I picked my base 718 Boxster in Leipzig at the end of November. It was a frosty morning at the factory with a layer of frost over the cars parked by the track. My instructor took me straight out on the track to give me an overview and then handed over the keys (to one of their vehicles) and I got to spend some time on the track. I've no experience on the track, so I did the best I could while I learnt about the features with the instructor. After warming up the engine we stopped to try launch control which was a lot of fun. I was completely humbled by another driver screaming past me in a GT3RS - he was just a blur (I later learnt he was there picking up his 911R). I handed over the keys to my girlfriend so she could have a go (because she'll probably never drive mine ;-) ) and the instructor offered to take her on a "fast" lap - after which she got out of the car, not looking like she'd had a good time. I soon learnt why as it was my turn and I realized that I had a lot to learn about what the car could do. It was a ton of fun though and impressive as to what the car could do. We then grabbed a Cayenne and headed to the off road course (a former military training ground) where we got to play with the car up and down steep slopes and around some heavily banked corners - that was a lot of fun and again very impressive.
Next the really fun bit. Delivery. I was lead in to the delivery area where my car was looking stunningly shiny (and next to aforementioned 911R). Going through the features of the car didn't take long - I'd spent the last four months reading about it, so there wasn't much I didn't know. I declined to have holes drilled in to the bumper for the front license plate, so it was expertly and neatly duct-taped on.
The factory tour was really enlightening - with only two people picking up vehicles that morning and our two guests we had a small group and were able to see most of the production line. Unlike other factory tours I'd been on, we were able to walk alongside the line and ask plenty of questions.
Last of all - lunch in the restaurant with a nice view over the track. We watched a group zipping around the track while enjoying some fine german cuisine. The top floor of the building has a small museum - including a Porsche diesel tractor. We didn't spend a lot of time in the museum as we'd be visiting Stuttgart in a couple of days and I was eager to get behind the wheel.
After picking up the keys the 718 was waiting for me outside the building and it was time to drive it back to Leipzig. There was no time to put it through its paces - that would happen the next day on the way to Nuremberg.
(If you happen to be in Leipzig while the Christmas market is happening, do check out the "handbrot" - a regional speciality, freshly baked bread stuffed with lots of cheese and bacon - delicious - it had been recommend by one of the Porsche guys and it goes great with some mulled wine).
Over the next week we'd drive from city to city on the autobahns. We were lucky to get good clear weather (although temperatures hovering around freezing) the entire time and only a couple of instances of heavy traffic. The drive to Nuremberg was the best with a lot of areas of the autobahn unrestricted and I was able to pick up a bit of speed. I was impressed with the quality of German driving - the left lane really was for overtaking and people were very good at getting out of the way of faster cars. Driving on the autobahn, even at high speeds, felt a lot safer than driving in the US. The car was incredibly fun and comfortable to drive. I loved that the car would turn a few heads when driving in the cities - but in hindsight they were probably just staring and wondering why my license plate was taped on.
1 week and 1,000km later I dropped it off in Munich and now I have a long wait for it to get back here.