The Porsche Boxster should never be driven on a freeway. If it is, and I am in the cockpit, ticket after ticket after ticket could follow. Traveling at 65 or 70 mph bores the tar out of this car: there isn’t a gear in the box for that speed. So your freeway pleasure is confined to being the object of a lot of lustful admiration — for the car, that is. And it is a beautiful looking car.
    The engine sound has a definite Porsche timbre, a little quieter than the 911, but still an aggressive, throaty sound. When you accelerate with the top down, there's a simply wonderful symphony of sounds that would have made Mozart proud. This new 2.5 litre flat horizontally opposed double overhead camshaft, 24 valve six cylinder boxer engine, does have genuine Porsche/ Volkswagen lineage. But this one's the first liquid cooled Porsche engine in history. It is slated for the 911 next year.
    The Boxster fits snugly in the new market niche for midpriced two seater sports cars. The other players are the BMW Z3 and the Mercedes Benz SLK 320. All of these machines sell for around $40,000. They are priced well below the Jaguar XK8 at around $70,000, other Porsche models at around $65,000 to $90,000, and the Mercedes Benz 560SL at around $80,000. All are good values. The Boxster has its boxer (boxer plus roadster equals Boxster) engine positioned amidship, in front of the rear axle, giving it better balance for cornering than its two competitors.

The Porsche Boxster with its advanced technology makes drivers feel like racers.

    The all new advanced technology variable cam six cylinder engine develops 201 horsepower and 181 foot pounds of torque — slightly more horsepower, but less torque than the competition. By the way, you can’t see the engine from anywhere above the car. All the fluid refill caps are in the rear trunk, and you have to raise the car to see or do anything to the engine. The car's two trunks offer more cargo space than either the BMW or the Mercedes. The very neat convertible top is fully automatic, going from fully stowed to locked up in place in 12 seconds. The rear window, however is a plastic material which on the model tested was already looking a little foggy.
    If you decide to buy this car, here are a couple of hints:

• The options are extensive and expensive; you can run the base price of $41,000 to more than $65,000 by adding in all the available extras, so be careful.
• Plan to have your Boxster no sooner than March of next year. Although the car is built in two plants, one in Germany and one in Finland, there is apparently only one machine in the world that manufactures the crankcases. That machine, as of the time of this writing, is broken.

    The standard equipment on this car is a little sparse, including such things as four-wheel disc antilock brakes, fog lights, five-speed manual transmission, telescoping steering wheel and power windows. You have to pay extra to get cruise control ($561), or the five-speed Tiptronic automatic/manual transmission ($3,213). (For more information on the Tiptronic, see Road Test on the Volkswagen Passat in my December 1997 column. Find it through the back issues link on the magazine's Website at www.sandiegometro.com
    Buyers who want a Technic Sport Package with designer wheels, traction control, stiffer springs, shocks and stabilizers will pay $1,940 for the goodies. Those more interested in the sound and the look of things can avail themselves of the Sport Touring Package with its six-disc compact disc changer, onboard computer, aluminum instrument dials, painted silver roll bar, aluminum/leather brake shifter, stainless steel door sill with insignia and chrome oval center exhaust pipe, for $8,066.
    Frankly, this is a great car without all that stuff. So if you can’t afford the extras, don’t worry. The ride is remarkably good and the handling is superb, and it looks gorgeous just the way it is.
    Porsche aficionados probably will want extras such as metallic paint, Porsche floor mats, crest wheel caps, carbon/leather steering wheel and shift knob, aluminum hardtop, aerokit ($6,225) and a color keyed tonneau cover. With this stuff, you've bought not just a car, but a hobby.
    EPA fuel consumption ratings for the Boxster are 19 mpg (city) and 26 mpg (highway) with manual transmission and 17 mpg (city) and 24 mpg (highway) with the Tiptronic automatic transmission. The warranty in 1998 was two years with unlimited miles. For 1999 it has been increased to four years or 50,000 miles (in line with the BMW Z3 and the Mercedes SLK 230 warranties).
    If you get even the slightest pleasure out of driving, you'll fall for the Boxster. It loves drivers, doesn’t care about their mistakes and convinces you that you are an undiscovered champion race car driver. From the moment of the first rush you get when you put your right foot down, start hurriedly changing gears to keep up with the engine and execute the first sharp corner, you will fall in love. You'll start wondering how much equity you have in your house, whether you can borrow against your 401(k) or sell your kids. You'll have to have this car.

Motoring since 1952, Austin Lynas has owned 54 cars and at one time raced mini-sedans in England. An aerospace engineer, he was instrumental in developing the anti-skid systems used in British military aircraft that preceded today’s ABS systems. Lynas can be reached by e-mail at osten@aol.com.