The most treasured model in Porsche's history, the Spyder,
is about to take to the road again! The German company has announced
the release of a new lightweight, driver-focused version of the
mid-engined Boxster, known as the Boxster Spyder. 
Renowned for its responsive handling and excellent brakes, the original Boxster package is hard to improve, but that hasn't stopped the Porsche engineers from trying. 
Inspired by the 1954 550 Spyder, which stood only three-feet high and weighed a slender 550kg, the Boxster Spyder sports a new, low-slung silhouette with a lightweight, low-lying soft-top and windows.
Completing
the look is a pair of humps which extend across the boot-lid to the
rear spoiler and transform the normally awkward looking Boxster into something that more closely resembles the Carrera GT supercar.
Due
to be unveiled at the Los Angeles Motor Show in December, the new car
weighs in at just 1,275kg, which is 80kg less than the Boxster S and enough to make it the lightest Porsche on sale today.
>>WATCH THE BOXSTER SPYDER IN ACTION HERE
Under the bonnet, the Spyder uses Porsche's tried and tested 3.4-litre 'boxer' engine, newly tweaked to put out 320bhp. The uprated engine can be paired with a standard six-speed manual gearbox or the PDK
twin-clutch system, which has now done away with its counter-intuitive
steering wheel mounted controls in favour of a pair of paddle-shifters.
Porsche claims that a Spyder, fitted with the optional PDK gearbox and Sports Chrono Pack will sprint to 60mph in a blistering 4.8 seconds, that's almost a second quicker than a PDK equipped Boxster S. Top speed is more familiar, with the Spyder's top speed of 166mph only 3mph more than the S.
Renowned for its responsive handling and excellent brakes, the original Boxster
package is hard to improve, but that hasn't stopped the Porsche
engineers from trying. A lower centre of gravity coupled with a
slightly revised suspension set-up allows the Spyder to be even more agile than its predecessor.
However, the new Porsche isn't just about torque and tyresmoke; consumption figures of 30.4mpg, again with the optional PDK gearbox, should help cut down time spent at the pumps and should also save around £200 a year in road tax over the standard Boxster S.
The new Spyder will go on sale in February 2010. Priced at £44,643 the Spyder is almost identically priced to Audi'd TT RS Roadster and undercuts the SLK 55 AMG by £5,000.
Included in the price is a chance for customers to test the limits of their new Spyder, by taking to the track at Silverstone with a special Porsche-run driving experience.
Read our drive of Mercedes' SLS
Read our scoop on Jaguar's new C-Type
Reading the report,hopefully no as the boxster as the 944 did before it kept the company alive and too many they did it on the basis of a great product,having owned both models the current boxster S for the road is as good as this in my view and personally the shape to spyder does not enhance its appeal or looks,though in truth the contest is Verus the Caymen 3.4 as a drivers car and in many thats still the model to beat ? value for money a 3.4 S Boxster is still the better offering for value.
Horrible version - they could have saved even more weight by not including the ugly raised engine cover.
And that "tent" roof is definitely dodgy - more appropriate on a kit car than a Porsche.
Could only make sense in the sun of California.
Now if it looked like the visual in the Porsche Spyder returns article, fair enough - but it doesn't.
And to write"transform the normally awkward looking Boxster"!!!!??? SpecSavers voucher in the post.
'....inspired by the legendary James Dean 550 Spyder.....' mmmmmmmmmmmmm..... seems more like a desperate attempt to keep an old dog alive.....
By dllywelyn on 5 November, 2009, 9:40am