A Long-Awaited Boxster Drive

Yesterday, I drove the Boxster (981 GTS) for the first time in a while. Whenever I get behind the wheel of our Porsche, I always write “It’s been a while…,” but this time, I honestly couldn’t even remember the last time I drove the Boxster—it had been that long.

Usually, I drive my beloved Swift Sport (MT).

It’s been a year since I took delivery, and I drive it almost every day, so I was a little excited thinking, “Now’s the time to show what I’ve learned about driving a manual…!” as I set off.

While I love my Swift Sport for its fun factor, the 981 Boxster GTS was on another level!

I was reminded once again that this car combines fun beyond imagination with an incredible sense of exhilaration.

At the same time, the ride felt even smoother and more supple than before.

It’s as if the Boxster has matured—not just a wild child anymore, but also showing a more refined, grown-up side…

My mother-in-law, who had just returned from a hot spring trip with my husband in the Boxster, said, “The ride in this Porsche was amazing~” with delight. Indeed, whether in the driver’s seat or passenger’s, the smoothness of the ride remained consistent, making it a comfortable car that never tires you out no matter how long you’re in it.

My First Time Blipping Myself

But the biggest takeaway from this Boxster drive was that I was finally able to blip the throttle myself and experience that amazing feeling for the first time.

I’d heard before that modern Porsches don’t encourage drivers to blip the throttle themselves on public roads, and the pedal layout is slightly less conducive to blipping actually recommend heel-and-toe less, and the pedal arrangement reflects that, but during yesterday’s drive, I didn’t feel that at all.

To think that the Boxster I once struggled so much with would one day be a car I could drive like this… it’s truly moving to look back on.

When I first started driving the Swift Sport a year ago, my husband said,

“If you want, you should practice every day until you can blip the throttle yourself.”

At the time, I thought, “No way! That’s impossible!” But I gave it a try. At first, I’d get harsh shift shocks or not blip enough, ending up riding the clutch halfway, so naturally, it didn’t go well.

However, with daily practice, I gradually got used to it, and now I can blip the throttle with joy.

It really is true that “practice makes perfect.”

Thanks to that practice, when I blipped the throttle myself in the Boxster, it felt incredible—truly, I experienced for the first time the sensation of running with the Boxster on my own timing and with my own hands.

Of course, if you leave it to auto-blip (in the 981 GTS, auto-blip is ON in Sport Plus mode), it does a much better job than I ever could, and it feels great.

But on the other hand, you still feel like someone else is controlling it.

In that sense, being able to blip the throttle yourself multiplies the fun of driving a manual car many times over.

“I can’t get enough of this! I don’t think I’ll ever go back to auto-blip now… it’s just that fun!” I kept saying, and my husband replied,

“Yeah, auto-blip is smart and great, but when I’m driving on the Royu or other beautiful roads, I switch to Sport mode (in the 981 GTS, Sport mode doesn’t enable auto-blip) and blip the throttle myself.
When the timing is just right, the feeling is indescribable.
I can’t help but grin.”

When I finally got comfortable driving the MT Boxster, I wrote a blog post saying I was “relying on auto-blip to drive.” Then I received a comment saying, “It’s even more fun when you can blip yourself.”

At the time, I thought, “I get that, but there’s no way I can do that right now,” and I was halfway ready to give up. But on this day, I truly felt from the bottom of my heart, “I’m so glad I didn’t give up and kept practicing manual driving.”

The world of cars is deep.
There’s still so much fun and excitement I haven’t discovered yet.

As I open each door, I feel myself getting more and more hooked… (laughs) but for now, I want to keep going at my own pace and see how far I can go.

And when my kids are a little older, it’s my dream to drive this Boxster with my husband on scenic roads, so until then, I’ll steadily hone my driving skills.