The 911 is the car that really got me hooked on the Porsche brand. It wasn’t the first car to wear the legendary badge, and these days it is outsold by the company’s Macan and Cayenne SUV models. But there can surely be no doubt that the 911 is Porsche distilled, to the extent that anything else wearing a Porsche badge sits in its shadow.
But is that latter point really fair? Back in the early 1990s, Porsche was in real financial turmoil, with a dated and expensive model line-up jarring with both the recession and the latest technological enhancements. Porsche needed a lifesaver, a car that would court new buyers and put the company firmly back in the black. The Boxster of 1996 was that car.
Now, you’ll have heard pub bores declaring the Boxster ‘not a proper Porsche’ or, indeed, the car you buy because you can’t afford a 911. Both of these statements are lazy and inaccurate; a mid-engined open sportster is exactly what the fabled 550 Spyder was, and the Boxster has its own character whilst still being authentically 'Porsche'.
The Boxster holds an appeal on a personal level, too - it went on sale the very year I started primary school, and I had no fewer than three die-cast models as a child. I therefore grew up with the Boxster being a prominent part of the motoring landscape.
So just what is it that makes the Boxster so special? After all, there were a raft of two-seat convertibles launched during the 1990s, and the Porsche has never really been what you’d call a design classic. You could, if you’re being particularly harsh, describe the shape and lines as a little generic. But here’s the thing: the Boxster has not aged in the quarter of a century since its launch, and even those ‘fried-egg’ headlamps have (largely) been accepted by Porsche purists.
The mid-engined layout lends the Boxster a perfectly balanced profile, which hints at the racy driving experience. The pebble-smooth surfaces, side intakes and centrally mounted exhaust give just the right amount of visual muscle; no tacky addenda or fussy detailing here.
But it’s the driving experience that has always got road testers and enthusiasts salivating. The likes of the Mercedes-Benz SLK and BMW Z3 never stood a chance. Neither of those cars could match the wondrous balance and communicative steering of the Boxster. The SLK, in particular, was weighed-down (literally and figuratively) by its complex roof. Small wonder, then, that during the early part of the 2000s the answer to the question of what’s the best sports car in the world began with the letter 'B'.
I haven’t even waxed lyrical about the engine. Oh, the noise. Seriously, listening to any of the six-cylinder ‘boxer’ engines sing their way to the redline, a deep, mechanical throb giving way to a beautifully smooth yet nape-prickling howl, is an experience that lives in the mind for a long time.
‘Not a proper Porsche' my backside.
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