Let’s start with a disclaimer: I am not a convertible kind of girl. When faced with the choice between a 996 Cabriolet and a 987 S for my Porsche, I chose the Cayman. I like a stiffer, lighter ride and am willing to sacrifice a little sunshine to get it.
Not that I have anything against convertibles, mind you. I love how a convertible has the power to turn a bad day into a good one and a beautiful day into a great one, and how it can invoke instant feelings of vacations, freedom, and running around with friends in the days before mortgages and kids.
My mother, who inspired my love of cars, owns an 11-year-old Boxster that she has driven over 70K miles, and she often calls to tell me how putting the top down and going for a drive can cure just about any blues. And that is why I jumped at the chance to review the new Boxster for PorschePurist at Porsche’s US media launch in Birmingham, Alabama;I wanted to revisit the convertible mystique. That, and upon first seeing pictures of the 2013 Boxster S, I was taken by how incredibly beautiful the car looked, and it immediately made me want to travel to California, obtain one, and drive along the ocean, wind in my hair and two hands on the wheel.
The 2013 Porsche Boxster is More Carrera GT Than Any Other Porsche in the Lineup
The Boxster has come a long way since first making its debut in 1997. Since then, I have heard people refer to the Boxster as a “budget” or “entry level” Porsche, or worse, a “Porsche with panties.” Let me assure you, there is no way anyone looking at the 2013 model will utter those phrases, because the new Boxster has more Carrera GT and 918 in it than any other current model in the Porsche lineup. The Boxster has truly come into its own design-wise, and the results are a joy to behold.
Arriving at Barber Motorsport Park
Looking at this pictures, I was obviously taken by the CGT, but you can just make out the Boxster to the right of it
We arrive at Barber Motorsports Park, and I finally see the new Boxster in person. The good folks at Porsche have it parked next to a Carrera GT, and the similarities are even more obvious than in the pictures I’d seen. The car is, simply put, beautiful. Its head lights and door indentations pay tribute to the Carrera GT next to it, making the Boxster look like its husky younger brother. Not only are the standard wheels bigger this year – 18″and 19″– but the Boxster’s wheelbase has grown by 2.36 inches. Add to that its lower ride height (10 mm) and the result is a lovely, aggressive stance.
While the nose is beautifully proportioned (a result of its new, bulbous headlights and redesigned more efficient air intakes), the rear end is where the new Boxster really shines. Its tail lights blend beautifully into the spoiler, participating in the aerodynamics of the car and creating deliberate continuity throughout the car. Simply put, the new Boxster is a stunner. I haven’t even driven it and I already want one.
2013 Porsche Boxster Top and Interior
A peek inside reveals that the new Boxster has borrowed many elements of its luxurious interior from the 991 redesign. The difference between interiors in the first generation Boxster and the 2013 model is like night and day. The prominent center console is the most obvious change, and it is a welcome one, as it gives the driver access to various settings without straying too far from the wheel and the shifter knob. The instruments cluster is clean and beautifully lit, with the rightmost display alternating intelligently between various settings. If you have a car with Sports Chrono Package, for example, your rightmost instrument display is where you can keep track of G-forces in real time. The remainder of the time, the display allows you to manage various settings in the vehicle (and there are way too many to mention).
Generally speaking, the new interior is not just more luxurious, but more comfortable, too. The seats, which I previously found uncomfortable for my small frame, are now more cushioned and padded while retaining their sporty edge. The car feels more roomy inside, while still providing the intimacy one would expect from a sports car. The balance between comfort and edge in the cockpit is just right.
And then there is that convertible top. As you would expect, it is quieter than before, and because the top comes down in 9 seconds (and can do so while you are in motion, up to 35 mph), the time it takes you to let the sunshine into your driving experience (or keep the rain out) is barely noticeable. Another notable improvement is that there is no longer a metal hood component to the soft top, which translates into both less weight and better lines.
Track Time in the 2013 Porsche Boxster
Having spent plenty of time admiring the Boxster’s interior, I am eager to get behind the wheel. And that I get to do first thing in the morning, just as rain starts falling on the track.
I have been briefed on the Boxster’s many improvements: the new 2.7 L Boxster and 3.4 L Boxster S engines produce 265 and 315 hp respectively, arriving at 0-60 in 5.5 and 4.8 seconds. Both models are lighter, with the Boxster weighing in at 2888 while the S is 12 lbs heavier at 2910. More horses and less weight translate into a more agile, nimble Porsche. In fact, the new Boxster is now the lightest roadster among its competitors. The engine itself has been optimized in countless ways, most notably with a more efficient exhaust which benefited not just performance, but the Boxster’s sound as well. The engine sports a new thermal management system, which helps the car reach and maintain operating temperature faster.
PDK Wins Another Admirer
The PDK transmission, which our Boxster was equipped with, has also been revamped. One enjoyable such revision: the driver can now hear those lovely, rewarding blips as the car downshifts. I am not a lover of automatic transmissions [we know PDK isn't really an automatic transmission, but we can't break old habits], but I have to admit the PDK system is fantastic. Even in comfort mode, the car anticipates the driver’s needs and gets there in good time. In Sport mode, there is a little more aggressiveness and response, and the car becomes playful. Hit Sport Plus and the Boxster means business, anticipating your desire for the most aggressive shifting possible. If I had to drive an automatic, this one would be it. And I can certainly see how those who choose the Boxster as their daily ride would benefit from having a car that would happily go with them from rush hour traffic to the track.
I get behind the wheel and right out of pit lane, the Boxster S is ready to play. The rain is coming down hard, and there are quite a few puddles on track. While the Boxster moves laterally on the wet track, its path is predictable, allowing me to get comfortable even in inclement conditions. The turn-in is exceptional. Florian Sprenger, Manager of Chassis Development and Steering Systems for the Boxster, explained the new Porsche Torque Vectoring system is one of the reasons for the Boxster’s increased turn-in accuracy. For those wondering its even more precise than the previous generation 987s. Even in Sport Plus mode, where the PDK transmission is more aggressive, there is no wheel spin upon corner exit, and no surprises from the rear end (disclaimer: all driver aids must be left on during these drives, and although we never saw the telltale PSM light come on, these probably added the Boxster’s exceptional stability even in inclement conditions).
In between my track time, a small diversion at the autocross track revealed just how sharp and accurate the Boxster’s turn-ins are. Even with harsher inputs and under hard braking, the Boxster dances around corners beautifully, going exactly where you want. Each time around I became more and more aggressive, and each time the Boxster rewarded me with obedient response. No cones were harmed in the process of this test!
The sun came out in the afternoon and I headed back to the dry track to test the Boxster S in dry conditions. Talented Brumos driver Andrew Davis was my guide this time, riding shotgun while I enjoyed the Boxster in Sport Plus mode. And what a complete joy it was! In dry conditions, we focused on pushing the Boxster and working on speed. My 3 allotted laps turned into 6 as Andrew provided feedback and I took in the excitement that was driving the new Boxster S. I could have driven it all afternoon, and then driven it home.
But alas, I had to give the Boxster S back. And as soon as I did, I texted my partner in Porsche crime, Motorsport Editor Christian Maloof: “I have fallen in love with a convertible. The new Boxster is amazing!” Would I buy one? Absolutely. I already miss it.
Porsche’s Low Maintenance Performance
One of Porsche’s biggest talents is making a workhorse of a sports car. Whereas many sportscars are delicate, tedious and needy of the owner’s velvet touch, Porsches offer essentially low-maintenance performance. While I would not subject the Boxster’s soft top to the rigours of snow and salt, I can assure you Porsche has tested the car in such conditions, chains on the tires, and the car has performed up to their expectations. Whether you subject your Boxster to inclement weather is still your choice – the car can take it. I love having a choice, and so would you.
2013 Porsche Boxster Pricing
The new Boxster is priced starting at $49,500 (manual) and $52,700 (PDK), while the Boxster S starts at $60,900 (manual) and $64,100 (PDK). There are too many options to mention, but the Porsche website is a great place to explore what you can’t – or can – do without.
More than any of its predecessors, the new Boxster is meant to be driven and enjoyed. And the convertible top? Just icing on one already amazing cake.
The 944 and the 951 (that’s the turbo version of the 944 to the uninitiated) proved to be an excellent car for Porsche and its customers. So much so that in 1987 the factory race facility in Weissach built approximately 192 “Turbo Cup” cars designed to be raced around the world. These Posches were raced in Canada (Rothman Porsche Turbo Cup), in Europe (Turbo Cup series), in South Africa (Turbo Cup series) as well as in the Escort series in the United States. The 1988 Porsche 944 Turbo Cup featured here is one of seven imported to the US by Al Holbert (head of Porsche Motorsports North America at the time) for the Escort Series. It is available for sale at Sloan Cars for $95,000
Differences between a Porsche 951 and Porsche 944 Turbo Cup
There are many differences between the 951 and the Porsche Turbo Cup, some say as many as 100. There are factory deletes such as no sun roof, no insulation, no rust protection and no electric motors. Other differences include performance improvements such as larger brakes, larger clutch and modified transmission. While even more was done to lighten the car by as much as 400 lbs (such as a fiberglass engine hood, magnesium intake manifold and special carpets) the Porsche Turbo cup was intentionally designed to look like a 944/951 that you could buy from the dealer on Monday morning, but built as a true race car with factory installed roll cage, race seat, power kill switches, improved turbo unit, stiffened chassis, special magnesium wheels, as well as special Bilstein or Koni shock absorbers. Little modification was done to the engine, except for the turbo unit. The concept was a lighter car with improved handling and braking. If you’re viewing this post via email you may want to click on 1988 Porsche 944 Turbo Cup for Sale for a better viewing experience of the 18 pictures in our gallery.
Interestingly, the Porsche Turbo Cup represents the first “cup” series for Porsche with identical cars racing identical cars.
How Rare is a Porsche 944 Turbo Cup?
In the United States, about seven Porsche 944 Turbo Cups were imported by Al Holbert, Porsche Motorsport North America. They were raced in the Escort series as well as other venues. This example, WPOAA2956HN165111, was then purchased by Wrightwood Racing in California and raced in several enduro events. A decision by that race team was made somewhere around 1991 to race different cars, so this Porsche was put into storage. It was bought by the present owner with less than 4000 miles on the odometer. It has since been used for Porsche Club Driver Education events as well as one Porsche Club race in the current “G” class. It has just over 7000 original mile, has never had major body damage, is 100% correct and just might be the best example of this car in the world.
Pricing for this particular Porsche 944 Turbo Cup might seem high to some, but we think it’s not too far off. These cars rarely come up on the market and at first glance this particular Porsche 944 Turbo Cup seems to be in even better condition then the one that sold recently at the Drendel Family Collection Auction for $79,200.
If you would like your Porsche featured on PorschePurist.com please use our contact form to get in touch with us. Be sure to provide details such as year, model, mileage, condition, asking prices and location. We’ll be in touch if it is a Porsche we can feature.
Our friends over at Drive take an in-depth look at Porsche’s Classic department. More specifically, they give us a look at what takes place in Porsche’s own restoration department. For those of you not familiar with it, Porsche Classic is Porsche’s own in house service shop that maintains the part supplies for vehicles whose standard production was discontinued at least 10 years previously and uses those parts to restore and maintain rare and exotic Porsches. The majority of Porsches you’ll find within the shop include cars from the 356, 914, 959 and 911 series. The video does a great job of explaining what they do so I’ll stop trying to repeat it here. If you have any trouble seeing the video via your email simply visiting The Hidden Workshops of Porsche Classic on our site to view it directly.
Early on Monday, May 15th, Porsche released official photos and “preliminary” specs on the Porsche 918 prototype. While it’s possible this release was planned it may also be a direct response to all the recent spy photos that have started to surface this past week. Regardless, the 918 Prototype shows that Porsche is staying very true to the original 918 Spyder concept unveiled in Geneva more than two years ago. Porsche’s preliminary specs follow below the pictures.
Preliminary Specifications Porsche 918 Spyder
Body:
Two-seater Spyder; carbon fibre reinforced plastics (CFRP) monocoque interlocked with CFRP unit carrier; two-piece Targa roof; fixed roll-over protection system.
Drivetrain:
Parallel full hybrid; 4.6-litre V8 mid-engine with dry-sump lubrication; hybrid module with electric motor and decoupler; electric motor with decoupler and gear unit on front axle; electrical system recuperation; four cooling circuits for motors, transmission and battery; thermal management.
Engine Power:
> 570 hp (V8 engine) ~ 90 kW (hybrid module on rear axle) ~ 80 kW (electric motor on front axle) > 770 hp (combined)
Suspension:
Double-wishbone front axle; optional electro-pneumatic lift system on front axle; electro-mechanical power steering; multi-link rear axle with adaptive electro-mechanical system for individual rear wheel steering.
Brake system:
High-performance hybrid brake system with adaptive recuperation; ceramic brake discs (PCCB).
Energy supply:
Lithium-ion battery with 6.8 kWh capacity (BOL nominal), 202 kW maximum power and mains-compatible plug-in charger.
Performance:
Top speed > 200 mph purely electric > 90 mph Acceleration: 0 – 60 mph < 3.0 s
Porsche’s marketing team has been on a tear these past few weeks with regard to social media. It seems like a day doesn’t go by where a new video isn’t posted to Porsche’s YouTube channel. Today’s video features Porsche factory driver Patrick Long on his “morning commute” to deliver coffee to Hurley Haywood in a Porsche 911 GT3 RS 4.0
With all the various “conflicts” and hot-spots raging around the globe, armored Porsches and other vehicles aren’t really all that rare these days. Politicians, government contractors, celebrities, drug runners, everyone seems to have one. However, theirs are defensive weapons designed to keep them safe in the event of an attack. Different levels of armoring provide protection from small arms fire all the way up to Rocket Propelled Grenades (RPGs). The vehicle in the video below, built by International Armoring Corporation and retrofitted for offensive weapons by Red Jacket Firearms (the crew from the Discover Channel’s show Sons of Guns) is the first Porsche I’ve seen that can fight back. If you can’t see the video in your email simply click on Porsche Cayenne with machine guns to watch it directly on our site).
Details on this weaponized Porsche Cayenne
International Armoring Corporation (IAC) started with a Porsche Cayenne Turbo as their platform and then armored it to a “B6″ level of protection (it has the ability to stop multiple rounds from high powered rifles) using:
Transparent Armor (Glass areas): Windshield, rear glass and side glass removed and replaced with bullet-resistant transparent armor. Transparent multi-layer glass design is glass combined with a polycarbonate inner layer will prevent spalling upon ballistic impact. The glass is curved (except back window hatch insert) and contoured to retain the appearance of the original glass. The ballistic glass is tinted to match the OEM. Driver window is operable with 6”of travel
Body: Doors, pillar posts, side panels, kick-panels, firewall, header areas, cargo compartment, rear wheel arches, and rear cargo doors/hatch is armored with Armormax ballistic composite material and ballistic steel in accordance with IAC Level 5 (Euro EN1063- B6) level of defeat. Elitus® overlap system is used around each window and throughout the vehicle to ensure complete protection.
Roof: Armored with Armormax® ballistic composite material in accordance with NIJ IIIa standards level of protection at a 30 degree angle.
Floor: Floor areas are armored with multi-ply rigid ballistic fragmentation material combined with Armormax® PAC300, molded to form fit contours of floorboards and panels. Floor protection is installed to protect against the explosion of grenades (single German DM51 or US M-67).
Vehicle Structured Modifications: IAC reinforced pillar posts and hinge mounts, add high pressure heavy duty shocks where required, and upgrade other suspension components as required to maintain original appearance and maneuverability. This includes: HD sway bars, high tension coil springs and polyurethane suspension bushings.
Red Jacket Firearms adds Concealed Weapons
Testing the Claymore Mine System in the Weaponized Porsche Cayenne
Rear Hatch and Glass Blows up from Over-Pressure Created by Claymore Mine Installation
Rear Facing M-16 with High Capacity Beta Clip in an Armored Porsche Cayenne
Two Roof Mounted M-16s in a Luggage Carrier on top of the Cayenne
If you’ve ever seen the show Sons of Guns before, then you’re probably familiar with the way the crew at Red Jacket Firearms likes to tackle problems; overwhelming firepower. The way they transformed this Cayenne is no different.
Forward Facing Firepower: The Cayenne Turbo was fitted with a cargo box (similar to the Thule we put on our Cayenne) which was used to conceal two remote controlled M-16s with high capacity Beta magazines that hold 100 rounds each.
Rear Facing Firepower: Tailgaiting this particular Cayenne would not be a good idea. As shown in the video at the start of this post there is a third M-16 hidden behind the license capable of unleashing more than enough firepower to relieve your road rage.
Blow Anyone Following you Sky High: As if three M-16s aren’t enough as is, the crew from Red Jacket mounted two 3″ steal tubes capable of firing what are essentially Claymore mines out the back of the tailgate. Unfortunately, during the test run, the explosion used to fire the projectiles created an over-pressure situation inside the rear deck of the Cayenne causing the armored glass and hatch to explode. Amazingly, thanks to the incredible armament job by International Armor Corporation, there was absolutely no damage to the interior of the Cayenne or the passenger. That says quite a bit about the quality of work done by IAC.
All this firepower is controlled via a central control panel concealed neatly inside the stock Cayenne console providing access for either the driver or the passenger to fire the weapons as necessary. Additionally, Red Jacket mounted 7 cameras around the outside of the Cayenne and ran the feeds directly into the Cayenne’s navigation system allowing the occupants to keep their heads down and still see what’s going on outside the vehicle.
Price for IAC Armored Porsche Cayenne
While it requires specialized and strict licensing for a weaponized Porsche such as this one anyone can buy an armored Cayenne if they feel the need. The total armoring and vehicle package for this Porsche (without the weapon system) is $157,500 from International Armor Corporation. If any of you decide to get one let us know. We want to take it to the range!
Special thanks to Mark F. Burton (IAC’s CEO & President) for all the information and pictures of the completed Porsche. If you’re interested in seeing more videos or pictures of this Cayenne you can check it out at the Discovery Channel’s micro-site or on YouTube. If you’re interested in buying one of these or any other type of armored vehicle then give Mark at IAC a call.
last January, a bidding war ensued ending in a final price well above reality. Next week a 1991 Porsche Carrera cabriolet once owned by the late Whitney Houston goes up for auction during the Dan Kruse-Leake Collector Car Show & Auction in San Antonio, TX. Will this Porsche bring as large a premium as Beckham’s did?
Is it Really Whitney Houston’s Porsche
According to the the Leake web-site this Porsche with the famous provenance has 57,513 miles on the odometer and a service history that show’s Whitney Houston as owner. If a picture of a hand-written entry into the Porsche’s service record isn’t enough to convince you this is Ms. Houston’s personal Porsche, the car apparently comes with insurance documentation showing the car was at one time registered to Nippy, Inc. (a production company owned by Whitney Houston).
A 1991 Cab with ordinary provenance might bring anywhere from $25,000 to $50,000 (such as this Porsche for sale on eBay). Will the specter of Whitney’s provenance boost the price of this Porsche? What do you think?
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