Reviews, Comparisons and Flying Low

[QporscheQ]

Ill just stick with comparisons to other cars, since everyone has already said what is so great about the car


Cars I've driven (recently)

2005 Corvette -- Tons of power, okay handling, okay styling, problem was it only felt like a fast version of my '95 Firebird. I was less than blown away.

2005 GTO -- Sounded awesome, drove like a total piece of junk and looks stupid

2005 Pontiac G6 -- I included this because I thought it kicked the pants out of the GTO. Kind of strange.


Cars I've ridden in or driven against recently:

2004 MB SLK32AMG -- crazy HP in a small car. Completely destroys my Box off the line (it has the auto tranny that does everything for you), however I start to reel him back in when the speeds go up and the road starts to twist. I’m not crazy about the styling.

2004 WRX -- some how I completely obliterated a friend in his WRX off the line the other day. I’m still trying to figure this one out. I don’t think he had the turbo spooled in time and the lag killed him. My back tires cleared his front bumper before we went under the traffic light. I actually really like this car. It has some sedan usefulness, all wheel drive and is still pretty quick.

2004 RX8 -- I actually love this car. A friend bought one and every time I ride in it I think I like the car more. The back seat is more then large enough for an adult.

1968 GTO -- in a straight line no competition. However any turning of the wheel and he is done for.



The Boxster is by far the best looking car of the lot. In my opinion it drives better than any of them too. The Boxster is just everything a sports car / roadster should be. Its tough to beat.

[Perfectlap]

One word:

THROTTLE RESPONSE

ok maybe two...

The S puts down %85 of its torque by 2000 RPM's.
That's just plain nasty.

the other day I had to drive a Toyota Corolla which I hadn't driven since buying the BoxsterS. Wow I thought the Toyo was broken. SOmetime you need to drive a tin can with now power, handling or steering to fully appreciate what Stuggart has engineered.

[YellowJacket]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

SOmetime you need to drive a tin can with now power, handling or steering to fully appreciate what Stuggart has engineered.

OR a Z4. A buddy just bought one, and convinced me to take a test drive. Took out a 2005 Z4 3.0 w/ 6-speed. My thoughts:

Sounds dead. Same dull drone through the entire RPM range. They took the "if it's loud, it'll sound sporty" approach. The opposite is our Boxsters, where there's a nice high whine at low RPM that slowly changes into an all-out growl under WOT at about 3-4krpm on up.

Road feel sucks. In my Box, I feel like I'm driving a go-cart. In the Z4 I felt like I was driving a loud Buick. Even though it handles well, it had that disconnected feeling.

STEERING!!!! Can't stress this enough. I can dart in and out of traffic, handle crazy twisty roads, etc, etc. In the Z4, it felt like a truck. I felt like I was out of control. The car had a mind of it's own and felt skittish.

Seating position. I'm a small dude (5'10, 150lbs), and the Box fits me like a glove. Even at 5'10, I felt like I was looking over the windshield in the Z4. This is in addition to the fact that I could NOT find a comfy seating position and the lack of bolster on the seat allowed me to go flying all over the seat every time I hit a curve.

Verdict: BMW did a great job at making a roadster that even Mazda and Toyota would laugh at, despite costing twice as much as a Miata or MR2 Spyder.

[PasadenaBoxster]

And that hump on the Z4's hood is just fricken annoying!

[Perfectlap]

wow that's too bad the Z4 is uderwhelming for the moolah.

I appreciate what BMW is doing style wise. They are determined to bring concepts to reality rather than just tweaking current designs like Mercedez and Volkwagon. I find most of the Mercs and VW's sterile and boring. Very star bucks yuppy like. Its easy to sit back and criticisize something like Z4 when no one else is taking design risks.

But performance wise, those wheel base configurations of the Z3 and Z4 and M coupes are very limiting if they are to compete with the mid engine Boxster.

[saorsa]

you guys should all come to scotland in the Uk, There arent many boxsters here , lovely scenery , twisting roads , sun at least for 3 days in the summer ( lol )
I Have had Mercedes, Jaguars , Rovers , Sprints, Range Rovers ect ,
I Can Honestly say the Boxster makes me grin everytime i even think about taking her out ,
its even handy given that we are a 3 person family , solution : they dont get in it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sure i wish we could all afford a gt3 and the running of it , but we all have a budget, i think you should all enjoy it for what the car is , a smile machine
of course if there are any millionaires out there who wish to update me , please email me and i will give an address to ship the car you dont want , promise it will have a great home ,

thanks all from scotland
saorsa

[Brucelee]

Good to hear from someone from the other side of the POND!

[harrisg]

Originally Posted by saorsa

you guys should all come to scotland in the Uk, There arent many boxsters here , lovely scenery , twisting roads , sun at least for 3 days in the summer ( lol )

It's more embarrassing for me located in the South West. We've only had three days sun as well

[lexuspilot]

Cars have always been one of my best motivators. Now that I have the 2004 Box, I don't surf autotrader and ebay, I don't cruise car lots, and no other car does it for me. Every other car has a little something wrong. And yes there are cars I really want, but not enough to motivate me to go the extra mile. I could all excited about a 2006 987S if they made an all black interior. I hate that silver Japanese plastic look.

I am all hot for a C4S, but I like roadsters. Can't afford a CGT or the likes. I guess I am stuck in 986 bliss.

It's been raining all day and it finally cleared up at dusk; me and my 4 yr old went for a cruise in what he calls "The Roaster". Bliss :dance:

[limoncello]

would LOVE to get my boxster to Scotland. I can still picture the stunning landscapes and inviting roads, especially around Inverness. What a beautiful town. transit costs are actually reasonable, the issue seems to always be lack of time. someday...

[eightsandaces]

Do you guys know who Navin R Johnson is? Well I was him in real life at an Esso station, I always loved cars, especially the one 911 that gassed there; ugly brown automatic or not. I like Porsche cars for many reasons, racing heritage is phenomenal, the passion the company puts into it's products is evident and backed with performance that matches the legendary swagger,


remember this one?




. Unlike say Pontiac (rest their souls) who used to slap vinyl and a spoiler on anything and deem it a "sports" version, wait for it............... sunbird...


The cars themselves are so crisp and fun, that every spring is just as fresh as opening a new Christmas gift.

[Pilot2519j]

Originally Posted by harrisg

It's more embarrassing for me located in the South West. We've only had three days sun as well

Reminiscing of what isn't but maybe one day I will be able, to be able to run my Boxster in my homeland,Cuba once the dictator dies or is quartered or some other pleasant way of getting rid of him and his regime . I can only imagine the palm trees, the clear blue water with a tropical breeze and at night a beautiful celestial display.