VEHICLE SPOTLIGHT | 2001 PORSCHE BOXSTER ART CAR BY ROBYNN SANDERS

2001 PORSCHE BOXSTER ART CAR BY ROBYNN SANDERS

ENGINE: 2.7-liter flat-6
TOP SPEED: 155 mph
HORSEPOWER: 217

With Porsche sales falling for the first time in decades in the mid-1990s due to a flagging US economy, Porsche executives decided the remedy for the situation was a relatively affordable two-seat roadster. They took inspiration from their own history, looking at the 356 Speedster and the 550 Spyder successor, the RSK. The result was a mid-engined, lightweight sports car that was fun to drive, efficient, and strikingly handsome. The Boxster was a sensation upon release, especially in America. Between its debut in 1996 and 2003, the Boxster was Porsche's best-selling model, which helped pull the company out of its sales doldrums.

COURTESY OF NICOLE STRINE