johnireland

993 is still the best daily driver Porsche ever built. When the Boxster first came out I got to drive one back to back with my 993 at Willow Springs. The Boxster was very competent, sort of like a high priced version of the MR2...another nice mid-engine car that made driving at speed much easier. The Boxster promise of a car that would bring back the 550 Spider was never to be kept. It was already bigger than the 993.

The 993 was and still is a car that carries the tradition of what a great sports car is supposed to be, the Ferrari 250 SWB, the A6G2000 Zagato Maserati, the Jag E coupe, the Aston Martin DB5, etc., not Super Cars...rather great cars.

The Boxster is a nice weekend toy. The 993 is a real car that is meant to be driven every day...and to be put on the track whenever you want.

bassie81

In my opinion the 987 spyder is not a suitable daily. As you drive it more often you will find out that there is a lot of wind noise with top up or down, which is annoing on longer highway drives.

The spyder is the best fun and weekend car though, can't think of a better alternative

caronsd

I have a 993 Turbo (not quite the car you placed in your comparison) and a 987.2 Boxster Spyder. I love them both and would only part with either due to some dire circumstances - I believe both are/will be collector's items, although I bought them to drive. They are both truly unique cars.

I never really daily-drove the Turbo, although I cycle it into my daily driving vehicles. It's a blast to drive and I love the way it brings back the nostalgia of truly mechanical cars (although some would argue that and point to the older 911s). I did mostly daily-drive the Spyder for 2 - 3 years (in SF/Monterey Bay Area weather) and yes, it is loud, can be drafty, etc., but to me, that was part of it's charm. The Spyder is much more practical than the 993 given the front and rear trunks versus the small frunk of a AWD 993. Once you own one, the 987.2 Spyder top becomes a non-issue.

As for the performance, well given my two cars, they are very different but both immensely enjoyable. The Spyder is stock, the Turbo has some mild/moderate engine and suspension mods. The light weight of the Spyder makes it a handling superstar (for my driving abilities) - you can feel that the car rotates right down by your hip.

For me, there was no one-versus-the-other choice - I wanted both and was lucky enough to be in a position where I could make that happen. If I HAD to make one daily drive, it would probably be the Spyder for me, simply because there's a little less age and perhaps a little more reliability (and believe it or not, practicality) in the newer car. It all comes down to your personal situation and preferences - if you can swing both cars, do it! It simply makes the smile across your face that much wider!

badabing

This discussion is somewhat timely for me. I have owned a 993TT since new. It is basically all original except I have changed the shocks to Bilstein HD and lowered to RoW height. At has 3X,XXX miles on it.

For all intents and purposes it is the only real sports car I have ever really logged any miles in.

A few months ago I bought a 987.2 Cayman S PDK. No PASM. No LSD. Also about 30K miles.

I bought it for purposes of attending HPDE events which I just had my first a few days ago.

Regarding the handling, the disparity between the CS and the TT, it's enormous.

The CS handles like its on rails and the steering is so tight. Makes me feel like something is wrong with the TT.

Maybe it's time to think about changing the 20 yr old bushings? I know some of that work is fairly invasive and I'd rather keep it "factory" where I can.

Thoughts?

il pirata

My two cents...I have a C4S so similar setup minus the HP (duh!)...I put full factory RS suspension/PSS10s on and the alignment/corner balance by one of the best...it makes a big difference...but a mid engine 987.2 is just going to have better handling dynamics (for me anyway). If you ever get a chance to drive a Spyder or GT4 do, even better handling.

As to the invasiveness of suspension work, it is very easy (just time) to put the old bits back.

Given the price uptick on TTs I think it was great call on your part to get the Boxster S. BTW the there are plenty of vendors who have upgraded suspension bits, brakes, tires, etc if you want to go down that path.

badabing

Yeah I wasn't about to start 'learning' how to drive on track in the TT given values and emotional attachment at this point.

Plus I didn't want to start on the slippery mod slope either.

Now the Cayman S I'm already to hack up.

neuroguru

That was my logic when I first starting tracking cars: got a 6.2GT3 to track so I wouldn't hurt the 7.2GT3, it was such a fantastic car. Didn't mind the idea of scratching those ugly fried eggs. However, I grew to love the 6 and never grazed it.

Barty964rst

Was surprised just how good the Spyder is in all aspects of driving. I have the PDK which is an amazing bit of kit. It feels a very fast car and corners on rails. Easy to find good ones at the moment as well. If I could I would trade the car for one with ceramics as there is some brake fade on exuberant drives. Everyone who has been out in it and driven it think it's a hoot!
Build quality is not in the same league for the Spyder, the 993 is the keeper of the two! Go for it!

fineito

Search my username for other posts I've made and you will come across my assessment of my 1996 993 C2 versus my CR. You will find my assessment very similar to Caronsd's and other posts in this thread. In my opinion, the CR is the better daily driver. Both are great cars, but different. I feel privileged to own both.

race911

Really? We don't see many stock class club racers out here, but I remember TC Kline bringing a then-new Boxster Spyder out for the first Rennsport Reunion at Laguna. He was about 1 sec/lap quicker than I used to run with the RS America. By comparison, Chris Cervelli brought a stock class 993 out one year and he was easily 3 sec/lap faster. (All on Hoosiers, though different generations.)

I overlayed data one time from my then-stock 4S with the 125K OE suspension, and a guy with a 1st gen Cayman S. We were equal on time at Thunderhill in the 2:08 range. We just ran together one day when I was primarily stuck with using that car. There really wasn't any difference, both observing him and looking at squiggly lines on a laptop.