Thinking about a Cabrio - 718GTS 😳
 

So I’ve had my 911C2 GTS MT for over a year now, fabulously competent in all respects, and ridiculously fast. Moonroof open and windows down is a nice breeze, but still nothing near a full top down experience. Therin lies a a conundrum - I’m lusting after the top down experience again, that also lends it self more to weekend drive and trip enjoyment at closer to legal speeds than the C2 does, which is so good and so fast it’s almost boring at traffic speeds. I won’t be tracking it, and have been contemplating a downgraded (base or S) 911 in a Cabrio, but I don’t like the look of them top up or down.

The Boxster/718 looks right proper as a ragtop both up and down, and the mid-engine handling is sublime (had a 2008 Boxster S, chipped apx 315hp), and I’m contemplating a Boxster 718 GTS, but am also wondering if I won’t be happy with the 4 cylinder engine and having the baby-Porsche and not having the true icon of the line. Anyone have both or gone back to the Boxster I’d be interested in your opinion and experiences.

Boxsters aren't quite the same as 911 cabriolets. Mainly its that there's a lot more stuff sticking up in back even with the top down. Whether that matters is going to depend on you, but it's an important difference to me personally.

I don't like the profile of the boxster with the top up. The way the roof bends down instead of an unbroken curve with the body looks crude to me. As for the 911 cabrio, I think the roofline looks wrong if there's a distinct difference between roof color and body color. Which they usually are, sometimes to an extent I find ugly (i.e. red roof and white body). I prefer black roof / black exterior or blue roof / sapphire blue (which is what I drive). The closer match in color makes the car look more like a coupe when the roof is up, instead of a washtub body with a different color roof pasted on top.

I've never driven a 718. I think the place to ask is a 718 forum. Or maybe do some test drives.

I had a Boxster S and now I have a Targa GTS - if you drive one you will know why. I agree with Gus that you need to drive one and ask in the other forum to see if anyone made the change you are contemplating.

I used to drive a 781 S model and now I drive a 991.2 Cabrio. Very different cars.

The 781 was like a kart.... fun to drive but much smaller inside. With the roof up, the car sometimes could feel very cramped. The 911 is much bigger on the inside and much more comfortable if you ask me and that was one of the main reasons for the change. I do like the fact that I have space in the rear seats to place additional stuff If i need it. I also think that it has a smoother ride.

I did try the 718 asome time ago and even that the car handled better than the 781, just didn’t like the engine. It sure is faster than the 781 but the “Subaru” type of sound didn’t appeal to me.

You don’t like the targa ? That would be my choice. That would had been my preferred car, but in my county they are very rare and the prices go through the roof for them.

Love the Boxster. Last year, I planned on trading in my 2013 Base Boxster for a 911 but the value offered was substantially less than made sense ($15k below retail). My sales guy agreed and suggested that I keep the Boxster and continue to drive it for a couple more years and still sell it for more than the combined value incl tax savings on the trade. The Boxster remained in Florida and I enjoyed a highly optioned PDK C2S coupe with sunroof in Canada from April last year until end of October. At that point I headed south for a week and enjoyed driving the Boxster ... although it felt underpowered compared to the C2S, I very quickly realized it was a joy to drive and I missed the manual along with open air experience. The Boxster does feel more nimble and the fact that I can enjoy an extra gear or two with the 981 before doing double the speed limit is an added bonus. The roads are far smoother where I drive in Florida so the lowered firmer suspension is a non issue down there.

I too have preferred the shape of the 911 coupe over the cab and decided the Targa was the perfect “compromise”. I was able get an allocation and ordered a manual in December. I took delivery at the end of March but it seems spring weather has yet to arrive so I’ve yet to put 1,000 kms on the thing (600 miles). It is definitely smoother riding and feels more refined (compared to both the Boxster as well as the SPASM/ PDCC RAS equipped C2S). The ability to drive with the top down in cool temps is a bonus I wasn’t expecting. I’ve been able to do so more often than not with the steering wheel and seat heat on and not a chance I would have been comfortable doing the same in a cab without extra or heavy layers (temps in high 40’s and 50’s). Now that the transmission has loosened up and the exhaust is sounding better, I’m having difficulty keeping the revs below 4,000 rpm. Obviously, there’s more space inside the 911 compared to the Boxster but the targa/cab provide little benefit to carrying stuff compared to the the two trunk Boxster. I do feel the width of the Targa is noticeable when parking compared to either the Boxster or narrow body 911.

I have not driven the 718 but imagine that everything about it will be better than my 981 except perhaps for the engine/exhaust sound. Frankly, if it weren’t for being told that Florida dealers weren’t interested in CDN cars, I would have considered trading the 981 for a more recent model. Having just replaced the tires (again) as well as brakes, it’s running without an issue including no rattles or creaks so I suspect I will continue to keep it for a while. I’m very fortunate to be able to own both cars including not being kept in the same garage.

I have a Boxster and a 911. My Boxy is not comfortable from a wind perspective with the top down at any speed. The 911 is gentle and lets very little turbulence in the cabin with the top down and wind screen up. Neither is bad - just very different.

Be careful. I went from a 987 and 981 to a 718S. Sounds fine at ignition, couldn't see what the fuss was about, better car in every respect than previous, loved it for about three months.. Except! After a while that drone got on my nerves and I missed that lovely whine when accelerating out of a corner or joining a slip road. I also found the engine to be rough, course and vibratory, bit like a diesel lorry or old air cooled VW. I'm now in a 991.2S Cab and it really is sublime. Except! It's bigger, wider, heavier and not as much fun. More GT than sports car. Having said that, it's smooth and sounds wonderful, even with that turbo whistle like an aircraft taking off. One big improvement from my previous three Boxsters that I've not heard anyone mention, is the much reduced wind buffeting with the top down, presumably because you sit lower in the car. Nevertheless, if they do bring out a 718 six Touring with a proper roof, I'll be like a rat up a drainpipe.

Thanks for the inputs. This is exactly the reason my wife and I decided on the 911 - space, ride, etc, and thought we’d be happy with the moonroof and windows and didn’t like the look of the cabriolet 911. We miss the top down, but agree we might find the interior space of the Boxster lacking again.

In order to rationalize the cost I’d probably need to do the 718 or lightly appointed base or S 911. Another option is wait until the release of the 992 in MT (base still 400hp) and take a look at one of those in a Cabrio

When I went from a pair of Carrera coupes (996.1/996.2) to a Boxster S (987) it felt like a big change in handling and not such a big change in speed (despite lower power) thanks to the 'feels-fast' effect of open-air-driving combined with mid-engine handling. More recently I went the opposite progression (from 982 Boxster S to 991.2 C2S Cab.) and felt very little change in handling, as evolution of the 911 suspension (esp. with 305 rears and RAS) seems to have caught-up with the mid-engine configuration; whereas the difference in useable power between these two 9A2 turbos (2.5/3.0) compared to the earlier atmospheric engines is what I notice more in spirited real-world (non-track) driving..

While I often read of others characterizing the difference (turbo 718 v. 911) as more GT v. go-kart, in my experience (all manual, mostly top-down B-road sport-driving) it feels like open racer v. more powerful open racer.

The new 718 is great, except for the four cylinder engine. It just sounds like crap. Get a flat six in whatever body; older Boxster or 911. Did I mention it sounds like crap? Words cannot express how bad this car sounds...