2005 Porsche Boxster S Four Seasons Wrap-up

"I would punch my own mother and go on a seventeen-state crime spree if the Boxster asked me to." While no staffer wrote those exact words in the logbook of our Four Seasons Porsche Boxster S, such a statement pretty accurately describes how much we loved our yellow two-seater. More to the point: almost all of us agreed that the Boxster was awesome.

This was hardly unexpected. We had a similarly wonderful experience with our previous long-term Boxster back in 1998 (the last line of our final report on that car: "Can we have it back?"), and even those of us who hadn't driven that first-generation car were eager to test the updated, 80-percent-new version. Although the second-generation Boxster went on sale in January 2005, we waited until the following summer and the return of convertible weather before filling out our order sheet.

Approaching the notoriously pricey Porsche options list with caution, we managed to tack on only $4475 to the Boxster S's $53,895 base price. The extra dough nabbed the $2190 preferred package (self-dimming mirrors, rain-sensing wipers, colored wheel centers, a Bose surround sound stereo, heated seats, and floor mats), the $990 bixenon headlamp package (self-leveling headlights with washers), a $375 wind deflector, and the $920 sport chrono package. The last option was the most controversial, not for the heightened throttle response and relaxed stability control provided by its sport button, but rather for the bulbous, silver-faced stopwatch the package added to the center of the dash--an ugly "wart" according to several staff members. Wart and all, the final sticker price for our speed yellow Boxster S was $58,370, which included the $795 destination fee. It's a good day when you can leave a Porsche dealership with a brand-new car for less than $60,000.

Early logbook scribblings were unanimous in their praise for the Porsche's comfortable seats and all-around handling prowess. "The rock-solid chassis helps make the Boxster one of the best cars on the planet, and its precision and responsiveness leave me in awe," enthused road test coordinator Marc Noordeloos. Perhaps the Boxster's most impressive quality, however, was its stiffness. "This is by far the most torsionally rigid roadster I've ever driven," declared contributor Preston Lerner. "With the top up, I could have sworn I was driving a coupe." Potholes, washboard back roads, and patchwork freeways were all tackled with nary a creak or groan of protest, and the Porsche was as rattle-free at the end of our year as it was when it arrived.

There was a lot more to love about the Boxster, too. Take the observed fuel mileage, for example. Over 27,627 combined city and highway miles, we saw 21 mpg--quite respectable considering that we flogged the ever-loving stink out of the car whenever possible. Despite being driven hard, the Boxster survived the year with no major problems save a leaky coolant hose (the result of a minor accident, not shoddy craftsmanship). We fell for the reasonably spacious front and rear trunks, too, which were great for long road trips. The combined 9.5 cubic feet of storage space meant that passengers didn't end up getting a nine-hour lap dance from their luggage, an all too common situation in many roadsters once the top drops. (Cough. Pontiac Solstice. Cough.) Speaking of tops, not only could the Boxster flip its lid in just twelve seconds, but it could do so at speeds of up to 31 mph--very useful for times when we were running late.