Up until now, the Boxster hasn’t been able, even in top S guise, to threaten the base 911. Understandably, Porsche has been careful to keep its rear-engine icon always a step or two ahead of the popular roadster model.
However, Car&Driver magazine thinks that with the new 991 and 981, i.e. the seventh generation 911 and the third generation Boxster, the scales might have tipped in favor of the latter.
Both cars are powered by the same 3.4-liter flat-six and feature a new electric steering, which has caused some criticism. The 911, though, has its engine hung out in the back, as it has done for the past four decades, while the Boxster sports a mid-engine layout.
To make up for the 911’s 35HP power advantage, Jethro Bovingdon, who in his spare time from Evo moonlights as a contributor to C&D’s Abroad Features, pitted a bog standard Carrera 2 against a Boxster S equipped with the electronically controlled PASM suspension and torque vectoring rear differential.
The two siblings fought against each other both on track and on the Santa Pod speedway. On paper, performance is practically identical: the Boxster S posts a 0-60 mph time of 4.8 seconds versus the 911’s 4.6 and its 173 mph top speed is an insignificant 6 mph lower.
Its US$60,900 base price, though, is a steal compared to the US$82,100 Porsche North America asks for a no-frills 911.
You can watch the video that follows after the jump to find out the outcome of this sibling rivalry.
By Andrew Tsaousis
VIDEO