986 tiptronic? ?

[stevemag]

Hello everybody, 

Well I've been the proud owner of a boxster 986 2.7 for over 12months now. Love the car, especially the colour scheme.

But

I may need to sell and go to an automatic /tiptronic version.

Long story short......I've developed " Parkinsons " 

Nothing I can do at this moment in time as I'm awaiting the definitive answer from dvla on my license. ........

(Like watching paint dry! !!)

I want to stay with boxster 986 model so am considering a 3.2 tiptronic 

Any good???

Our everyday car is an automatic transmission suzuki swift 

 

I shall seek exactly the same colour scheme. ......I love the classic porsche racing colours.eg. ....

Until then any information gratefully received 

[mike597]

Never driven a tip but I would suspect a 3.2 tip would be a good choice coming from a manual 2.7. Like all autos you need a bit of a different techno to ensure you're in the optimal gear.  I believe the tips all come with steering wheel buttons which some have converted into paddles.  I think @Nobbieis a convert.

Of course the step up a gen 2 987 and PDK, would be a whole new ballgame... 

[GmanB]

Hi @stevemag 

Firstly so sorry to hear about your diagnosis, I feel for you. Rest assured the tips are great fun, you just need to learn how to use them.

They do need some work at times, the full auto mode doesn't select the correct gear sometimes when you floor it. To anticipate this you can simply use the buttons Mile mentions above and select the correct gear. It is programmed to not red line, which is great so even if you hit the down shift button too many times, it keeps you engine safe.

The tip box is not like a normal auto box though, it's a 5 speed on 986 and gear change is slow compared to the more modern PDK, but it certainly does not mean you won't enjoy it, you just need to learn to anticipate gear changes earlier, which you will learn from driving one.

So, I read recently that not all the tip boxes, actually just manually over-ride full auto, my 2003 facelift certainly does, so maybe worth researching that first before purchasing. 

Another great functions is a quick double tap on the accelerator peddle will put the box in optimum gear for acceleration. Very handy when approaching a clear roundabout or corner at high speed. 

The tip box, in my opinion, is also the only box to choose if you use the car daily and do some decent mileage. After all I've heard about heavy clutches, I'm really glad I bought a tip as mine is a daily. 

Generally the box will use 2nd gear from a stand still to pull away, unless you completely floor it or force 1st in semi mode.

I recently had a gearbox oil change and everything is so much better!. The only faults I can mention really are:

1.) Slow gear change compared to PDK (but should still beat a manual off the lights).

2,) Gear change from 2nd to 1st is makes a clunk on my box when slowing down slowly (if that makes sense, doesn't do it if I'm breaking hard. Obviously only when in semi-manual mode). 

Probably way too much info here, but hopefully gives you an idea of my experience with a tip

Cheers

[GmanB]

Sorry a few beers in now, but just wanted to add that the gear ratios are a bit odd, but that's not to say you can't adapt. The tip box on an S model rarely uses 1st (and that's probably why my box clunks a bit down shifting to first) on default. So basically, driving normally, the standard setup is 4 gears.

5th (and top gear) doesn't seem right when you can get 115-120 mph from fourth. You could easily get better economy from a 6th (overdrive gear). As mentioned previously 1st is rarely used unless you are nailing her, therefore, the ratio doesn't seem correct to me for normal driving.

One final comment, my car seems to want to use 1st in auto mode when starting from cold. Maybe this is to force more gear changes and warm up the box more, but honestly it just does that and I go with it. 

Brilliantly coded tip boxes in my opinion, once you learn them. They are very different to a standard Merc or Beamer auto box in terms of ratios and behaviour. I think the tip box in mine is actually a Merc box, but could be wrong. They do take some getting used to. 

@Nobbie might be able to add some to this for the non S engine?

[Nobbie]

I'm even more beers in after driving up for the Moffat run😀, but I'd say the tip is a good option and shouldn't be considered as second best, it's just different. I got mine by accident as I'd never considered a tip until a really well looked after car came up on here and I thought it was worth a go. Never looked back and never regretted the decision. Mines a 2.5 and needs to be worked hard to get the best out of it, but I love it this way as it's a weekend car and I keep it above 4000rpm to keep it on cam. Today I was out with a 986S, RS60 and two 981S's and never felt that I was particularly disadvantaged as it's the handling of the Boxster that sets it apart rather than the outright power. The paddles make a huge difference to enjoyment, the buttons are a bit clunky in fast driving. DIY for £100 or send off the steering wheel for £3-400.

[the baron]

Really sorry to hear about your Parkinson’s, a tip will make it easier moving forward.

[usman10316]

Sorry to hear about your condition 

Have driven a tip boxster for a few times. Personally I'm always a manual man, maybe only considering a pdk but the tip isnt half bad of an option. Many times being stuck on the motorway I kinda wish I'd have one for convenience but much prefer a manual on the weekend drives. 

I noticed the tip I drove seemed to slip slightly when it shifted up into second (I have a video of this if you'd like to see what I mean?) I believe that is normal for tip cars though. 

In terms of performance/acceleration I don't really think there is much difference you would actually feel on the road. 

The main problem is they can go into limp mode. I believe a oil change will resolve that. If you haven't seen it already, watch the wheeler dealer episode with the boxster. Some good info on the car in general there. Brewer doesnt seem to complain much that it's an auto anyway. 

[stevemag]

Cheers for the useful information 

Early days for me in stage 1 PD

Driving at the moment presents no problems but as the PD progresses I'll need to go automatic 

I'm not consider 987 s or more modern boxster models, it's a weekend /classic insurance type car.I'm not tying more than £5k into such a car. I sold my £20k morgan which I was struggling to drive. (Different reasons! )

I have had to sell my bikes as a shaky right hand is not conducive to safety on a sports motorcycle. 

But I had 46yrs on bikes and enjoyed the time.

[JohnnyUK]

I have had my S for three years now and love the auto box. Auto for lazy and manual for fun. You can override the auto with the buttons on the wheel. First is only for launch and boy it launches well! The kick down on the auto is also racing mode.... It will drop from 5 to 3 and the first time that happens you will wee a little!  The car is heavier than the manual so I guess that's the only down side. About £200 for a filter and fluid change. The box is a ZF I think and pretty bomb proof.  Enjoy! 

[Mr96er]

On 9/7/2019 at 1:24 AM, the baron said:

Really sorry to hear about your Parkinson’s, a tip will make it easier moving forward.

Tips have reverse, too👌

[Spuggy]

Hi friend.  I hope things work out for you.  I have 'supped with the devil' twice and I am still here to tell the tale.  Currently, my 986 is shagged but I am planning to have it sorted.  I have had a number of Volvos with semi auto boxes as well as a Merc SLK 350.  When you get used to them, these boxes can be amazing.  For different reasons, my motorcycling days are over and I have distant memories of a numer of Nortons, Triumphs and a Laverda.  Persoanlly, I am grateful I have an amazing grandson and another on the way - although engineering issues are expensive they are insignificant when compared with personal health!  Very best wishes friend!  Spug

[stevemag]

Well

I've changed the daily driver to a full Dsg automatic skoda yeti 4x4  ( very comfortable ) I'm still ok with the manual boxster, but I can see I'll need to go tiptronic 

Watch this space 

[stupidget]

I've had my 3.2 Tip for a few months now and I love it.  I had a manual TT 225 Roadster before and thought that was fun, but, boy is the 3.2 Tip even better.

Whenever I can I stick it into manual mode and use the changers on the steering wheel.  Like everybody says 1st is for launch and then I take it into 2nd at about 6-7k RPM and then into 3rd at about 5-6k RPM and the sound is just ace.  As much as I loved my manual TT I honestly think I'll stick with auto on my next midlife crisis mobile 🙂

[½cwt]

I've got a DSG Leon as my company car.  The easy flick between D and S mode on the shift (Didn't go for the FR version with paddles) makes it all a bit more fun to get keener kick down and throttle response and then flick back for more normal driving even in a 'shopping trolley'.  Hope you can hold onto and enjoy the Boxster from some time yet, but also in the knowledge that a tip or PDK option is out  there should it become necessary.