PORSCHE 718 BOXSTER GTS
Newly arrived, potent roadster faces great expectations. Will it live up to the hype?
FIRST REPORT
WHY WE’RE RUNNING IT To find out if this hot rod Boxster can sustain its appeal with day-to-day use
Most cars join our longterm fleet with more to gain than lose. The scope of the models we test is so very broad, and the vast majority of them aren’t about instant thrills (or, indeed, any kind of thrills); we simply don’t live in that kind of world.
Homogeneous modern cars often need time to put across what subtle charms they have and give us something to grow fond of. The Skoda Octavia vRS Rachel Burgess is running is a classic example: it’s not the most enchanting thing on first acquaintance, but it has an ability to burrow beneath your skin with months-long exposure.
The Porsche 718 Boxster GTS is a different kettle of fish and arrives with an almost crippling level of expectation from the get-go. The mechanical recipe – three pedals, six naturally aspirated cylinders, rearwheel drive – is about as juicy as it gets in 2021, and having tasted the car at launch last summer, we know how good it can make you feel when you’re chucked the keys for an hour or three. But day-to-day usability is the Achilles heel of so many sports cars, especially mid-engined ones. So having received that initial gushing praise, the hot rod of the Boxster range (the others make do with a downsized turbo flat four) is an anomaly here in that it likely has more to lose than gain while under long-term scrutiny. So, first and foremost, fair play just for showing up.