BMW Z8 - Anyone have first-hand knowledge? - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

Bavarian Motorist · 01-31-2007, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by racer_d

I never drove one, but I thought the Z8s were great looking cars. Good balance front/rear.. understated elegance is maybe another way to describe it. Not made for the track out of the box, more cruiser/gt than pure sports car imho.

Driven a Viper (older GTS Coupe) at Watkins Glen. Plenty of torque and HP but not my cup of tea. Very "heavy" feeling (steering, brakes, shifting). Brutish transmission/clutch feel. "numbers" were nice, but there is more to a car than its "numbers"

Yeah? Elaborate.

The skid pad #s extremely high. The power is there obviously. The weight is no more than say, a Z8, and much lighter than a 911 turbo.

The brakes are supposed to be good.

AUDIOGUY · 01-31-2007, 05:00 PM

I have a little time in a Z8... only about 20 minutes or so. My impression... I loved it. I thought that it was just perfect for me. Now at the time, I owned a BMW M roadster and this was like the Carrera GT for Boxster owners. It had gobs of power, incredible sound, stunning looks, Great steering and shifting feel... I have nothing to say about bad about the car. As far as tracking it.... why would you. With the top down on any road, this car is rewarding. The sound is amazing... braking felt as good as my M Roadster but the car did feel heavier and required a little more foot than I would have thought. The gearbox was typical BMW... short and accurate throws. Power was strong pulling from low to high rpms... and believe me revving a V8 to 7 grand is highly recommended.

If I had an extra 100k around, this would definately be on my must have lists!!!
The one I drove was silver with red interior... god..awesome.

01-31-2007, 05:14 PM

HA. BMW shifts short and accurate. Maybe for you M types. All of us 2.3 and 2.8ers were installing the M roadster shifters into our cars because they were not short as you say.

AUDIOGUY · 01-31-2007, 06:12 PM

Bogg... I got a chuckle out of that one...
I havent really driven an BMW with a shifter I didnt like...
Maybe an older 5 series which felt awkward with a manual trans...
but I am overall impressed with BMWs linkage..
Somewhat unimpressed with my Boxster S shifting ... Sixth is almost impossible to
ingage without steering off the road...I find it takes alot of effort.
It is still a hell of alot better than a Corvette for example!

Bavarian Motorist · 01-31-2007, 06:21 PM

If you ask me, Boxster shifting is very smooth and buttery.

However it's just TOO EASY to use the clutch! Any moron can do it!

I am used to it now, though.

Boxter · 01-31-2007, 06:31 PM

Z9 pics below....

Bavarian Motorist · 01-31-2007, 06:34 PM

That was their old concept I believe.

That car has awesome doors. They open both as gull wings AND regular doors.

Bigger pic can be found here.

http://www.seriouswheels.com/pics-1990-1999/1999-BMW-Z9-Gran-Turismo-Open-Doors-1024x768.jpg

racer_d · 01-31-2007, 06:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bavarian Motorist

Yeah? Elaborate.

The skid pad #s extremely high. The power is there obviously. The weight is no more than say, a Z8, and much lighter than a 911 turbo.

The brakes are supposed to be good.

Are we talking Viper or Z8 here?

This will sound harsh, but pull your head out of all the C/D, MT test specs you have read and drive an example of a Viper. Anyone.. RT-10, Coupe, New/old. I didn't say the Viper was slow. They are fast. They have a lot of hp and tq. You can leave black stripes wherever you want. But it is crude and brutish compared to Porsches and M-series BMW's.

The Viper has none of the lightness and balance of your boxster for example. The controls are heavy (ie takes a fair amount of effort) to steer and shift the car. The feedback through the steering felt numb. The seating position forces your legs into a tiny hole (on the left, blocked by the huge fender intrusion and on the right by the huge transmission tunnel) for a car this large. In comparison, a 996TT, at the same track, felt "lighter". Was more balanced. provided more feedback to the driver through the steering feel. Was more comfortable to sit in. And NOTHING seems to match a Porsche's brakes.

But were off topic, This was about Z8s. Out of curiosity, what do used Z8's go for these days?

Also, the spy photos in the link above was reported in Autoweek to be the new Z9 as well.

Bavarian Motorist · 01-31-2007, 06:41 PM

I wasn't implying you were wrong. I actually really wanted to know about your experience.

I knew they had to be cutting corners somewhere to sell a 600hp car for under 90k :\

SD987 · 01-31-2007, 07:02 PM

Thanks Audioguy for your detailed description. The car obviously made an impression.

Racerd, 55 nationwide on Autotrader with an average price of 100k, high price of 129k.

MNBoxster · 01-31-2007, 07:41 PM

Hi,

A guy down the block has a Z8 Alpina which I got to drive this past summer. This one was Black/Tan.

I pretty much echo what Audioguy said except I did find it to be a little nose heavy. Not enough to reject it, because everything else was superb, Engine, Brakes, Tranny.

It did feel overall heavier than the Boxster, but also more solid. Lent greater confidence. Never been a fan of bimmers, but this one, or an old M1 would rank high on my wishlist...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

djomlas · 01-31-2007, 08:11 PM

thi is a video of top gear bashing on that thing

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qqhuPYv-Jw

it only looks nice...

C5150 · 01-31-2007, 08:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by djomlas

thi is a video of top gear bashing on that thing

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qqhuPYv-Jw

it only looks nice...

Ha - that is a great vid.

MNBoxster · 01-31-2007, 10:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by djomlas

thi is a video of top gear bashing on that thing

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qqhuPYv-Jw

it only looks nice...

Hi,

I couldn't disagree more, we all know where Jeremy Clarkson is coming from. What he doesn't know about cars would fill a library! Remember, the Z8 Alpina did equal the Lap Time of the Lamborghini Murcielago on the track - hardly the stuff of a confused Boulevardier. Here is an except from one review of the car:

"The Z8 held BMW's production car performance records for several years, and many journalists praised the car, but some of the UK motoring press took umberage at the car's LDH only configuration and chose not to lavish the praise the car received in Europe and the USA. Most notable amongst these was Jeremy Clarkson, who whilst reviewing the Alpina edition of the Z8 on Top Gear (Series 2 Episode 3), described the car as having terrible handling and being an example of a car that never knew what it was supposed to be (supercar or roadster), but then again this is the same man who said the Lotus Elise couldn't handle until he was shown that it was his driving skills that were at fault, not the car."

While I didn't have the opportunity to take it on the track, on the street, the Z8 Alpina is more than adequate and certainly worth the price tag.

While engine HP was reduced from 400HP to 375HP with the Alpina variant, torque was greatly enhanced to 383 lb-ft. from the original 363 lb-ft. which was readily noticeable on the street. The Automatic is actually BMW's own Steptronic, far better than Porsche's Tiptronic S.

The owner and I actually swapped cars for the afternoon and we both came to the conclusion that a Boxster/Z8 offspring would offer the ultimate driving experience. The power of the Z8 is something Boxster owners can only dream of, and looks? With that long Hood & Boattail ? - Get outta town!...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99