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40PSI is a lot for a Boxster with it's relatively fat tires. I consider this the maximum HOT temperature. 40/40 usually produces lots of Oversteer(ie rear end comes around). On street tires: 32/26 COLD produces mild understeer. 34/36 COLD produces mild oversteer. 29/36 FACTORY recommended produces the kind of massive understeer I used to experience driving my high school sweetheart's '75 Toyota Celica. IMO opinion a Boxster should not corner like a Celica.

re>>there was a boxster from cal. published in excellence mag....called his a gt-r or gt3-r<< that car was for sale a few months ago - might still be for sale If you are thinking supercharger type mods - I'd recommend the cheapest boxster you can find and transplant a 3.4L 911 and MOD that up. It might cost $20-$25K once you did engine, brakes, suspension, header, chips, cams etc. another $10K+ if you do body mods. The biggest advantages of S over base are engine and brakes. If you are going to be moding the engine, the S doesn't get as much out of supercharging and headers so the gap in initial engine performance pretty much disappears. The price gap between a base Boxster and an S is too large to do it just for the bigger brakes and a 3rd radiator. If you are coming from a Viper, all stock boxsters are going to feel pretty wussy - no scratch in 3rd at 40MPH in a boxster!

re >how to check if my 2002 has mo30 ?< read the sticker inside the hood. probably less than 20% of Boxsters were delivered with M030. Some folks went aftermarket on 030 because the rest of the world(ROW) 030 is about 1/2 inch lower on the springs. Other than that, you can try reading the paint colors on the springs. ooops - Since your signature file shows you have H&R springs and front and rear stabilizer bars, whatever setup you have is not factory (M030 or otherwise.) The only way to tell how good you have is to test it out and see how she drives! Until the new PSS9 suspension, H&Rs were the most talked about aftermarket choice. enjoy!

That 71.6mph is an S with M030 - If you don't have the 030 Factory tuned suspension, expect your speeds to be down a little bit (towards the Carrera numbers)

Reliability on the Boxster is above average(for all makes of cars). A 2002 is warranted for 2 more years - a 2000 is going out(or already out) of warrantee. These cars are good enogh that I wouldn't hesitate to spend $3000-5000 less for a 2000 than a 2002 - then again, I plan to keep my Boxster for 10-30 more years. The only reason I would chose a 97-99 2.5L is as a platform for a 3.4L engine swap. The handling is sweet on all Boxsters, but the engine needs more grunt. Heck, My 02S needs more grunt :) The Boxster S comes with better brakes as well as 50 more HP than the 2.7L base Boxster. The brakes on the S are so good, that I use stock pads at the track for DE with no noticable fade. The S gets worse mileage(13-18?) than the base Boxster (16-22?), but it uses the gas up more enthusiastically. Expect to be buying premium gas, oil and tires. 13 quarts of synthetic oil (in the S) costs a minimum of $65 for a doit yourself oil change, $125+ at the dealer. I'm a fan of the factory 030 suspension upgrade or the new PSS9 aftermarket springs. 18" wheels are great for California and the west, they ride pretty rough on the east coast potholes. I'm a believer in PSM(Porsche Stability Management) unless you have previous experience in a Viper, Porsche Turbo, BMW M series, late model Corvette, or some other moderately light weight muscle car. Most boxsters did not come with PSM. When I bought my Boxster I thought I was buying just another convertible - it is truly amazing how this car turns a driver into an enthusiast! I never expected I would take this car to the race track - but I did it 4 times. I never expected to drive in speeds over 130 MPH - but I have done it countless times. I have probably been grinning and smiling over 30,000 of my 33,000 miles with this car. Enjoy your experience!

re:>>From what little I know forced induction on a motor with an 11 to 1 compression ratio is like playing with a hand grenade, but it sure was fun while it lasted.<< My best friend had an engine from a 62 olds Jetfire. The Jetfire's 10.25:1 compression gave 215 HP @ 4800 and 300 lb/ft @ 3200. This was a 215 cu alumimum V8 using 1962 technology! He ran it successfully with 15-16 lbs boost. The secret of the Jetfire engine was to build it strong - torquing the head required a trip to the manual, since it is not an intuitive pattern for a cylinder bank with 18 main bolts. The Boxster engine isn't built with 6-bolt mains - so one has to be a quite a bit gentler.

How did you do the white 'Porsche' lettering over the red intake paint?

Is there another dealership? From this and the other post, it sounds like you don't trust/communicate well with this dealership.

re: how do you get the seat off? I used a 3/8, the first couple of times, then had my local autoparts store order me the E12 socket (reverse Torx). Next season, I hope to go to a seat actually made for 5-6pt harness so I didn't want to pay BK prices for a single season's use of an extinguisher mount.

The other brake caliper thread recommends testor's #1103

re: Only 1 part to stock rather than 2. That argument would be more convincing if they hadn't already gone to the expense of developing two different styles that have to be stocked anyway. Plus the markup vs shipping on these parts must be quite attractive to the dealership. I might grant you the argument if you were talking about the dash board with the in-dash Glove compartment. If I were a dealer network, I'd only stock the glove box version and talk folks into an upgrade when it needs replacing.

The "hooded" photo in the original post is from 996 & 03/04 Boxster. The "winged" photo above is 97-02 Boxster. As far as I know, the trim piece difference is just that - a trim piece difference. I con't see why Porsche bothered to change the 03-04 Boxster to look like a 911, I prefer the original Boxster look.

This is indeed a more powerful throatier sound. It might be more than I want in my residential neighborhood in the wee hours of the morning. Are these sound files with the bypass valve rigged open? , or is this 'stock' bypass valve operation? also, some folks have had good luck recording wheel and engine noise by mounting the microphone inside the trunk.

So I opened my gas cap the other day and found a loose part. It doesn't seem very important, but it looks like it could be a Porsche part. Can anyone identify it?

in Normal driving - absolutely no benefit in track driving - If you have already upgraded to Motul, ATE or higher quality brake fluid AND you bleed your brakes before every track day and replace your brake fluid at least once a year, AND you run Pagid Orange of higher brake pads AND you still experience brake fade on the track, AND you already have Boxster S/996 front brakes, you may receive some benefit. Unless you are running a 3.2/3.4/Supercharger it is very unlikely that the Boxster S brakes with well maintained brake fluid can't handle anything short of an all out 30 minute enduro race with a heavy braker at the wheel. Your experience may vary, but this particular upgrade is something that is purely esthetic for all but the select few drivers who actually race a Boxster Ad Sach