If nowadays the research for a newspaper report, for example, is limited to calling three people, then that does not mean at all that you have gotten to the bottom of things sufficiently, because everyone who tells something always mixes his/her personal view below or that of his company.

Would you like an example? From 1989 onwards there was at Porsche Harm Lagaaij, who later became head of design. He described the parallel development of the 911 type 996 and the Boxster 986 as one of his most difficult tasks, because he was asked to design both cars exactly the same up to the B-pillar. That sounded completely plausible at first, because one was to have a rear engine and the other a mid-engine, which meant different wheelbases and air intakes, for example.

But if you take a closer look, the task contained a few simplifications. The 911 came as a coupé, targo and convertible, the Boxster 'only' as a convertible. By the latter it got rid of the B pillar and the roofs were given a variety of design options, whether steel or fabric. That also applied to the hardtop of the Boxster.

And since the side windows were also frameless in the coupé, they could end at the top, like the designers wished. So from the design to the B-pillar only the doors remained. Of course, the rear side part had to adjoin accordingly, but afterwards it was allowed to look different. If we see the later result, we also see a front spoiler shaped differently in the openings. The demands cannot have been that impossible to fulfill.

Nevertheless, it must have been difficult to assess how the public or potential buyers would find the new concept. That's why the model of a prototype of the small Porsche was created during the development of the two and showed it at the Detroit Motor Show in 1993. What was not expected, however, was the somewhat overwhelming reaction to this presentation.

Back home again, the two real prototypes, which were obviously well advanced, had to be adapted to the smaller model and vice versa. Difficulties arose in accommodating the necessary infrastructure such as drive and cooling. Not mentioned yet, the switch from air to liquid cooling should also be completed. Oddly enough, the public didn't notice much of the enlargement of the model. Only the peculiar shape of the combined front lights, also called 'fried eggs', was negatively noticed.

Just because you drive an expensive sports car doesn't mean you're particularly open to new things.So it happened again, as at the presentation of the two 924 and 928, the purists wanted their 911 with only round lights and not their tendency towards the front hood, what they promptly got with the next facelift in 2001 and never again after that was changed.

However, we are more interested in how the two models, which are so identical from the front, were dealt with. Some things can be found in the technical data, for others you absolutely need the pictures, preferably those in the first brochures. The complete conformity of the dashboards and the inner lining of the doors is striking. However, the 911 had five partially concealed round instruments and the Boxster three. The choice of material in the illustrations is also different.

They tried to focus on other things anyway. With the 911, after a quick look at the design, you came to the engine relatively quickly and in detail, although the chapter is called 'Drive and Chassis'. You can open the pages almost endlessly until you enjoy an awesome picture of the engine cut open. It remains the subject along with the transmission and chassis for the first 50 pages. Only then do the remaining 50 pages come with safety, design and the environment.

The Boxster brochure is completely different. It revels in design with lots of double pages. The engine is only mentioned from page 44 onwards. Only 15 pages drive and chassis, then we are basically back to the design. Finally, safety and the environment, a total of 18 pages less than with the 911.

986 B-6, 2.280 cm³, 85,5 * 72,0 mm, 11,0 : 1, DOHC, 4V, sequential intake manifold injection, knock control, 245 Nm 4500 rpm, 150 kW (204 HP), 239/263* g/km, 5-speed manual/automatic, Mc- Pherson f/r, 4 discs internally ventilated, fixed piston caliper f/r, toothed rack, 16,6 : 1, servo, hydraulic, 10,9 m, 205/55 ZR 16/225/50 ZR 16, 60 liter, 1.325/1.375* incl. driver, 310 kg, 4,32/2,42/1,78/1,29 m, 130/130 liter f/r, 240/235* km/h,*Automatic

If you compare the technical data, you will mainly find an engine with a larger displacement. Both have six cylinders and two overhead cams each, although that's only to find in the 996 book. This also has one more gear with manual transmission, a more complex rear axle, perforated brake discs and wider tires, mainly at the rear.

996 B-6, 3.387 cm³, 96,0 * 78,0 mm, 11,3 : 1, DOHC, 4V, sequential intake manifold injection, knock control, 350 Nm 4600 rpm, 221 kW (300 HP), 285/290* g/km, 6-speed manual/5-speed automatic, Mc-Pherson/multilink, 4 discs internally ventilated, perforated, fixed piston caliper f/r, toothed rack, 16,6 : 1, servo, hydraulic, 10,9 m, 205/50 ZR 17/255/40 ZR 17, 64 liter (refill volume), 1.395/1.440* incl. driver, 400 kg, 4,43/2,35/1,77/1,31 m, 130 liter, 280/275* km/h,*Automatic

In the end, the only question that remains is why one tried so hard to keep apart these two, which can be described as twins, in terms of the front end and, in principle, in terms of the drive. That brings us to the price, which was the equivalent of € 72,000 for the Porsche 996 and € 40,000 for the Boxster. You can check the differences yourself once again and then judge whether they justify such a price difference.

Especially since the convertible is usually the more expensive car and a mid-engine should not be devalued compared to a rear engine. We know the Americans as sometimes merciless advocates of the market economy. But at least some companies adhere to the principle of not mercilessly exploiting a dominant position in a particular product.