Has anyone compared BMW M Roadster to the Boxster S?

[Rowag]

Actually, the front of the suspension on the Z3 is based off of the E36 (prior-gen 3 series), while the rear is from the E30 for space consumption reasons (the E36 rear setup would have resulted in the Z3 having a prohibitively-small trunk).

I agree, though - bumpy corners tend to upset the rear end a bit.

Originally Posted by Lux

However, it handles like ****************. The suspension is from the 2nd previous generation (E30) 3 series. Try taking some bumpy corners at speed and see what happens. That alone should make the Z3 a non-contender.
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[Lux]

An M3 cab is the worst of all worlds. It's a pig at what?...3800 lbs for the E46 and 3500 lbs for the E36? Handling will suffer as well as straight line speed.

The Boxster with its 2 trunks is actually damn practical.

If I had to pick a BMW roadster, I'd go with the Z4 before even the MZ3. At least the Z4's chassis is up to the task of being a roadster. The Z3 is a little loosey goosey.

Rowag,
You are correct on the suspension. Not that the E36 rear was that great. I've blown out more shock mounts and lower control arm bushings than the law allows. It was great when everything worked though.

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[Adam]

I agree with what you said about the M3 cabbie being a pig. It's good for boulavard cruising and that's about it. The only reason I suggested it was because it didn't sound like Push drove hard enough to realize the benefits of the Boxster...but he cleared that up.

[Richard Truss]

to read all these posts, you would think the reason we bought our boxster is because it fit our specific needs unlike any other car -- which i think we could all agree, in the price range for the boxster S (which i have) there are cars that are WAY faster, handle as good (or almost), are MUCH more practical, are FAR cheaper to maintain, are MUCH better on gas, are MUCH more comfortable -- the list goes on and on....

why did i buy my boxster S and never really gave ANY other car more than a passing thought? because -- to be blunt -- only a woman and a ferrari give me as much (or more) wood as a porsche. i love almost all porsches (save the 924). a porsche is a porsche -- and no merc, bimmer, Z06 or whatever will ever have the head-turning value and pure thrill of looking in and sitting in it as my boxster will.

the only drivers i envy are other porsche owners of my other favorite cars (968 and 993). bottom line is i love the handling, and i love the power, but those reasons came down the list for me -- it was all about looks, the badge, the heritage, and the car that everyone looks at. i have owned an E36 and a cherry impala SS (when they were actually rare) -- and im telling you, those cars never got any love from anyone. my porsche gets more attention that i would have ever imagined. but hey, its shallow -- but who am i fooling..... people love it for a reason -- a great car only a few of us are lucky enough to have. THATS why we buy these cars.

pardon the rant.

[Brucelee]

A man's relationship with his car is irrational!

Let the good times roll!