Maybe in the 981 section? I think i saw a thread about it

 

Still waiting to order it!!!

 

I'm a little surprised too. I think there was a lot of excitement about a 3.8 L Cayman GT4 because of the folks who track their cars and they have been screaming for it for a while. The Boxster is not really a track car - at least compared to a Cayman. An encore is also more difficult to generate hype when the cat is already out of the bag (meaning Porsche put a 991S engine in a 981 platform - that is the big policy shift at Porsche)


I think many people buy the Boxster because they love to drive....especially on the country roads in an open air roadster. Not so much of a track car. A base model is perfect for this application. Just my two cents.

 

Nice analysis!

 

If I were to buy a Boxster, and think about where/when I would use it, I agree the current options have more than enough power IMO.


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Personally, I think it has very limited appeal. As others have said, it is not a track car, simply another variant of the current 981. If you were buying a 981 to use for weekend driving, the base or S offer more than enough power and more available amenities. Further, it makes little sense as a daily driver. It is a niche car which will have an audience, albeit a limited one.

 

I agree. And there might be one other factor . . . We are getting toward the end of the 981 run. (A 981.2 is probably coming soon.) That's when Porsche brings out Spyders and other variants to try to create just a little more hype for the old line. If I were in the market for a new car I would be more interested in the next body style than a 981 Spyder.

If you drive a Spyder please don't take the above as a slam. I think that the Spyders are beautiful. I would love to have one if I didn't need it for a daily driver.

 

To me it would be very nice to have the larger engine ... but not at a trade-off of the manual top and few of the other differences from the "easy to operate, great creature comforts" of the standard Boxster S. While the idea of a more "track friendly" capable Boxster sounds great at first, I very soon realize that this is not at all why I bought the car. I bought the car to enjoy driving it under everyday conditions and thinking that more power is all that would be needed to make it a great track car is a very faulty line of thinking. I would agree that the GT4 would be a great track car .... but I guess I am just much more interested in driving my car and not in tracking my car.

 

To me it would be very nice to have the larger engine ... but not at a trade-off of the manual top and few of the other differences from the "easy to operate, great creature comforts" of the standard Boxster S.

Same for me. I really like the look of the Spyder and the top seems like a significant improvement over the prior Spyder but I'd still rather have a power top (with SmartTOP).

Am I missing something?

Preferences and priorities vary -- even among Boxster fans. Does it really matter? If you're excited about it then it should be based on your own needs/wants and not those of others.

 

I think many people buy the Boxster because they love to drive.... Agree

especially on the country roads in an open air roadster. Agree

Not so much of a track car. Don't know, still waiting for my first DE.

A base model is perfect for this application. Just my two cents. Not for Denver.

 

It can't help that there is very little info let alone cars out there; no journo tests, delays for those who have paid deposits; IMHO Porsche hasn't performed very well with the release of this car; everyone appears unclear what the delay is; seats??

 

Lwb's for a supplier issue. Not clear what the odds of getting them are.

Also add that they didn't release very many Spyders at all for this allocation as far as we can tell.

 

So why does Denver not like base 981s? [emoji30]

 

We're elitist

its the altitude. The base may be fine for scooting around town at sea level but here (like all NA cars) it loses power. Take it up into the Rockies and it can get anemic.

 

I've got nothing much to add here that hasn't already been said. The GT4 was ground-breaking and brought something to the market that everyone wanted to see happen. With that out there, the Spyder is a bit more niche and seems to have more appeal in it's uniqueness than anything else.

What were things like around here back in the day when the Cayman R and original Boxster Spyder were announced? Were they announced at the same time? Was there a similar reaction?

 

It's hard to get excited about special editions that are all-but unavailable. My dealer got 20 deposits the morning the GT4 was announced... he may deliver seven. These Porsches get snapped up so fast there's no chance of getting one unless you want to buy someone's allocation, put deposits down at 6 dealers or pay a huge markup for a car on the floor. It takes the fun out of buying something special.

Maybe this is why there is so little chat about the Spyer?

 

I'm surprised by the lack of excitement. Am I missing something?

I think your are missing something. Heavily discussed here is that many of the people in this forum don't like the top http://www.planet-9.com/981-chat/106712-why-dont-some-people-like-spyder-ragtop.html.

Now you got to understand the demographics and buzz regarding the GT4. Consider that it has been eagerly awaited for nearly a decade AND many of those who frequent this forum are heavy tracking enthusiasts, using their vehicles as a hobby in this way, the discussion is bound to be GT4 top heavy. And considering the origins of the forum as the caymanclub, that sort of seals it. In no way does that mean in the p-car universe the spyder doesn't generate enthusiasm.

Consider a much broader audience, across the pcar universe you might find the exact same objections to the semi-manual top limiting appeal to p-car enthusiasts and not drawing in mainstream buyers. But as a halo car in the 981 Boxster line, it doesn't need to. It only needs to exist and allow those who seek it to aspire to it.

What would have the excitement been if the Spyder had been announced a week or two before the GT4? There would have been screaming up and down the Internet as "where is the Cayman twin?"

The spyder will appeal to the hard core, sports car enthusiasts, but not the hobbyists who want to do track days. It's a traditional sports car and that market will likely never go away. There is a reasons Boxsters always outsell Caymans. So you need to consider the environment of the discussions.

 

I think Chow makes some excellent points. This forum has always been Cayman heavy and it is only natural that the GT4 receive more action. Also, It is certainly more an enthusiast oriented car than a track oriented car (I.e. No roof) and track guys have been passionately awaiting the GT4 variant.

I do not intend to track the car, I enjoy the open cockpit, and I almost always drive my car on sunny days and few rainy ones. Yes, no doubt there will be moments that I will wish I had the convenience of the electric top. But the benefits far outweigh this in my opinion. But the important thing for all of us is that there is a choice. Personal opinions aside, the great news is that it is exists for P-car fans, just like I LOVE the GT4 even though I have many reasons for never considering it. Seeing another expression of the 981 is good for everyone. It shows that Porsche loves its sports cars and continues to actively develop them versus shifting focus to the mom-mobiles. Win win.

 

It's too late for the Spyder: we've been spoiled by the 981s top and the PDK.

 

Its hard to get excited about paying $100k for a well equipped Boxster. IMO the BS and GTS are just fine for driving around with the top down.

 

Manual tops shaves 22lbs, I think that's joke in itself. 385hp is nice, if only it's on the S or GTS, that would generate way more buzz. I would actually sell mine and get one. Colorado weather is unpredictable, we have rain 17 days in the 19 days of May, the rain has been on and off. If I own the Spyder, it would never leave the garage this month, I am not getting wet trying to put the top up.

 

To your point I was jogging around 5:00 PM last Saturday, and judging by the dark clouds, rain was imminent. So when I was about two miles away from my home, I see this Miata driver travelling well above the posted speed limit. The top was down on his Miata, and I expect that he was trying to get to his garage before the showers hit. I can imagine how challenging manually raising a convertible top can be in a downpour. In my area in late Spring and throughout the Summer, it can be a beautiful sunny day, and within 30 minutes, the skies darken, and shortly thereafter you can be caught in a severe thunderstorm.

 

for me - it's the top.

my friend just pulled his deposit on a Targa 4 GTS, and ordered a 16 Box GTS. i asked about the spyder - ditto - the non power top was a deal killer.

so they spent roughly the same amount for the GTS - but in my opinion, a better looking car.

a variant for me would be to the 3.8 into the GTS.

call it a GT-RS

or Bill.

 

Personally, aside from its good looks, I find it a bit difficult getting excited about the Spyder. This is another expensive, hard-to-get, specialty Porsche that offers power/performance that the standard model should have had all along.

 

I'd get all excited if I could afford one. Here in California, at sea level and endless summer, it would be a blast to drive. All the excitement I can generate, at this time, is to put on a party hat and blow on one of those party favors that makes a funny noise.:birthday:

 

Besides the marketing mistake of launching it in the shadow of the GT4, the problem with the Spyder is that 9-step top! It’s a tough price to pay for the 3.8L ...

The Miata manual top, as Goofnik described it, is the way to go for a simple, stripped down roadster. IMHO, the Spyder top has always been incongruent with that car’s stated mission, although the current version less so ...

 

Some of us or at least one of us, Tracks his 981 Boxster.
Some of us at SCCA DE events get to drive with the top down on Track.
Some of us LOVE to drive on Track with the top down.
Some of us realize that if you drive on Track, the only viable option is the PDK.
One of us canceled his Spyder order because no PDK!-Richard

 

I've been super excited from the start. But honestly with the whole LWB debacle it really is less appealing. With the four features that make the car interesting, the engine, the Sypder top, and the GT4 body kit, and the seats, you take one of those away and thats literally a quarter of the appeal, what a downer.
I'll have to choose soon though being #1 on the Spyder list and #2 on the GT4 list, first world people problems at its best...

 

I'm considering an order right now and will definitely track it. (I live less than 50 miles from Laguna Seca...) I need the open sky above me to be happy driving and the additional features of the GT4 (suspension, etc.) might make a difference if I were actually racing, but I'm not - not even close. That said, the additional power of the 3.8 over the GTS is certainly something I'll appreciate and enjoy every day, and I find the car quite beautiful, top included - and am not worried about frequent sudden downpours here in Santa Cruz. (And if it gets wet at some point... it's a car, it'll live and so will I.)

BTW, does anyone know if the car in the Spyder brochure is base white or Carrera White Metallic?

 

I don't care for it because it has no pdk and the manual roof would suck...I drive top down a lot and plenty of times there has been a surprise thunderstorm...slow down and top is up fast...would have been a disaster with the spyder or I would always be worried about driving top down.

The 'idea' behind it being a 'pure/simple driving experience' is cool and what many are looking for....but that is all marketing because you get the same from any boxster.

i think the target buyer for the spyder isn't a DD, but a 3rd weekend garage car in a sunny state.

 

Just a guess but going through the Configurator and Porsche's confusing array of options, the Spyder would probably end up costing over 100K. A quick comparison with the 2015 Corvette Z51 3LT convertible which starts at 74K and well optioned comes out around 80K. If I were in the market for a performance roadster, I wouldn't be too excited about the Spyder.

 

Like many others have said the reaction to the Spyder is muted by its limited usability. I mentioned the Spyder to a 997 owner/work colleague. He expressed a little disbelief in a boxster having a 375hp, 3.8l engine, upsetting a little his sense of hierarchy. If porsche offered a 3.8l engine in a regular, pdk auto-top boxster the porsche world would come off its axis. Although the spyder is super cool, its toned down in a way.

The 981 platform goes from a $53K optionless base model (i just saw one at a local dealer) to the low $100ks and almost whatever you want in between. The Burger King of models.

 

I mentioned the Spyder to a 997 owner/work colleague. He expressed a little disbelief in a boxster having a 375hp, 3.8l engine, upsetting a little his sense of hierarchy.

It shouldn't. It's a generation behind. Technology always moves forward and you can't compare generation old cars.