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2012 Porsche Boxster
The new Porsche Boxster, also available in better colours than mild curry... Porsche

Porsche has announced the all-new 2012 Boxster, boasting an ultra- light aluminium body and more agile design with "purposeful" styling, new engines and "significantly enhanced" driving dynamics.

With a dramatically reduced weight, longer wheelbase, widened track and larger wheels, the 2012 Boxster and Boxster S take Porsche's famous mid-engined sports car into a new era.

The lightness, combined with features such as electro-mechanical steering, means that the new Boxster offer more performance and up to 15 percent greater fuel efficiency.

The standard Boxster has a 2.7-litre flat six engine delivering 265bhp - 10 more than its larger displacement predecessor - and the Boxster S is equipped with a 3.4-litre flat six that produces 315bhp, five more than the old model.

Together with the optional Porsche Doppelkupplungsgetriebe (PDK, or seven-speed, dual-clutch gearbox in plain English), the Boxster and Boxster S return impressive fuel consumption figures of 36.7 miles per gallon and 35.3mpg respectively.

Power has increased from the out-going model and so has acceleration, with the new Boxster reaching 60mph in 5.7 seconds compared with 5.9 for the older generation; the Boxster S now hits 60mph in five seconds dead, 0.3 seconds faster than the old model.

Available in the UK from April 28, the new Boxster is priced from £37,589 and the Boxster S starts at £45,384.