IN PEAK CONDITION
We’ve done this all wrong, right? Surely, as the Boxster turns the grand old age of twenty-five and matures into the magnificent GTS 4.0 (arguably the finest all-round package of the model to date), we really should have gone hopped into example loaded with a six-speed manual gearbox. Why did we pick a GTS 4.0 with seven-speed PDK? Tut, tut, 911&PW. Tut, tut. Hang on a second. Have we really got it wrong? Is there actually more than meets the eye here? All in good time, folks. First, we need to talk about how good the 718 Boxster GTS 4.0 is, no matter which of its transmissions you opt for.
To start, let’s get the obvious out of the way: we’re sure there will be many of you smugly muttering “told you so” when we say the 718 is revitalised by the return to a naturally aspirated, flat-six engine, following the Boxster/Cayman’s flirtation with smaller-displacement four-cylinder turbocharged units. Honestly, it’s as though this is the powerplant the Boxster has always wanted! It feels so much more than what it is: the 9A2 Evo twin-turbo three-litre motor from the 992-generation 911 Carrera, stripped of its snail-shaped bhp boosters and then handily bored out to GT Department engine to justify its lofty status in model hierarchy, the car we’re playing with is a GTS.
