Porsche 718 Boxster development drive review ~ station of gear

Porsche 718 Boxster development drive front drifting

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Porsche 718 Boxster and Cayman development drive front tracking

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14 Dec, 2015 11:00pm Yoshi Kimura

We take our first ride in new 718 Boxster that gets four-cylinder turbocharged flat-four engine

Development of the next-generation Porsche Boxster is in its final phase. Auto Express has had a chance to sit in the passenger seat during the car's winter test in Yellow Knife, Canada, and first impressions are excellent.

Just like its big brother, the Porsche 911, the new Boxster is now turbocharged. But, while the 911 carries on with six-cylinders, the new Boxster uses a turbocharged flat-four engine. Porsche says it is embracing downsizing only in size, and not in power. The German giant would say that, but with Porsche fans across the world likely to be saying: “There is no replacement, for displacement”, has Porsche really pulled a masterstroke here?

The turbocharged flat-four used in the new '718' Boxster and Cayman is developed from the 911 Version II engine, albeit with two of the cylinders removed by Porsche's clever engineers. The base model Boxster has a single turbo, and is expected to use a 2.0-litre unit making almost 300bhp and 350Nm of torque.

A larger bore stroke ratio is given to Boxster S – for now the most powerful and sportiest version of the new Boxster. Auto Express is led to believe this will use a 2.5-litre flat-four pushing out 360bhp and 400Nm of torque. Porsche says the engine’s performance is enhanced with VTG (Variable Turbine Geometry) used in the turbocharger – just like the 911 Turbo.

This isn’t a simple case of lopping off two cylinders though. Fitting a turbocharger in lieu of two cylinders in the tight engine bay was a challenge. Large air intakes send air to the water-cooled intercooler that is chilled from 160 degrees Celsius to 50 degrees Celsius, to deliver optimum performance.

Porsche 718 Boxster and Cayman development drive rear tracking 2

While a flat-four is generally considered to be a well-balanced type of engine, vibration control was high on the engineers’ task list. Four active engine mounts are installed to maintain smoothness just like a six-cylinder. In fact, compared to the six-cylinder engine in the current Boxster, the new four-pot uses one litre less petrol for a 60-mile drive.

The new car’s weight has risen a little due to the additional parts for the turbo unit, but despite this the standard Boxster is expected to top out at over 174mph (10mph more than before). It’ll crack the 0-62mph sprint in 5.5 seconds (three tenths faster) and take just 20 seconds to reach 124mph. The higher-powered Boxster S should manage to shave half a second off the new 0-62mph and get to 124mph in just 16 seconds.

Porsche 718 Boxster and Cayman development drive interior

The new Boxster gets a new look, too. The front and rear bumpers are new, as are the air intakes on the side panels and there’s a new active rear spoiler. Inside, the already well-made interior gets a boost in quality with new finishes and trims. There’s also a GT steering wheel available as an option – just like the wheel you’ll find in the Porsche 918 Spyder hypercar. The upgraded wheel gets a Sports Response Button – a rotary dial with four positions for the Normal, Sport, Sport Plus, and Individual driving modes.

On the road (from the passenger seat) we were impressed. We were concerned the new turbo engine would dull the fun, but it doesn’t. Just like the facelifted 911, true purists will yearn for the naturally-aspirated six-pot engines, but the new turbos are a delight nonetheless. The turbocharged 2.0-litre engine delivers a great punch, and the six-speed manual box or seven-speed PDK are perfect matches to the new engine. This four-cylinder is really smooth and gives a great baritone sound – not too unlike the old six-cylinder engines.

Along with the engines, the name is new too as is the range structure. Both new Boxster and Cayman get 718 prefixes, while the Boxster now sits above the Cayman coupe in the range. Porsche believes the drop-top version deserves a higher price tag – just like you’ll find in the 911 range – but how this will be received by Porsche fans is yet to be seen.

Porsche will officially announce full pricing and specifications in January before revealing the range in March at the Geneva Motor Show. UK sales should start in April.

Are you excited by the new Porsche Boxster? Let us know in the comments below...

Our early development drive showed the new Porsche Boxster has a lot of potential. Purists may mourn the loss of that glorious six-cylinder and pour scorn on the added turbochargers, but our passenger ride proved there is much to like. The turbo four-pot gives great power and performance and it also sounds intoxicating. This first taste bodes well for a proper drive after the car's international reveal at the Geneva Motor Show in March.

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