• Very high-quality materials
• Plenty of tech

How is the quality and layout?

The Porsche feels like a pretty special place to be. All the cabin materials are of the highest quality and the dashboard layout is sensibly and logically laid out. You get rake and reach steering adjustment, and even with standard manual seat adjustment you won’t have any problems finding a comfortable driving position.

The previous model could get a little noisy in the cabin, so Porsche has added an extra layer of insulation in the soft-top to quieten things down. The sports car manufacturer says it has reduced noise in the cabin by two decibels. Although we were not able to make a direct comparison, it is certainly true that both wind and road noise have been well muted.

Of course, the Boxster and Boxster S engines do get vocal when pushed, but then that’s part of the magic – they both make a fantastic noise when accelerating. Because this is a mid-engined performance car designed to go around corners quickly one might expect the ride to suffer but it was surprisingly supple. If you want you can opt for the Porsche’s active suspension system that offers more control when you are driving on the twisty bits, but if you are still in the city or cruising on the motorway then you can stick to the standard setting.

The Boxster is a comfortable car thanks to well-designed seats that offer plenty of lateral and upright support: our only real gripe is that the clutch pedal on the manual is still too heavy and that can grate when you are driving around town.