itīs hard to believe but thatīs 12 seconds faster than the 987 and also faster than a CTS-V, C6, C63 or R8 V8!

 

I have to ask the same question every time manufacturer's 1st release a nurburgring lap time - exactly what tires were used?

 

a valid question!
it hasn`t been confirmed yet which tires they used for the record run.
The new 991 clocked a 7:40 on the (new) stock Pirellis.
so i guess they used the same tires here but itīs just a guess.

 

wonder what the boxster spyder did...

 

nm...

 

This thread has got my attention when it betters the C6/R8(V8)!

Way to go Boxster!

 

As far as I can tell, there has not been an official 'Ring time for the Spyder yet. No idea why. I would assume it would be similar to the Cayman R's time of 8:06.

http://www.fastestlaps.com/cars/pors...er_spyder.html

The new 981 is certainly faster, but at what cost? From the Motor Trend review: 2013 Porsche Boxster S First Drive - Motor Trend

"Part of the unspoken contract between sports car and owner is that there will be a tradeoff in ride quality and all other manner of coddling. In return for putting up with steering that must be constantly minded, a sensitive throttle pedal, and the rest, the car will be more exciting to drive. The Boxster's lost some of that. The edge has dulled slightly and the result is a more mature, less emotional car. For the average consumer, that's probably a reasonable tradeoff, but not for the people who truly enjoy driving. The Boxster S, then, is a better-performing car than ever before, but not an entirely better car to my mind. Thankfully, it hasn't oscillated too far from critical mass, and it can always oscillate back if Porsche wants it to."

 

Ouch, not what I wanted to hear. Largely echoes my feelings about what's happened to the 911. I think the longer wheelbase and wider tracks in both cars have a lot to do with it. I may be hanging on to my current Porsches longer than I expected ...

 

Larger wheelbase is good for stability and such but can take away a bit of rotation and ability to be tossed around.. Electric steering and electric parking brakes etc can take some fun away too... Chris Harris mentioned that he didn't think the traction control can be 100% turned off anymore either...

I knew most of that an in conjunction with being inpatient, led me to purchase the spyder

 

That's exactly what I thought... I'm impressed.

BUT - I think I would be scared out of my mind to take corners as fast as needed to achieve that time. Count me out...

 

That's the best part!

 

Corners get my blood pumping! Im happy to see the female 911 is doing its thing

 

Oh, I don't disagree - corners are more fun than straight lines... BUT - the cars it was up against corner pretty fast AND have bigger engines. I already think the R8/C6 times were impressive, but the Boxster's engine is smaller, and would have less acceleration at those speeds, so to offset, it slows less (and shorter distance because of weight), and carries more speed through a corner, in order to keep up with or surpass the bigger V8's. That would indicate the cornering speed would be greater than that of the V8's.

I guess I'm equating running 160mph in a GT-R (not very nerve wracking), vs 160mph in a go-kart (which is how the Boxster felt by comparison). I think that would kill me.

 

Lets hope it doesn't actually kill me ... It's a momentum car.. Gonna make me work hard

On a tight course it would be much closer.. Car and driver did pretty well in the "lightning laps" with the spyder/cayman R .. At VIR... Which still has a couple long straights and is more of a high speed track..

 

yeah, but you guys should take into account that the platform of the C6 and R8 are at least 5 years old and that the 981 is brand new.
i doubt a 981 could hang with a new C7 or a revised R8. Still very impressive!!