades) styling simply never goes out of style. Interesting since I bought it primarily for the driving experience, which I had a bunch of fun with on the way between lunch and the gym, about 50 miles of some of NJ's best back roads, twisty, ample passing areas, and playing the paddles most of the way.
Your experiences?
* = middle-aged as I might consider them - and I'm midway through my 7th decade (just getting into the senior range.)
“It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade.” — Charles Dickens
73F and sunny in NJ today.. great top-down weather and great to listen to the engine singing at me.
Last edited by deilenberger; 03-11-2021 at 08:15 PM.
Cannot agree more. It was as perfect of a day as I remembered, and my wife and I took our newly acquired 2010 meteor grey boxster out for a drive for the first time since it was delivered in February (snow/salt). For us in the Northeast, this is rare and perfectly described by your quote from Charles Dickens. Our brothers from the West Coast have weather like yesterday on most days from June->September.
There are so many great angles to the car. From the front headlights that resemble the Carrera GT to the rear that has the right amount of LED and red lensing. Of course, not to mention the side view that is just about perfect proportion with the top down.
The 987 was my personal Goldilocks among the Boxster's. Compliments come not so much in the form of folks being "wowed", but more just really pleased at the look of the car.
Add to this the top being down... yup, it's a charmer.
When one of my sisters accused me of getting my Spyder ".... so you can pick up 20-something floozies." my response was that most of the attention seems to come from teenage boys, which just isn't my thing.
And in one of the rare instances in my life when my witty banter seemed to appear at just the right time (and not several hours later, which is sadly the usual MO), when an older* woman (*I'm just shy of 60) came up to me at a gas station and asked "Is that car a lot of fun?" my reply was "Only place where you can have more fun is in the bedroom!" She seemed to appreciate the flirtiness.
It definitely gets looks. First time my daughter rode in it she said "Dad, it feels like everyone's *looking* at us!!!" to which I replied "That's kinda the point, honey."
When I got the itch for a convertible, I looked at everything from Miata's to M3's and the Boxster just did it for me, and in the Porsche world, I've always thought the 911 Cabrio looked a little "off." Actually, the only negative attention (well, other than my sister) the car has gotten has been from a guy with a GT3 at a cars and coffee and it was a backhanded "Yeah, my sister wants one." type of comment. At the same event, a guy with an F430 was almost gushing with praise about the Spyder, which had me thinking "Jeez, sell the F430 and you can probably buy 3 Spyders!" LOL
Rosie's looks grabbed my attention immediately. When I took it for DMV for plates a 20ish guy came over and gushed over it. He asked the MY and when I said 2008 he couldn't believe it - he thought it new and just purchased. Last week my wife and I were just cruising downtown and a kid of single-digit age stared, tugged at his dad's jacket and pointed directly at us.
My wife's a car gal and she continually reports on the various Porsches, Mclarens and what-not that she sees and invariably comments that of all them, Rosie stands out to her.
I strongly suspect Rosie will continue to impress for many years. Kind of ... timeless :-)
Funny thing - this AM's physical therapy session, 4 other victims patients came over to talk to me about the Boxster. One was a member of PCA also, and owned a Boxster, now owns a Cayenne. He wishes he still owned the Boxster.
in my opinion the Boxsters do look good - better than the Cayman, at least the 987. I've always thought the Cayman rear end looked peculiar (and not particularly attractive from some angles) - like the designers just slapped a fixed roof on a Boxster without much thought to integrating the rear roof line with sthe rear bumper. Just my opinion. But I do LOVE the midengine handling!
Last edited by joseph mitro; 03-12-2021 at 09:11 PM.
When I got the itch for a convertible, I looked at everything from Miata's to M3's and the Boxster just did it for me, and in the Porsche world, I've always thought the 911 Cabrio looked a little "off."
Same. I've always loved Boxsters because of the mid-engine layout and the fact that 911 cabrios just look a little weird to me, like the proportions aren't right.
I loved these cars growing up and it's been a little dream come true to have one sitting in the driveway, even if it's a previously neglected 987.1 base desperately in need of some TLC.
Last edited by losblancos; 03-13-2021 at 01:01 AM.
I dont know if it's timeless, but it still seems to look fresh. I think it's because it wasn't overstyled, it's got a good balance of form and function. To me the 718 looks like a more generic sportscar in comparison.
As a matter of fact my car was parked to a modern 911 just last week when I arrived to pick it up from the repair shop. Amazing how much the size has increased over the years. It’s quite apparent to me how small it is when driving it.
As a matter of fact my car was parked to a modern 911 just last week when I arrived to pick it up from the repair shop. Amazing how much the size has increased over the years. It’s quite apparent to me how small it is when driving it.
That's only a 997, you should see how big the 992 is.
03-11-2021, 08:13 PM
987 timeless styling?
Beautiful car.
