What Is It?

2004 Porsche Boxster S Special Edition

What's Special About It?

The revised Boxster and, more importantly, the Boxster S are now intended to pay homage to the 550 Spyder which is celebrating its 50-year anniversary. Pushing the Boxster as the spiritual successor to the famed 550 is all well and good for marketing and PR folks, but the car needs to have some real bite to back up that claim. A special edition of the Boxster S will go on sale in early 2004 and only 1,953 (to mark the year of the early Spyder) will be made. Each special-edition S will come with a "50 years of the 550 Spyder" badge and engine output has been bumped up as well. The Boxster S gets eight more horsepower for a total of 266 bhp. The Special Edition offers a slightly higher top speed and gets to 60 mph from a stop in just 5.7 seconds. The car also receives minor improvements such as a revised shifter that offers a shorter throw for the six-speed gearbox. The Special Edition also has Porsche Stability Management (PSM) as standard equipment, and a sportier suspension. To improve handling, the commemorative edition of the Boxster S is lowered by about 10mm.

What's Edmunds' Take?

The Boxster S is already the closest thing to the original intent of early Porsches. Luckily, this commemorative edition is more than just a badge and body kit. — Kelly Stennick