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Less Somehow Always Costs More- A Glance at the 2011 Porsche Boxster Spyder

Travis's picture




 

Boxster Spyder

In the early 1950’s Porsche, in its infancy as a car company no less, experimented in the American car market through the hands of Max Hoffman- the very man responsible for initiating many European marques in the United States including BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen.

The Porsche 356, while very small and tidy was relatively pretty expensive and Hoffman pleaded with Porsche- if they made a stripped-down version of the 356- it would be a seller, particularly in the warmer, California climates- hence the 356 Speedster was minted- and the simplest, cheapest Porsche in the catalog is now the most coveted.

A little trivia here- James Dean, forever immortalized in film and fate, having been killed in a Porsche 550 Spyder, actually owned and campaigned a white Speedster, cutting his teeth among Paul Newman no less, but he traded the Speedster for the 550- the soul inspiration behind the Boxster and the Spyder featured here.

Lighter Better

It seems that every decade or so, Porsche markets a limited production stripper, a car pared-down to the bare essentials vying for that simple, unadulterated driving experience. More famous, now highly collectable models include the 1973 911 RS, 1987/88 911 Club Sport, and the 1992-1993 964 RS America. There have been a few others, but really, these cars are in such few numbers, many are unaware of their significance or official existence.

For 2011, (read right about now) less certainly costs more with the Boxster Spyder. In the spirit of limited edition Porsches of the past, this one has no radio, no air conditioning, everything is stripped-down and lightened-up, all in the name of purity and performance. Much less car for $3,200 more. Go figure.

Interior

No cup holder, lighter, cheaper racing shell seats, aluminum door skins, even simple, racing-style inner door cards with the now trademark nylon material door pulls made famous on the 964 RS America. The Spyder does add 1970’s era Porsche rocker-panel stripes, red brake calipers and matching red seatbelts to go with those nylon door pulls, and a few minor tuning wiggles here and there.

All-in-all, a reported 176 to 177 pounds have been shed from the typical full-zoot Boxster S, just a paltry 2,800-something pounds. Impressed? Me neither- shit, my 1995 VW Jetta, as I recall, weighed less. Then again, it also had a third of the Boxster’s 320 horsepower- coming from a tweaked and massaged version of the same 3.4 liter flat six found in the Boxster S.

Top

So, no radio, no air, a few minor details here and there. What else is missing? A top. Well, that’s not entirely fair, the car does come with a convertible top, but it’s so de minimis it makes the raggiest of rag tops look luxurious. It’s simply a tarp, like the roof of a party tent tethered on four corners designed to keep the sun and rain off your head but everything else will certainly leak through. Basically it’s a cover for the interior, to keep the birds from crapping on your Alcantara buckets while you have luncheon.

The Boxster Spyder promises to be subtly sharper and more refined at the very, outer edge of driving limits. In reality- if you’re astute to notice the differences over that of a standard Boxster, you shouldn’t be concerned with buying the stripped-down Boxster and spend your money elsewhere- like racing lessons. Chances are, you won’t notice or care for the differences.

Rest assured, however; there are options to be had with even the barest of bare Porsches. You could accessorize with all the things that the Spyder leaves out, and even add the PDK transmission, the Sports Chrono Package, a lighter battery, even a ceramic disc brake package can be had for over $8,000. But if you add most anything to the Spyder, you’re adding weight and like most every Porsche- that too translates into a heavier price as well.

Back

Which brings me to my last point- if the North American buyer is so concerned with saving weight, maybe their Porsches are the last places they should look. Want to save 170-odd pounds? Travel alone and go on a diet. But to look cool- look out for the guy in that stripped-down, bare-bones special edition Porsche Boxster Spyder. Chances are, the only thing lighter on him is his wallet. The Spyder starts at a little over $61,000.00. And there’s no telling how much he’ll pay for the 26-lb air-conditioning unit on a sunny hot day, while sitting in traffic.

 

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Sun, 01/17/2010 - 15:19 | 196699 Cindy_Dies_In_T...
Cindy_Dies_In_The_End's picture

I hate to say it, but the lines and look of the car strike me as being more suitable to women. White, IMO is not a "guy" color for a car, KWIM?

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 15:41 | 196702 Travis
Travis's picture

White, believe it or not, was once the racing color for many German brands, including Auto Union and BMW- but, with the case of Mercedes-Benz- they stripped-down the whire paint, to save weight and drag; and the resulting silver metal, silver, became symbolic with German racing.  Now silver is the national racing color. 

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 20:47 | 196883 nopat
nopat's picture

You also see white in racing because private and factory-sponsored teams purchase body-in-white (BIW) vehicles that are just the monocoque and suspension since just about everything except a vague impression of the original shape will be replaced/changed.  They're left primer-exposed or sprayed white; the teams will litter the outside with sponsorships and team/national colors.  Additionally you'll see suspension components painted/powder coated white (or some other light contrasting color) to help identify failures and stresses.

Like exposed carbon fiber, functional aero, and front-mounted intercoolers, it's one of those conspicuous visual cues automakers use on production cars to scream bespoke purpose-built performance.  Porsche, in a display of marketing prowess the likes of which causes Dan Ariely to bit his fist, has managed to bookend thier buyers - options whores and those who are willing to pay for the factory to not install critical items like aircon, power steering, and ABS under the guise of weight reduction.  And just like you buy a Boxter because you can't afford the Carrera, you buy the Spyder because you can't afford the $132k pricetag of its bigger, more technically-capable and factory-ready brother, the GT3 RS.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 15:51 | 196712 anynonmous
anynonmous's picture

agree this is for the Miata trade up crowd (no matter what color)

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 16:52 | 196759 Amish FinEng
Amish FinEng's picture

I read last week that Travis was what they call a metrosexual. This kind of deviant lifestyle is a sin in our church.

Anyway, I think all feminine things appeal to Travis.

This is like the herbivorous boys in Japan. Travis wants to create a following on ZH for the fems.

Mon, 01/18/2010 - 04:44 | 197040 cbxer55
cbxer55's picture

I am on my second Ford LIGHTNING.

Both have been white.

I, as a man, have no problem with white vehicles. My first Lightning had a custom sticker on the windshield, WHITE LIGHTNING. The current 2004 model soon will also.

I have no desire to own another dark vehicle again in this lifetime.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 15:52 | 196713 Gordon Freeman
Gordon Freeman's picture

Porsches, like Corvettes, used to be within reach of the working man with a bit of spare cash, and (usually) no dependents.  Those cars were also inextricably tied into the demographics of the Baby Boom.

Now, they just seem like answers to a question no one is asking anymore...

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 20:46 | 196886 nopat
nopat's picture

Luckily the options and extras become virtually worthless after a couple of years, making last-year's newly-divorced physician's mid-life crisis somewhat within reach.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 15:53 | 196714 Careless Whisper
Careless Whisper's picture

It's a nice car but with only 320 hp I can't get too excited about it.

I would rather spend the $60,000 on a 1996 Porsche 911 Turbo.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 15:59 | 196716 Fish Gone Bad
Fish Gone Bad's picture

That is indeed a beautiful car.  If you get a chance, get out to Bonneville.  There are some incredibly talented gear heads out there.  Here is a link: http://www.scta-bni.org/  If you do go, take a lot of sunscreen!  http://bonneville-speed-week.smugmug.com/popular/2/34645907_Sc4jg#346459...

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 16:00 | 196719 kennard
kennard's picture

A four-cylinder, two-seater coupe with near-porsche-level technology can be built to sell for $25,000. Would anyone like to help me buy Saab?

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 17:59 | 196799 Rick Blaine
Rick Blaine's picture

I almost bought a 9-3 2.0T a while back...almost.  It seemed like a decent car...

IMO, Saab's biggest problem is that they are just over-priced.  Even with all of the rebates, etc., the 2.OT I was looking at would've cost over $30K...WITH supplier pricing...and it wasn't even close to fully-equipped.

I ended up with a Camry SE V6..LOADED for under $30K.  It is probably a better car in every way, except for the under-steer on turns, and torque steer under hard acceleration...two things that Saab handles VERY WELL in their FWD cars.

That being said, as awesome as this Porche may be to drive, if I wanted something fun, I for one would rather pay c. $28K for a LOADED Subaru WRX (now with 265 hp...and AWD of course)...which is also a pretty damn practical car.

I used to have an '03 WRX - I should have kept it...not the most luxurious car by any means, but a blast to drive...and I still kind of like that body style.

I'd use the extra $30K+ to buy gold, guns, and ammo.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 16:03 | 196724 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

That 2nd pic reminds of the 70s mid-engine 924, one of the most unFerdinand of all Porsches, and an embarrassment of
biblical proporsche-ins.

Gimmee the money and I'll happily join Careless Whisper.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 20:04 | 196874 just.a.guy
just.a.guy's picture

You must be thinking of the 914.  The 924 was garbage too,but was front engine.  I was unlucky enough to own a 1979 924.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 21:55 | 196914 Oracle of Kypseli
Oracle of Kypseli's picture

The steering on the 79 924 was so low, you had to spread your legs to drive. Not ladylike. They repositioned it a few inches higher two years later.

The purists never ackowledged the 914 as a Porsche.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 16:39 | 196726 anynonmous
anynonmous's picture

at aprox 330 est Obama speaking in Boston to try and save the day

 

http://cspan.org/Watch/Media/2010/01/17/HP/R/28527/Mass+Senate+race+in+f...

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 16:28 | 196738 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

GO SCOTT BROWN STOP COMMUNIST HEALTHCARE!!!!

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 18:04 | 196809 DoChenRollingBearing
DoChenRollingBearing's picture

+5000

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 16:15 | 196729 Quantum Nucleonics
Quantum Nucleonics's picture

Yawn... my wife's 3-series BMW has nearly as many horses.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 16:26 | 196736 Absinthe Minded
Absinthe Minded's picture

I saw a 2001 Porsche 911 turbo with only 78000 miles for sale on Autotrader for $30000. Many good deals out there, and if you don't need the turbo you can get a great deal on a 911 for 20-22K.  Looks like Minnesota is going to pull it off. Romo - 4 turnovers, playoffs have not been good to him.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 16:48 | 196754 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

i would rather take $60,000 and buy gold.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 17:48 | 196790 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

Not a bad ride for an upscale mistress with a healthy dose of vapidity. For the money, most people need to go with a Lotus or Caymen.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 18:03 | 196807 drwells
drwells's picture

Just like everything else these days. Pay more, get less, or both.

Fortunately, inflation is only in the deluded minds of idiot gold bugs. Yeeeeeah.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 19:19 | 196857 Stink_Pickle
Stink_Pickle's picture

No, this has nothing to do with inflation.  You pay more for lighter parts and the engineering required to make things lighter in cars and maybe a few more horses.  Look into the 911 GT3 and 911 GT3RS as an example.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 19:02 | 196843 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

Travis,

What about game changers? How about exposure to the new Mclarens--both the MP4-12C and the near-future release of the next-gen F1?

I can't see a boxter spyder as any car aficionado's wet dream--this car is for mountebank'n jobbers.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 19:11 | 196847 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

It's always the fat fucks driving Z06's or 997TTs or even F430s bragging about how much weight the Tubi exhaust/one piece carbon fiber bucket seats (that they can't fit into) saves them. If they just went on a diet, they'd be fine.

If you're really a track fiend, you'd buy a Cayman anyways. The base Boxster in itself is more than than 98% of the population can handle anyways.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 20:53 | 196891 zero intelligence
zero intelligence's picture

Lighter parts! 2800 lbs is light? You could get a 350hp custom turboed Miata that weighs 2300 lbs, and it would eat the Porsche's lunch.

 

Or, you could get a current-production 550 spyder with 150-200 hp that weighs 1200 lbs.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 22:30 | 196931 nopat
nopat's picture

Or you could slam your dick in a sliding glass door.  Have you ever driven that kind of a car?  I have.  Many.  They fucking suck for anything other than track duty and infrequent weekend jaunts.  And at the end of the day all you have is a miata front-heavy from all the re-routed turbo piping and an on/off switch of a clutch that's about as pliant as a brick.  Nice if you don't mind the occassional breakdown and getting your hands dirty at in-opportune times, but if you have little to no ambition of becoming a mechanic and abhor build issues, you're going to look for something with more factory support.

Of course, just my $0.02 and am fully aware there's an army of clear tail lights rolling on far too much negative camber that says otherwise.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 21:17 | 196895 Tahoe
Tahoe's picture

I think I'ma going to wait for the 458 Spyder.

http://i572.photobucket.com/albums/ss170/aarondawkins/458Spider.jpg

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 21:36 | 196906 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

Adding lightness? Get a Lotus.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 22:32 | 196933 PenGun
PenGun's picture

 Poodles. You have that much ... build something. My ol' 69 Cutlass used to hunt hot jap scrap and most of all Porschees.

 

 About $12,000 in the suspension and a GM crate motor. 525 hp and way too much torque from the 502 they will sell you with a one year warrenty. Did meet a real hot one once but we were in too much traffic to get much over 130. Uh MPH. He was an asshole though. I turned off and waved but from him ... nothing. 

 

  I think the untouched grey paint and general scruffy look I prefer upset him and his shiny black toy.

Sun, 01/17/2010 - 22:58 | 196947 JR
JR's picture

Beautiful piece, Travis.  Beautiful car.  I gotta see it.  Not that I would trade in my current Boxster, but…

“But to look cool- look out for the guy in that stripped-down, bare-bones special edition Porsche Boxster Spyder.”  You tell me that’s not better than an air-conditioner, even on a sunny hot day, sitting in traffic?  We’ll ask the lovely MsCreant.  I think she’ll go for the wind in her beautiful red  hair.

See ya!

Mon, 01/18/2010 - 01:14 | 196996 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

I ride bicycles to and from work. My ride weighs 18 lbs. I produce no carbon emissions. I say "fuck you" to middle eastern oil producers. I am in great physical form. Porsche and everyone else can go fuck themselves.

Mon, 01/18/2010 - 15:02 | 197456 Slewburger
Slewburger's picture

Your yuppie rage is misdirected.

Don't be so pissed off you cant afford this crappy fuhrer mobile. It's made in eastern Europe anyway, nothing worth getting worked up over.

Mon, 01/18/2010 - 01:15 | 196997 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

I ride bicycles to and from work. My ride weighs 18 lbs. I produce no carbon emissions. I say "fuck you" to middle eastern oil producers. I am in great physical form. Porsche and everyone else can go fuck themselves.

Mon, 01/18/2010 - 11:19 | 197126 nopat
nopat's picture

Ah, the conspicuous environmentalist: being good stewards of the planet and making sure everyone knows about it. I applaud your ability to bang out a quality comment, given the strained shoulder from patting yourself on the back all the time. Your sacrifice for the greater good of humanity is noted; A+++ post, would read again.

Mon, 01/18/2010 - 01:54 | 197008 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

Gimme a '95 928GTS any day.

Mon, 01/18/2010 - 03:44 | 197034 Mark Beck
Mark Beck's picture

I just did a study on small car power to weight ratio, cababilities and potential. If you go through the history of cars and production approaches, from the VW Beatle to the 911, there are some very interesting groupings, to the performance segments. First of all lets look at a very good starting point:

http://www.caterham.co.uk/

The lower segment, that is with a 4 cylinder 2.0L to 2.3L naturally aspirated, the FORD Cosworth Duratec all aluminum engine can be really outstanding. You must burn premium fuel and rev towards your shift points but its really good. So for a front engine little car, if you can keep the weight down, the Duratec is a production possibility and Caterham is a good engineering case study.

History tells us though the Caterham's real winner would be on a Duratec Flat 4 version mid engine design. For safety we would probably add a little more metal around the driver, and for performance most of the car would be Aluminum. Here again power to weight. Carbon fiber is nice, but some of the new Aluminum alloys are probably the most cost effective overall.

Getting into bigger engines its hard to keep the CG down on something that may handle like a 911. But the boxster flat 6 is decent. However, the car needs to go on a diet to maximize performance.

The real sweet spot for a car like a beefed up Caterham is a small V12 front, or Flat Boxster 12 mid engine. Caterham should probably start with the front V12 approach, around 4.2L high reving double over head cam. But, a new design, using the newest Aluminum alloys and cutting weight. The power to weight would be better than the current 4 design as we move up in revs. If the engine can breath and rev up to 9000 RPM without destroying itself first, hold on to your butt.

Caterham could probably use the boxster engine with some modification for a mid engine design. But, engine weight would have to be reduced.

For a small Aluminum sports car its hard to beat the simplicity and performance of a Cosworth 4 cylinder Duratec.

Mark Beck

Mon, 01/18/2010 - 11:31 | 197137 nopat
nopat's picture

Agreed, the Cozzies are torquey, brilliant motors at home on the track. We would be remiss if we also didn't mention Honda's contribution, the B18 and K20 engines. Wholly lacking in grunt, it's genius becomes known in FWD configuration over 7k RPMs. Breathed on, they become fierce all the way through 11k.

Mon, 01/18/2010 - 10:28 | 197097 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

These days the younger demographic is more likely to be looking at Subaru WRX/STI, Lancer Evolution, Corvette, new Camaro, Mustang GT500, BMW M3/5.

With the exception of the beemers they cost much less and they all will tear up the porsche on the track.

Mon, 01/18/2010 - 11:52 | 197153 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

agreed. my Evo X would slap this thing silly.

Mon, 01/18/2010 - 11:32 | 197138 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

I cannot help but recall my old 71 Ford as having 320 horses and weighing in at about 3200 pounds curb. It was not much for anything except top end and massive tires for the curves. Basically add larger tires until the squeals stop.

Even at 60K today I could probably feed, water and maintain that beast for a number of my useful years while I am still physically fit LOL.

I am glad that we can build these wonderful little runt cars, but I would want something that will do a little better. 300 horses is so 80's 500+ is more like it.

Mon, 01/18/2010 - 12:59 | 197263 CharlesBronson
CharlesBronson's picture

What is this doing here? Honestly, this car is a piece of crap.

In the U.S. our production cars hold world records out of the box, street legal.

Why on would one ever care to drive the "frog?"

New record at Laguna Seca 

http://www.worldcarfans.com/109112523229/2010-dodge-viper-srt10-acr-sets-lap-record-at-laguna-seca

Last year's all time record at Nurburgring

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N%C3%BCrburgring_lap_times

Both "buy it from your dealer ACRs"

"Porsche were to go when one just doesn't know"

 

Mon, 01/18/2010 - 14:21 | 197382 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

Ferrari is doing the same with the Scuderia but charging $100k more than the F430

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/convertibles/112_0908_2010_ferrari_1...

Mon, 01/18/2010 - 14:29 | 197400 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

You can get a used 2006 911 Carrera for the same price as this piece of garbage. The Boxster is the Geo Metro of luxury sports cars

Tue, 01/19/2010 - 02:55 | 198063 Anonymous
Anonymous's picture

This is a girl's car, and not just because only a girl can fit in it.

The Corvette is still the best valued sports car made. Determine if you can even fit in some of them. Drive the competitors. Consider maintenance and dependability. Compare power and maneuverability. Case closed.

Tue, 01/19/2010 - 09:00 | 198120 blueskyscottsdale
blueskyscottsdale's picture

I'll take the Ducati and leave all the Porsches in the dust in the 0-60. But thanks anyway

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