I HAVE NOT driven the Boxster S and Im glad you took the time to study up on it. I have driven an 03 Boxster S several times.
You may have noticed that the ZR pulls about .87 stock on the skidpad where the Boxster S can do 1g flat. Thats not a "push to the limits" difference. That is NIGHT and DAY.

Now that being said I do agree with you in driving experience. The Z just feels more fun and responsive to me on the freeway. Even my friends 99' 911 seems slower than my Z and Im not sure why but it may be the GOBS of torque.

Also props on the NISMO suspension I hear it is very nice!

 

Here's my take on this thread for what it's worth. I have never driven a boxster or S so no comment there. It's unfortunate for the car but true that Porsche drivers look at the boxster as a poor mans Porsche. But I think that's changing and it should because it's a great car.

I owned a 01 996TT and presently own a 993TT, and being a new owner of a one month old 350ZR I can give you my impression.
It does everything REAL well for the money. Consider mine was installed with Tien coilovers and Stillen Sways within the first week. The car isn't razer sharp at this point but has alot of potential with wider rims and sticky tires, torsion upgrades..etc. I think it could play well with a boxster or a 911 if setup right.

My bottom line, if this is your only car/toy then go German. You can't compare the quality of the way German cars are produced compared to Pacific rim IMO.

 

SpeedDreams I would love to see pics of all of your rides together. Please post

 

Here in Toronto, Boxsters are so common that they come across as Civics. I was close to purchasing a 3 year old boxster S vs my new ZR but I wanted somthing that stood out a little more.

But if you can afford the new Boxster S, I would get it. The ZR isn't in the same league. Plus Porsche has finally differentiated the look.

 

Hey dude, not a bad idea, just have to get a few friends and drive them to a spot for a shoot. I'll work on that, but in the mean time you can see my Lightning at speeddream.net. The Porsche at rennlist.com, search threads under name speeddreams.
Tripp

 

Well, I absolutly hated the SLK350. What an unresponsive car. I don't understand how it is getting positive reviews from the car magazines. Here is my impression:

Spingy pedal feel
Too much steering slack
Sub par handeling
Small interior
Horible sounding engine
Auto transmission shifs too much not whenit should

Going back to drive the Boxter again to make a decision. I like the ZR, but the Boxster is so much more refined.

 

A few months back I considered trading for a Boxster S, did all the reading, got the brochures, looked at videos on-line...all that stuff. And then I went and drove one. I'm still driving my ZR, and I put 17k into it and still haven't spent as much as I would have on the Boxster (and the boxster wouldn't have even had logo centercaps or Xenon headlamps for $62k!!!). Plus I like being able to look at my engine and do stuff to it myself, thank you. My buddy at work just bought one (got me interested in what all the hoopla was about). It is a beautiful car and perfect for him because that is what he wanted. But I'm way more comfortable and I get way more attention. Truth of it is, whenever I mention I considered a Boxster to someone, they always say "...poor mans porsche..." Now, that wouldn't be the sole reason I wouldn't buy...but that is an interesting commentary of the perception of the general public of this car. Strange.

srm

 

The poor man's porsche argument is usually from unlucky people who either can't afford or whose wives/parents won't let them get a boxster.

The boxster is a great car - excellent handling (esp in S form). I haven't driven the new boxster S, but the old one did handle a little better than a ZR. I do not however think it handled much better than the coupe Z (on the street). I think the weight of the convertible is noticeable and adds to the Z's understeering bias.

The Porsche motor made far nicer noises...but its exhaust note and torque were both pathetic compared to the Z. Both a big step up from my S2k though. Still I think the S2k's handling trumps the boxster S. The steering was sharper, ride motions better controlled.

In the end, a loaded ZR runs about $40k. A similarly equipped Boxster S runs about $65k. For that $25k you get slightly better acceleration and noticeably better handling. Interior quality on the boxster (at least the old one) was simply put, pathetic. I am certainly not convinced that Teutonic quality should be so revered. I'll grant you that BMW/Benz/Porsche have beautiful paint finishes...but I think the quality difference ends there.

NzZ

 

Umm...I think theres more to those makes than a name and some paint

 

I don't think the term poor mans porsche applies anymore. Maybe it did for the 944, but the Boxster has a lot of R&D invested in balance/feel and steering response. These are things much more costly to develop than an extra 50hp.

I also have an 86 Carrera and in terms of pure feel and feedback, the 911 (even the older cheaper ones) in my opinion connects the driver to the road better than my 350ZR.

Of course my ZR will smoke it in most categories but there is somthing to be said for feel.

 

...I wasn't advocating it applied, I was just sharing the feedback from the GP. I don't particularly agree with that either.

srm

 

First, thank you for all the feedback.

My Porsche dealer is loaning me a new Boxster overnight to drive around and make sure I like it. Very nice of them, I know......

I am picking it up this Saturday. So the plan is to drive it to a Nissan dealer, so that i can drive both cars back to back. Will keep you posted.

For the record, having owned a Boxster before, I can attest that it has much better feel than the ZR. IMO, you can't get better feel than a mid engine car. Is it worth another 15k+? That's what's killing me.

The ZR was not out the first time I bought the Boxster, so it was a lot easier. I can care less about the "poor man's Porsche" thing. I prefer for people to think I am poor, less headaches.

Also, the Boxster I am considering is the base not the "S". Unless, you drive them back to back, most people will never know the difference. It certainly is not worth the 10k price difference between the two models.

 

Good for you. At the end of the day it is all about what meets your needs or I guess with this type of car, it's "wants" (grin). I chose one over the other for my reasons. You should do the same! Good luck.

srm

 

I think the Boxster is a great car that looks more natural as a roadster than the Z.I just think for nearly 60K for the S it is way overpriced.

 

So in the end, I've decided on the ZR. You just can't beat it for the price.

I drove the Boxster for the day, in multiple situations, freeway, mountain roads,..etc, Although, you couldn’t deny the awesome handling, the torque was underwhelming compared to my G35c. Ultimately, power and torque are more important to me on a daily basis than handling.

The funny thing is that when I drove the Boxster back to the Porsche dealership, there was a Silverstone ZR sitting on the lot that belonged to one of the clients. It was getting plenty of attention from the other shoppers. I parked right next to it and the ZR is what was getting my attention more.

LA is an interesting town. I think if that ZR had a Porsche badge on it, people would pay 80k for it thinking that's normal.

 

If it had a Porsche badge on it people SHOULD pay alot more $ because what went into the car/chasis/handling/engineering would be significantly more

I would still choose the ZR between the two just like I chose my Z over the Boxster S when I bought it but there is alot to be admired with the Boxster S.