Pictures of the 2003 Porsche Boxster, and Porsche Boxster S, and information on all 986 Porsches.

2003 PORSCHE BOXSTER
Engines

The 2003 Boxster changes might look like a cosmetic exercise to boost the sales of a model as it approaches the end of its life, but there's nothing cosmetic about the introduction of VarioCam to the Boxster range.

Porsche Boxster VarioCam System

According to Porsche "this ingenious technology uses a rotary vane adjuster on the intake camshaft to modify intake valve timing. As well as enhancing power and torque, the system offers smoother performance, improved fuel economy and lower exhaust emissions."  And we have to agree that it works beautifully; the engine feels as sweet as anything across its entire band - response is instant, at low revs you feel like you have tonnes of torque to provide effortless acceleration, and yet at the top end the power surges like nothing else.

We can't comment on the improved fuel consumption - the OBC (On Board Computer) on our 2003 Boxster S reports a pretty steady 22 mpg under fairly hard town and country driving with lots of stops and starts, and we don't have comparative figures for the earlier model.  Seems fairly good for a performance car, though it's a fair bit less than the official combined figure of 26.7 mpg (equivalent to 10.5l/100km).

Porsche also claim that the new system gives you 'two engines in one' but we think this might give the wrong idea - this is nothing like the effect you get from the high lift cam systems favoured by Japanese manufacturers such as Toyota - Their VVTLi System used on the Celica, and soon to be available in the Lotus Elise, does a tremendous job to provide 190 bhp from a 1.8 litre engine; but it has to be revved like mad, and the shift from normal to high lift is a step change.  VarioCam is invisible to the driver, continuously changing the valve timing to give optimum torque and power at all revs - there's no nasty step change, just effortless power at all engine speeds.

Full stats on the old and new engines are:-

Boxster

The standard Boxster gets an increase of 8bhp and peak torque is unchanged, though it arrives 50rpm sooner.  But this doesn't tell the full story - a look at the performance graph shows that the improvement, although minor, goes right across the rev range, adding vital flexibility to an already potent package.

Boxster S

And the Boxster S similarly gets an extra 8bhp power to an awesome 260bhp, and peak torque is up a few percent at 310Nm at a slightly higher (than the old S) 4,600 rpm.  Again, the flexibility is improved across the range, making VarioCam a very welcome addition to this already fabulous engine.

Is it co-incidence that the top speed for every combination of engine and gearbox is up by a solitary 1 mph?

To go with the new valve mechanism, Porsche report that the exhaust system has been revised.  The new style fits nicely with the changes to the rear valance of the body kit, and affords a great sound - though so did the old one, so no change there.

2004 Boxster Engine

There were no significant revisions to the engine for 2004.