Boxster MT Practice

The new year had begun—January 2, 2019. With my daughters looked after by my mother-in-law, my husband and I set out to practice driving the Boxster GTS (MT) together. Until now, my husband had driven from our home to the practice spots (Royu Driveway or quiet parking lots), and I would take over after we arrived. But that day, for the first time, I decided to drive from home myself.

Thanks to the body cover from Nakabayashi Kogyo, the Boxster, which had been parked outdoors, looked spotless.

Three years since I gave up my automatic-only license… finally, finally I’d come this far (laughs).

First Time Driving the Boxster in Town!

I told myself, “If it’s a tricky hill, just press the parking brake button, and if anything happens, flash the hazard lights and stop. It’s okay, stay calm.” and set off.

The toughest part right after leaving was getting from the parking lot onto the road, but I managed somehow. After that, I was able to drive without any major issues for a while. Thinking, “It’s the New Year holidays, so the main roads must be crowded,” I decided to take the mountain roads and head to Sanda.

However, that day’s driving was rough—every time I shifted gears, like from 2nd to 3rd or 4th to 3rd, the shift shock was big and the car jolted harshly. My husband even said, “What’s going on? You’re worse than before, lol.” I couldn’t recall the feel of shifting smoothly and kept wondering, “Why? Why is this happening…”

Meanwhile, my husband was sitting beside me, saying things like:

“Was the Boxster always this hard to corner?”
“Feels like today’s Boxster is off—like it weighs 2.5 tons or something.”
“Looks like the Boxster might fall asleep.”

He was just teasing (laughs). But as he gave me advice, I got more confused, and eventually every time I operated the clutch, my foot thrashed wildly from knee to thigh. My husband said,

“What’s with your foot? It’s moving like a heavy metal drummer, lol.”

Then, a small kei car behind started tailgating us, so I thought,

Nope! I can’t do this anymore (；ﾟДﾟ)!!

and handed the wheel back to my husband.

Driving the Boxster with My Husband at the Wheel

I rode shotgun for a while, reviewing the basics of MT driving with my husband’s coaching…

As soon as my husband got behind the wheel, the Boxster’s expression seemed to change… it suddenly came alive like a fish in water. It was so lively, with a crisp, popping sound, and it cornered sharply and confidently.

The Boxster… can change so much depending on who’s driving it…

It felt like I was in a completely different car. Recently, my husband has been frequently touring in his air-cooled Porsche 911 (964C2), learning to master the RR sports car by trial and error with weight transfer in corners, throttle control, and braking. It seemed he had gotten much better than before.

During this, he said things like:

“You need to listen more to the car’s sound. When the revs rise, shift up so the sound flows smoothly.”

“Try imagining the car’s mechanics as you drive. Like, the clutch is just about to engage… oh, now it’s connected! Think about that.”

“Your cornering line isn’t good, so it’s hard to turn and you have to keep adjusting the steering. Focus more on the clipping points.”

“Clutch work is important, but so is throttle control. Don’t just stomp the gas like an automatic; be delicate and smooth.”

“I think your driving position isn’t right. You should check it carefully before you start.”

I replied, “Yeah, I get it, but if it were that easy, I wouldn’t be struggling so much.” Then I took the wheel again.

First, I checked my driving position. The Boxster’s clutch is heavy, so maybe I was tensing up unnecessarily because my seat position was off. Also, my sneakers didn’t fit quite right, so I’d need better shoes. (I once wanted Negrolini driving shoes but they only had men’s sizes that didn’t fit me.)

Feeling refreshed, I set off again, trying to make my shifts smooth—but the big jolts kept coming. When I tried to be careful, I ended up taking too long to release the clutch and got stuck…

Hmm, this is tough (*_*)

After about an hour of driving, we stopped at a convenience store. I stalled repeatedly on a tricky hill but managed to park. It was already 1:30 pm. Neither of us had eaten lunch, so we grabbed a quick bite in about a minute, then my husband took the wheel again.

We stopped by the Royu Driveway on the way home.

Heading to Royu Driveway!

When we visited at the end of the year, there was snow on the Royu Driveway, and that day was no different. The road had signs warning of “ice on the road.” I thought, “Well, of course,” and decided to do several laps from the Higashi Rokko Observatory down to the toll gate.

Because I was nervous about the icy road, I drove cautiously in 3rd gear the whole time, slowly descending the hill.

My husband in the passenger seat asked,

“So, what exactly is this practice for, lol?”

I replied, “I honestly don’t know anymore. I’m out of HP and MP—I need to stay at an inn.” and started saying nonsense. Since it was my longest MT drive yet, I gradually got tired (I always get tired and stop practicing eventually), and we ended up in some dangerous situations like:

Me: I try to start but the car won’t move, I stall!
Husband: You’re holding the brake the whole time. No wonder it won’t move.

Husband: Stop! There’s an oncoming car!
Me: I can’t see it at all, I’ll let it go first (-_-)

So we called it a day and my husband drove us home.

Boxster Driving: Patience and No Rush

In the previous practice, I had enjoyed the Boxster’s roar and started feeling confident, thinking “I might be able to drive this on normal roads now~.” But after driving it in town for the first time that day, I painfully realized “there’s still a long way to go.”

Also, since my husband has been driving the 964 more lately and gotten better, I was vividly reminded that “the same car drives so differently depending on the driver,” which completely crushed my fighting spirit (laughs). He also said,

“You’ve driven about 120 km today. If you drive 100 times that, you’ll get good.”

I thought, “One hundred times… (；ﾟДﾟ)” and felt even more overwhelmed. Well, compared to when I was (rolling my eyes and foaming at the mouth) at the start, I have improved a lot.

For now, if I want to enjoy the Boxster’s driving, it’s easier to ride shotgun, and with the Panamera, the car does all the hard work so it’s fun to drive. So I’ll enjoy Porsche’s driving pleasure there for a while… and take my time, be patient, and steadily work on mastering the Boxster’s manual transmission. (Though saying that, the GT3 Touring MT might arrive before I get there.)

…Two days after writing this, I went for a drive in the air-cooled 911 (964C2) with an automatic. At start and stop, the car moved without me thinking, which felt unsatisfying. At the same time, I felt “If I get too used to the ease of an automatic, I might lose my edge.” and found myself missing the MT. I never expected to feel this way… what a surprise. I’ll keep working hard on my MT practice, lol.

Here are the previous Boxster practice articles:

→Until the Day I Can Master the Boxster GTS (MT) – Vol.1
→Until the Day I Can Master the Boxster GTS (MT) – Vol.2
→Until the Day I Can Master the Boxster GTS (MT) – Vol.3
→Until the Day I Can Master the Boxster GTS (MT) – Vol.4