981 Spyder confirmed
Discussion
Johnthepotter said:
If indeed that is the new Spyder I will not be progressing my order !! However, I have been told more than once by OPC that a new lightweight roof has been engineered and that shown in the pictures seems to be the standard roof so I think more secrets to be revealed in coming weeks !! Let's hope so anyway !
I hope you are right! The standard roof doesn't cut it for me. 
it's a good thing we're all different eh? I think they are the most useless, cliché'd thing I've seen on a car in recent memory!philnotts said:
I'm out if if looks like that. It may as well be a 981 Boxster Sport. There is nothing really unique. I can't see Porsche releasing anything like the current Spyder as its not user friendly enough for the market.
I agree. My hope was that would do a targa like the 918/914... but use a top that is framed fabric (think a paint canvas) like the 991 Targa, but make it a manual piece you remove like the 914. Simple/quick install, ultra lightweight and retains the signature hump design.If the pictures are close the production version (5 months to go...) then the 987.2 Spyder will soon be a future "blue chip classic".
I don't care if the car has a 4L 400 HP engine in it, that just looks far too plain for me. Typical marketing cash-grab after the artificially generated Cayman GT4 preorder hype.
I don't care if the car has a 4L 400 HP engine in it, that just looks far too plain for me. Typical marketing cash-grab after the artificially generated Cayman GT4 preorder hype.
Jesus Porsche. It's not hard. All you need to do is:
- leave the engine alone
- lose 100kg if poss
- humps, gorgeous wheels, carbon buckets
- carbon targa roof that is quiet at speed
- close ratio box - NOT one that puts me at 95mph if I rev 3rd out
the final two would solve the only 2 flaws with the 987 version
- leave the engine alone
- lose 100kg if poss
- humps, gorgeous wheels, carbon buckets
- carbon targa roof that is quiet at speed
- close ratio box - NOT one that puts me at 95mph if I rev 3rd out
the final two would solve the only 2 flaws with the 987 version
Thinking further about the Topspeed article - why would Porsche develop a Boxster along the same lines as the Cayman GT4? Surely the 2 cars will address different markets. From what we believe of the GT4, it will be a track focused car - a la GT3. I do not attend track days but I should imagine that you would not see too many soft tops and serious racers would go for Cayman rather than Boxster. I think that the Spyder could to be less hardcore and more along lines suggested by previous poster. They could achieve suitable performance increases at minimal cost by using Cayman GTS engine and reducing weight leaving budget to be spent on bodywork revisions i.e. humps !! What do you think?
Porsche tend to get value for money when they engineer something. I fully expect whatever work they have done to make a cayman gt4, the exact same mods will be cross engineered into a boxster Spyder/gt4 version. With just the usual differences made to allow for one being a coupe etc.
Judging from these latest pics, this would seem the case.
I'm not sure we will see bodywork changes beyond bumpers. I don't think the Spyder sold in big enough numbers to do the humps and compromised roof again.
The way it also looks, porsche aren't being overly concerned about building the R or Spyder names again. I think these may turn out to be unique to the 987.
Again, I can see the 987 Spyder being a special model.
Judging from these latest pics, this would seem the case.
I'm not sure we will see bodywork changes beyond bumpers. I don't think the Spyder sold in big enough numbers to do the humps and compromised roof again.
The way it also looks, porsche aren't being overly concerned about building the R or Spyder names again. I think these may turn out to be unique to the 987.
Again, I can see the 987 Spyder being a special model.
The car looks like an easy way for Porsche to recoup the development costs of the Cayman GT4.
Looking at the pictures what I know (and don't...) it seems to me like Porsche greenlighted this Boxster after the surprising feedback they got from the Cayman GT4, so they figured they might as well put the extra bits on a Boxster for more revenue.
Same engine minus 10hp, same diff, same suspension, same brakes, same wheels, same bumper, same spoiler, same interior (seats, steering wheel, door pulls), virtually the same calibration all around (ABS, PSM, etc) - job jobbed.
However I remain sceptical that the new top-end Boxster won't get any other bodywork changes. A new roof is the very least they should do for this car.
I also noticed that it doesn't have a GT4 rear bumper yet so maybe the rear is still "work in progress".
Then again the 987.2 Spyder prototype was first seen in the wild with the new roof and camouflaged humps 7 months (April 2009 - see picture below) before the announcement (Nov 2009), the new Spyder/GT4 release is rumored to take place in 5 months. Plus they didn't launch the Cayman R and Spyder at the same time which arguably left more time for development. Time will tell.
Looking at the pictures what I know (and don't...) it seems to me like Porsche greenlighted this Boxster after the surprising feedback they got from the Cayman GT4, so they figured they might as well put the extra bits on a Boxster for more revenue.
Same engine minus 10hp, same diff, same suspension, same brakes, same wheels, same bumper, same spoiler, same interior (seats, steering wheel, door pulls), virtually the same calibration all around (ABS, PSM, etc) - job jobbed.
However I remain sceptical that the new top-end Boxster won't get any other bodywork changes. A new roof is the very least they should do for this car.
I also noticed that it doesn't have a GT4 rear bumper yet so maybe the rear is still "work in progress".
Then again the 987.2 Spyder prototype was first seen in the wild with the new roof and camouflaged humps 7 months (April 2009 - see picture below) before the announcement (Nov 2009), the new Spyder/GT4 release is rumored to take place in 5 months. Plus they didn't launch the Cayman R and Spyder at the same time which arguably left more time for development. Time will tell.
Edited by EricE on Thursday 11th December 12:51
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