2011 Porsche Boxster Spyder Road Test Video

By Edmunds Video Productions | Published January 06, 2010

3:41 min

The Porsche Boxster has not led a glorified life in the eyes of enthusiasts.� Lighter, meaner and more focused, the 2011 Porsche Boxster Spyder intends to shift the Boxster�s focus back where it belongs: to driving � fast. Inside Line put this new roadster through it�s paces to see if Porsche actually pulled it off.

The Spyder�s weight reduction of 134 pounds doesn�t seem like a lot, but it brings the car under the magic 3,000-pound mark.

The nips and tucks include cloth door pulls instead of traditional levers, shorter side glass, lightweight Boxster Spyder-specific 19- inch wheels and a simple, manually operated soft top in place of the customary power-operated convertible top.

Operating the soft top isn�t difficult, but you will have to get out of the car for this one. It�s a nine-step process that takes about two minutes. The 12-pound top and its lightweight carbon-fiber frame stow neatly it in the trunk.

We found that open-top motoring is where the 2,900-pound roadster really shines.

The Boxster Spyder�s 3.4-liter flat-6 engine now makes 320 horsepower at 7,200 rpm, a 10-horsepower boost over the engine of the Boxster S. While our test car is equipped with a six-speed manual transmission, the dual-clutch Porsche PDK automated manual is optional.

On a dragstrip, the combination of lightweight Boxster Spyder and six-speed manual takes the car to the quarter-mile in 12.9 seconds at 109.4 mph.

Think of it, all this in a car that your little sister actually covets. The Spyder is even more impressive in our handling tests, even with relatively everyday Bridgestone tires, as it threads the slalom at 72.3 mph and holds the skid pad with 0.99g of cornering grip.

Optional Carbon-ceramic brakes shave 6.6 lbs, cost $8,100 and are complete overkill. This car with standard brakes records a best stop of 102 feet without a hint of fade or drama.

Low weight? Manual top? Cloth door pulls? This must be more penalty box than Porsche, right? Not quite. While air conditioning is absent from our test car, it is still equipped with a leather and suede upholstery package, navigation system with iPod integration, adaptive HID headlights and self-dimming mirrors. That�s over $10,000 in options, bringing the price of this stripped-down, not-quite-a-race-car to $72,895.

Actor James Dean met his fate back in 1955 behind the wheel of the very first Porsche Spyder, a car some 2,000-pounds lighter than this Boxster. It was a tube-frame racer, impossible for the modern road, yet its spirit lives on here. Driven with authority, the Porsche Boxster Spyder is one of the quickest and most rewarding cars on the road today.

And even if most still wind up as weekend entertainment, we�ll still think of James Dean every time we see one � a true lightweight roadster and the thrill of the open road.