“The Car That Saved Porsche”
In the early 1990s, Porsche was on the verge of bankruptcy. Porsche needed an affordable, new model to uplift their aging brand. As two-seat roadsters became more popular, Porsche created the 986 Boxster, a mid-engine roadster inspired by the 550 Spyder of the 1950s. The Porsche Boxster quickly became the company’s best-selling model. With the Boxster’s success, along with the later-produced Cayenne (2003), Porsche became the most profitable automobile manufacturer in the industry by 2007. The Porsche Boxster has since been dubbed, “The Car That Saved Porsche”.
This 1997 Porsche Boxster is a first model-year Boxster, internally designated 986 for the first-generation (1996-2004 production). The “Boxster” name refers to the 2.5-Liter “boxer” flat-six engine. The mid-engine layout provides flawless handling with a low center of gravity and near-perfect weight distribution. The car features Porsche’s Tiptronic S 5-speed automatic transmission, double overhead cams, matte-black 17-inch rims with matching Porsche center caps, and only 44,000 original miles.
