Porsche Boxster turns 25

Desde o lançamento do primeiro 911 – que era bem mas dispendioso que o seu antecessor – a Porsche sempre sentiu necessidade de ter um modelo mais económico de entrada de gama. Esse papel coube primeiro ao 912, que era essencialmente um 911 de quatro cilindros.

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This was followed by an attempted collaboration between VW and Porsche, which resulted in the 914, a model that succeeded the 912 at Porsche and the Karmann-Ghia at VW.

With production costs more expensive than anticipated, Porsche ended up moving on to a radically different successor, the 924, initially thought to be a VW-Audi product.

The 924 was born with weaknesses, but evolved into the 944 and 968, very worthy and effective sports cars, although too expensive to produce.

With another chapter closed, Porsche opted for a different path in succession: the new entry-level model would have all the brand's essential arguments: a distinctly sporty image, above-average build quality and the six-cylinder engine, placed behind the driver and passenger. Only this time, in a central position.

The Boxster would present to the world many aesthetic and technical hints of what would become the 911 of the 996 generation and, perhaps for this reason, it deserved the respect of enthusiasts: instead of being seen as a substitute, it was accepted as the precursor of a new era. for Porsche. A very fruitful and growth phase.

The Boxster was born with a discreet 2.5 engine with just 204 hp and modest performance. It grew in capacity, sophistication and efficiency throughout the four generations: 986, 987, 981 and 718. It would gain a Coupé version called Cayman, in the 987 series.

In the name of economy and emissions, the 718 brought back four-cylinder boxer engines, now supercharged. However, for the top versions, GTS and Boxster and Spyder (equivalent to the Cayman GT4), Porsche returned to six-cylinder engines, more specifically the engine used by the 911 GT3.

Finally, the Boxster's brilliant chassis received engines that matched its effectiveness, and is now as fast around a circuit as the best 911. The Spyder has 420 hp, accelerates to 100 km/h in 3.9 seconds and reaches 300 km /H.