I need help specifing my new 2006 Boxster

[Guest]

CAn i have some help please. Iam moving away from Bmw after many years of faultless driving and iam struggling to know what to specify The biggest issues are tiptronic against manual (i have had auto bmws for quiet a few years now) and the other is this PASM gizmo that the dealer said is a must have. your thoughts and advice on the enclosed or any other options would be appreciated

Regards Chris

 

[mojo]

Just been through a similar dilema spec'ing my Cayman. I decided against PASM in the end which seemed to be a good option if you intend to take the car on the track but otherwise for daily driving a waste of money.

 

[Guest]

Chris, I suggest you try searching on your options in question. There's several threads on the topics in which you're interested. There's also BoXa.net which has a lively community of boxer owners.

 

[thboxster]

I've been driving a Boxster for a few years now and always driven a manual. I got a courtesy car yesterday that was Tip and have been playing with it for a couple of hundred miles.

My conclusion, but I emphasise that this is only my opinion, the manual gives you alot to do and makes you feel a big part of the car. The Tip when set in auto mode is quite agreable, especially when round town or in traffic. I can't work out though where the semi auto part becomes any use though. In this mode your not in auto, but it doesn't give you the real feel of a manual, after all there's no clutch. So for easy and general cruising it would be fine (in auto). For a more involved drive then the manual for me is the way to go. Ultimately I hate traffic jams and so avoid them at all cost. So manual it is.

On a frosty day like yesterday though the heated seats were excellent. Next time round this may get added to the shopping list.

I didn't choose PASM on my S and have absolutely no regrets about that. The ride is firm, but not too firm and the stability without PASM has never concerned me in the slightest.

IMO the main choices to consider are:

2.7 or 3.2 (of course if you go for the 2.7 you'd probably look at wheels aswell)
Climate Control
Dimming mirrors with rain sensor
Upgraded sound system
Wind deflector.

Ultimately it depends on what you want to get out of your car and also your budget. 5k for yellow callipers? (oh you get the ceramic brakes aswell).

 

[Rodney Naghar]

As a tiptronic user (and casual manual user) my perspective is different.

I chose a tip, because I do a lot of traffic driving on steep hills, a manual would have killed my knee by now.

The Boxster gearbox has 5 mappings. If the car senses you're driving aggressivley, it will choose the aggressive mapping for you on the autobox and will change up much later and change down later. Vice versa.

Most people that drive manuals and try tips always seem to leave it in auto most of the time and subsequently think (rightly) that it is a boring experience. When leaving the box in auto (as in most autos) there is a big delay when you put your foot down, to it changing down and finally giving you power. This, I find, can be dangerous.

Personally, I never leave it in auto mode, as I like to be in control. In manual mode I think it is a very nice experience, and not jerky like the SMG in BMW's (although that doesn't use a torque converter and is strictly speaking a manual).

In manual mode you can keep your hands on the steering wheel and get gear change speeds on a par with manual gearbox changes (for many of us mere mortals anyway), you will never stall (the box will automatically shift down for you - but never obtrusively) and you will never kill the engine.Most importantly for me, the manual mode lets you keep the revs high without changing up for you, so you can stay in the high torque range, and can assist you with engine breaking. You will never have the expense of buying a new clutch either!

I eagerly await DSG though, as it's supposed to be light years ahead.

 

[oliver]

The 6-spd manual is superb.

The change is slick and precise (although a little stiff when new), the cutch is light and the engine has oodles of torque. It really suits the Boxster.

We've had three Tips over the years (on a 964, 993 and 996). Although each generation has been an improvement, it is still old 'torque converter' technology and no match for a good manual set up. I had hoped that DSG would have replaced Tip in the 997/987, but it appears that this won't appear until next year.

My wife recently bought a 987S (her fourth Boxster), did Test Drive Plus in both, and decided the manual was nicer.

 

[deadloss]

Chris,

The dilema for me was either PASM and 19" rims or no PASM and standard 18" rims. My OPC had warned that the 19" rims and no PASM would make the ride too hard. Unfortunately I was not able to try a non-PASM fitted car on 19" rims, so was never able to verify it.

In the end I opted for no PASM and standard 18" rims (allowed me to spend the money on some other toys!). I have to say that the ride is sublime and I don't regret this choice one little bit (especially as the Bose sound system is so good!).

Good luck with your spec.

Regards,
Sean.

 

[Guest]

Well i must say as a porsche forum virgin the feedback so far is very helpful. My father in law is a Mercedes fan (currently being converted to Porsche) and the forum feedback on new cars is generally from members that have read the brochure and perhaps sat in the car at a showroom but do not own, therefore there advice is generally worthless.The phone system seems a bit dated with dual sim cards etc as we are on O2 and they do not provide a standard 2nd sim.Does anyone have any advice on a bluetooth set-up or news on factory fitted bluetooth

Chris

 

[waspe]

Chris

I recently took delivery of a new 987S and had the same decisions to make as you are now facing.

I drove both manuak and tip, and the main points are:

-Tip significantly dulls performance, but makes the car significantly easier to drive
-the motor does not need 6 speeds, it is so torquey, and so you tend to do a lot of "rowing" in stop-start traffic.
-on the open road, the manual is perfect: faster/more precise/ more powerful/more fun
-the choice really comes downn to your intended driving: city or open road

-I understand PASM makes the ride softer than the standard ride when set that way, and fimer when set to sport. I don't have it but think it would be worth considering
-the heated seats work a treat
-upgraded stereo is still not very good due to changing acoustics with lid up or down, and I mostly just listen to the motor
-phone options are hopeless and expensive (no bluetooth)
-I specced mine quite low, but nowwish I had spent more, in particular: Bose, 19"s and possibly PASM

Hope this helps

 

[daro911]

ORIGINAL: waspe

-I understand PASM makes the ride softer than the standard ride when set that way, and fimer when set to sport. I don't have it but think it would be worth considering

I specced mine quite low, but nowwish I had spent more, in particular: Bose, 19"s and possibly PASM

PASM in standard mode replicates the standard cars set up which is ideal for "real world" driving. PASM is a track-star wannabe's must have option IMO but it completely destroys the cars ride and feel on our fabulously maintained NOT! British excuses for decent road surfaces []

19" wheels don't improve the cars ride or handling qualities but some think they "look" more the part. Standard speaker upgrade is fine for most as the expensive Bose set up isn't necessarily going to deliver the desired sound in a sports car where you can't beat the soundtrack from the 3.2 no matter what speakers you go for []

At the end of the day you are tailor making your own Boxster and therefore must choose from your personal wish list and then get out there and enjoy the best sports car in the world at this price level [8D]

One tip given to me buy a decent used car OPC buyer keep to the more desirable colours and options such as wind deflector, full leather, metalic paint, speaker upgrade, climate control, and at resale time your depreciation will be far less than the fully loaded cars.

 

[Michael Downing]

ORIGINAL: daro911
One tip given to me buy a decent used car OPC buyer keep to the more desirable colours and options such as wind deflector, full leather, metalic paint, speaker upgrade, climate control, and at resale time your depreciation will be far less than the fully loaded cars.

Sound advice, but depreciation is not everything. We don't buy new cars for the investment opportunity!

Bear the effect on resale price in mind when choosing, but do get the car you want. It works both ways - the Mrs has just specified steering wheel heating for her new car; we know that the value of that will have vanished when we sell it, but she gets cold hands in the morning and would like to warm them up. Equally, last time I bought a 5 series they told me it should be auto else the resale value would suffer. "How much?", I asked; one sharp intake of breath followed, and he warned that it could be at least £1,000! Except that the auto option was £1,200. So I got the manual that I really wanted and loved it []

 

[oliver]

My personal 'must have' on a Boxster is Heated Seats[8D]

They are gorgeous on a cold day. In fact, even in summer, when there is a bit of a chill, they are very useful. It doubles the number of days you can use the car with the roof down without dressing at Millets. On a cold day, the heated seats will start to warm you up well before the heater starts generating warm air. And most women adore them - my wife now judges any car by the quality of its heated seats.

 

[Mark_Bennett]

I was loaned a 987 with the Bose a while back.
I've got to say that I think the cost of the Bose would be better spent on upgrading the "Sound Pack" option speakers and amp. (You need the Sound Pack at least - to get the wiring and housings...)
(It pains me to say that as I quite fancied the idea of the Bose pack[&o])

 

[Guest]

I have 19" and PASM. It's fine - comfy in standard mode on bad surfaces, pretty stiff in sports mode. However, if I could respec I'd use 18" and no PASM since I don't really need two settings. It's once in a blue moon that I head out to a track so the regular suspension should do fine. Plus, the 18" size makes for cheaper tires and adds the Cayman wheel option.

Heated seats, climate, xenons, tire pressure monitoring, windstop w/ Bose and the leather steering wheel make up the list of my "must have" options.
Rain sensors, (adaptive) sports seats and chrome tailpipe follow close behind, in the "wish list" section.
Things I have right now but could do without if I had to pay for them include PASM, 19" wheels, cruise control, sports chrono and possibly PCM/Sat Nav (outdated disk in my 05 model and no post codes). The sports chrono provided some initial fun because the throttle is responding to smaller foot movements, but at the end of the day you can drive your Boxster just as spirited with the normal setting.

 

[Dapster]

I too have 19" wheels but no PASM. When I did my demos and test drive plus experiences earlier this year, I deduced that I needed neither option, but I fell in love with the look of the car on those huge wheels - shallow I know, but boy, do they look good!! I live in Central London and the ride is fine. Sure it's firm, but you want that. Besides, it encourages you to look down the road and drive around big ruts, ridges and sunken man hole covers.

If I had my time again I'd ditch the BOSE (lots of money, and never are you going to be listening to anything more exciting than the engine and ditch the automatic climate control (standard climate control is fine). I absolutely could not do without sports seats, sports steering wheel or the Xenons.

If I could improve on the car, it would be the air scarf that the new SLK has - magic! Otherwise the thing is perfect.

Go down to your dealer and have a look at the stock. Chances are, that any extra you want to see will be installed on something in the compound. I rang mine before setting the spec and they just said, come down with your questions and we'll help you. I would say "what do the sports seats look like?" and they'd open a 997 up for me to look at. "How about BOSE?" No problem, here's one in the showroom with it installed. "And these wheels?" That one's got it over there.

Good luck!

 

[KPNut]

My car is used nearly every day, at all hours, whatever the weather. In my view Xenons are a must. So is park assist. Ask the OPC how much is a new rear valance and then how much is Park Assist; then you will know why. I do not have heated seats, and I think that was a mistake.

Does the manual air con still have the dehumidifier? Because if it doesn't, and you do winter driving it should help keep the car free of fogged windows, otherwise the manual is OK if you don't mind fiddling with it every now and then. There is also a theory that leaving it out of the spec may affect its resale value.

I may have missed it, but are looking at a Boxster or an S?

 

[Guest]

You all seem to have had the same dilemas that I am currently having ie. low spec Boxter S or high spec 2.7. The PASM function seemed as far as the dealer was concerned a must, therefore another £1500 had gone down the drain. As "Dapster" says the 19" wheels are a visual must regardless of the ride ! Having a 3 series convertible I too have heated seats and use these most of the year around therefore this will be one of my options. It is interesting to read on previous comments that side by side a 2.7 and 3.2 are infact not that much different, and it is all most certain that the car will never find its way on the track. The two cars I test drove were both manual, and from having Auto for a long time now, the novelty of the engine sound and acceleration was good at the time but bearing in mind it was on the M25 and not down the Kings Road and City where I spend most of my working time. From reading other post and only just getting into the Porsche Forum there seems to be many issues regarding the Satelite Navigation as to what works and doesnt and the dual sim card system I still think is very backward compaired to the BMWs Bluetooth and very quick sat nav. Thanks everyone for your good advice.

 

[juliany27]

Chris

I had the same sort of problem about 18 months ago when I purchased my 986 2.7.

IMO Xenon lights, climate control, heated seats and a better than basic stereo system are important. Since the car is something of a magnet for criminals, don't forget a Tracker - it gives some peace of mind. Think about the 19 inch wheels - I think that the alloys in the same colour as a dark car are better. If your car is not silver, get OPC to paint the plastic-looking side vents in the same colour as the car; they will do it free of charge if you insist.

I prefer manual after driving automatics for a few years - but you really must test-drive both 2.7 and 3.2 in both manual and Tiptronic.

Good luck.

 

[Rob Edwards]

Hi

For what it's worth, here is my humble opinion on options NOT to have!

• Ruffled leather - hardly any difference from normal leather, esp once it's stretched and moulded itself to your shape.
• Telephone module - hopelessly poor quality - better to go for a decent hands free kit
• PASM - for me, who does not track day this is just a toy whose appeal ran out after a short period of time - I hardly ever use it in the 'real' world. If you intend to track the car, then that's a different matter.
• Bose - I really hate to say this, but I really cannot justify the extra expense over the upgraded sound system (which I had in my 986S and it was fine).
• Multi-function steering wheel - I really just use this for the stereo control but find the little scroll wheel not sensitive enough - I have to scroll like crazy to get the sound down/up appreciably, and it's easier to use the rotary knob on the stereo itself. Unless you really have to have the phone, I wouldn't bother with this one option - I certainly won't be speccing it again.

These are just my own opinions - sorry if anyone disagrees,[] and I hope it's of use to you.
Cheers
Rob[&:]

 

[oliver]

Contrary to Rob's experience, the telephone module in our 987S is brilliant. It came with the PCM Navigation and works really well - much better than BMW's bluetooth. We bought a pay as you go sim card that lives in the Boxster, to avoid continually changing it over.

Agree that Bose is probably over-rated.

Adaptive seats are growing on me. As ours is driven alternately by my wife and I, the memory settings are incredibly convenient.