Repainted hood needs to cure before I can put PaintShield on it, and I don't want any stone chips before that either ... so rest, dear beast! (Hood needed repainting due to paint blemish at delivery)

Meantime I have the ol' chipped 2000 S4 6-spd, so no need to feel sorry for me.

Sometimes I think about getting something besides the S4 for a second car -- something different, like a ragtop, so that I don't still have two 4-door performance sedans. Problem is, I like the S4 so much, it's hard to think of something I would enjoy more, and my new car budget was shot by the RS6. Anything come to mind for about the price of my used S4, i.e. around $25-27K? I still want some performance if possible, but a little less thirst for gasoline would be welcomed too. On this budget I favor handling, braking and structural rigidity over acceleration. Those also rule over whether there's a back seat or not; I care less about that than having a little storage.

I also had a 2000 chipped s4 and traded it in for a 225 TT roadster. I enjoy it, but do I ever miss the S4. With winter coming, however, now's the time to grab a ragtop.

Which is our top down car. Can carry 4.

Perhaps not quite as sporting as some cars, but certainly fun to drive around. I try to drive it once a week. ( the only manual in the inventory at the moment... )

I must admit that the TT-R 3.2 is a very tempting third car. That DSG tranny is intriguing.

you can get a used one for your price range and there's no better sports car if you value handling, braking and rigidity.

In the future, Boxsters will be laughable. They are as fake a Porsche as the Mondail was a Ferrari.

Personally, I dont like them at all. Yes, they handle well, but don't be sad when a 18yr old in a Z28 puts the smack down on you at a stoplight (go ahead a rationalize why you don't care about that).

These are just my opinions, so don't go getting too bent out of shape. My vote is for an old classic. A mid 60's Vette would make a great weekend car.

And if it's not a 1993 model, what year is it & how's it holding up rattle-wise? TIA for anything else you care to share, including what I might get year-wise on my mid-20s budget.

I've driven both and like them, plus they can be had in my mid-20s budget, and the Vet coupe's removable roof is OK with me as a convertible alternative. Also liked the Boxster, tho I'll keep your thoughts in mind. I've never driven a Saab (mentioned by Randy) because of past concerns about reliability and too few dealers. I drove the TT roadster and found it to be less rigid than I want.

Has anyone here put some serious miles on any of the cars mentioned here? Please share!!!

I recently sold my S4 to my brother when I purchased an RS6. He has an S2000 which I have driven, and I would say that, for the money, that what I would choose. It feels pretty rigid, handles great and should be reliable. Agree with you on the TT. Saab nice, but not really a sports car.

It's got a few squeaks around the windows with the top up, but it's held up really quite well IMHO.

For 20K you could eaisly get into as 2000-2001 9-3 Turbo convertible.

I'm starting to reject the Vet for reliability issues vs. the S2000, but I plan to look up repair records for both in Consumer Reports -- along with the Saab.

I am somewhat of a saab nut as well. The convertible makes saab number 6. Could have gotten a newer one but we wanted a classic 900.

to drive, more than fast enough and handles like a go cart. It feels faster than the Boxter S, Drove both back to back about a month ago with my father-in-law, he bought the Porsche, but that was more to do with status etc, than anything else. I thought the Z was more fun! Of course you can always get a Miata and send it to Millen for some real cheap fun!

I also ran across a guy with a new (03) S2000, willing to sell for $30K. Then I realized the new improved 04 S2000 is on its way, priced in low 30s like the Z.

So, the new plan could be this: Sell my black beauty S4 now, before it undergoes 6 months of depreciation from sitting in my Michigan garage all winter, and put away the cash. Then, spend the winter trying to scrounge up another $5-$10K for a better car next May or June -- when I'll need it.

Whaddya think? The toughest part is selling my S4; it's such a great car....

Porsches have never been about going brutally fast in a straight line. Boxsters are some of the best handling cars ever produced. In my mind, it is probably one of the best Porsches ever produced, better than the 996. It is everything a Porsche is - excellent and accessible handling, practical in terms of reliability, luggage space and ride and so forth. I have driven lots of cars including a Modena, NSX's etc, and the Boxster comes up pretty favorably as a car that allows you to go to the fullest of your ability on a track and appreciate rather than be frightful of that experience. Sure, Porsches are overpriced and even the original stiff body structure is beginning to feel like marshmellow against the latest and greatest. But that doesn't prevent the Boxster from becoming a bigger legend than the 924/944/968 or 928 in the longer term future.
I see that you have a Vette, a car that I appreciate very much too, but a Boxster is excellent in its own ways that the Vette is.