Porsches suck BMWs rule
LOL! I had to get that out of the way just to get everybody's attention LOL! I stated in an earlier post that I recently sold my Porsche 986 and replaced it with a BMW Z3 M. Actually I'm a big Porsche fan and I think they are AWESOME cars. I just thought, now that I've had the chance to drive my Z3 M for 400+ miles, some of you might find it interesting to hear my opinions on the two similar cars.
First let me say I'm not a expert on the topic but I have owned my share of sports cars and back in the day I spent my share of time on the track.
To be fair to the Porsche I must state that my 986 was the 2.5 and my new Z3 M is a 3.2 (honestly not a fair comparison).
Handeling - This goes to 986 hands down. The 986 handles like its on rails. Not to say the BMW isn't awesome it's just not "stuck to the ground" like the Porsche. When driving the Z3 hard into corners, you can feel that the rear-end of the car would easily come around if pushed. I honestly never had this sensation with my 986 (horsepower could play a part in this). If a person drove a Z3 M without ever driving a 986 they would say it was on rails LOL.
Acceleration - Hands down goes to the BMW Z3 M. This is not really worth noting due to the HP difference. It would be a much better comparison if I had owned a 986 S.
Overall performance - I find this very subjective. This very much depends on your personal style / skill of driveing (be it on the track or street). When I raced, you wouldn't call me a finness type of driver LOL. In my openion, finness drivers are more skillfull and this is where the Porsche 986 shines. The 986 is a finely tuned car that is almost track ready off the shelf. The BMW is more of a sliding around the corners, foot in the gas, smoken the tires roadster. I would have loved to have had my 986 and my Z3 M at the same time and run about 5 laps with each of them and compare my times. I would guess that my times would be better in the Z3 (because of my driving style). That being said, I think better drivers would probably turn better times with the 986. I'm going to call this a draw LOL
Everyday street driving - I give this to the BMW. This is also very subjective but the overall drivabilty of the BMW bodes well on the street. The Porsche needs to be wound up to get the true potential of the car. On the street this is not always possible and honestly many times not very practical. The BMW has a lower end grunt that is more street friendly / useable.
Comfort - The cockpit of the 986 seems much more roomy and with the frunk you can't beat the storage space (BMW has a very small trunk). I have to give BMW the edge when it comes to the seats. The seats in the M wrap around you like a glove. Actually they wrap around you so well, the bolsters almost stick out to the point that it makes it slightly hard to get in and out of the car (or maybe that just cause I'm 44 years old LOL) The ride is very similar, they are both roadsters so if your expecting a Cadilac ride forget it LOL.
Fit and finish - Let me say that I'm not a fan of the interiors on the standard Z3 but the Z3 M (in my opinion) has a much nicer interior than the 986. It just has a much higher quality feel to it. From the seats, dash and gauges, the BMW just has a fit and finish and overall quality to them that beats the Porsche. I have always thought that Porsche has fallen short on thier interiors. The exteriors on both cars are ecellent. Porsche and BMW pay great detail on smooth lines and consistant gaps between body panels. It is obvious that both cars are very high end but I feel that BMW pays a little more attention to detail.
Convertable top operation - HANDS DOWN PORSCHE 986. I know there can be a lot of problems with the 986 convertable top mechanism (I had to work on mine). Honestly, once you understand the 986 mechanism, it's a simple concept. The biggest downfall of the 986 top is all of it sensors. I'm basing this on totally functioning tops. On the BMW Z3 you have to unlatch 2 latches and then hold the top up the first 8" - 10" before the motor will engage ( I had to read the manule to verify this was standard operating procedure). In my opinion, if you have to hold the top up while waiting for the power top to engage it's kinda just a pain in the a$$ and might as well be manual. I have owned 6 convertables over the years and the BMWs is by far my least favorite.
Investment - The BMW Z3 M is a much rarer car than the Porsche and due to all the negative publicity that the 986 has gotten over the last few years the price contenues to fall. Though this makes them a great value, I feel it will be a long time before they will be considered an investment car.
Wow factor - Knowbody can deny the wow factor of Porsche's gold badge! Porsche's amazing racing pedigree and rich history proceeds itself. People would stop and point at my 986 thinking that they were gazing apon a $70,000 car. I know this will not happen with my BMW. I've had a few people say nice car but my Porsche would draw a crowd. I've already had a few people say you sold a Porsche for a BMW??? Unless your are a car enthousiast you would look at my car and say....look it's just another Z3.
