Is the roadster dying out ?

Z

ZermattV

Elite
 Aberdeenshire
Anyone else noticed that if you wanted to walk into a car showroom today and buy a roadster there are very few you could buy brand new - my definition for what its worth is:

purpose built (not a convertible version of a coupe) real wheel drive with a folding fabric roof .... the E89 Z4 has moved upmarket out of this arena into a GT car... a very good one from what i believe.

All I came up with:

1. MX-5 ...
2. Porsche Boxter.
3. Lotus Elise.
4. Caterham 7
5. Morgan
6. MGTF ..... i struggle to add it to the list

of which only two are in fact newer in design than the E85 Z4....

a lot have just fallen by the way side:

Fiat Barchetta; Alfa Spyder (the 156 convertible called the Spyder does not count), MR2, VX-220 ; TVR ; MGTF ( Not a mistake its in both lists); E85 Z4

I 'm not planning in getting rid of the E85 Z4 at all........... but in future years i'm not sure what I'd swap it for ..... is it the end of the proper roadster ? have between them porsche and mazda scared the competition away ?
 
I think there are more roadsters/convertibles now than there has ever been, except that your criteria is rather blinkered on what a roadster is, ergo the E85 and alike. The SL, SLK & E89 were designed to be sports cars with a tin top, are you saying that because it does not have a fabric roof its not a roadster or a sports car?

Having owned a fair few canvas roofed convertibles, six I think, I am for progress and love my tin top, its quieter, securer, easier to clean, doesn't weigh a great deal and is not prone to some oik running a knife down it for a laugh.
 
I think the definition of a roadster is that a car has only 2 seats and a fabric roof. E89 is actually a coupe-cabriolet (CC). Lotus Elise is not really a roadster, it has targa top. MR2 Mk3 is roadster (but not Mk1/2).
 
the E89 is a great car ........... but its a GT........ not just the roof but the whole set up of the car... I chose my words carefully a roadster is a sportscar but not all sportscars are roadsters.

think Ksher is right elise may not make the definition either...... but it is a sports car.. :thumbsup:
 
wiki definition of roadster

A roadster, also known as a spyder or spider, is a two-seat car, traditionally without a roof, side or rear windows.
Most modern day two-seaters have windows and feature retractable roofs (and are thus convertibles). While retractable soft-tops are nevertheless marketed as roadsters/spyders, retractable hard-tops are commonly designated as coupe roadsters.
 
sars said:
Having owned a fair few canvas roofed convertibles, six I think, I am for progress and love my tin top, its quieter, securer, easier to clean, doesn't weigh a great deal and is not prone to some oik running a knife down it for a laugh.
Click to expand...

I entirely agree. I owned the canvas roofed E85 and loved it back in the day. I think the tin topped E89 is just what should be expected as technology progresses and time moves on.

The E89 IS a roadster and most definitely not a coupe cabriolet... just go onto the BMW UK model range selector and tick the Roadster box down the left under bodystyle - the Z4 is the only roadster in the entire range. :D
 
I owned the 2008 Z4 3.0is before my sDrive Z4 35i and to me it is still a roadster, in fact my license frame (font and back) states "roadster"

I like my 2009 more as stated before, it is quieter, easier to clean, may I add cleaner looking, in short it is really 2 cars in one. What a great car it is.
 
Z4 Beemer said:
The E89 IS a roadster and most definitely not a coupe cabriolet... just go onto the BMW UK model range selector and tick the Roadster box down the left under bodystyle - the Z4 is the only roadster in the entire range. :D
Click to expand...

You're right. Coupe-cabriolet should have 4 seats, e.g. current 3-series convertible with hardtop. E89 is an advanced roadster. :)
 
I guess we could bring forward a few ''variants'' of the word, but from my reading of several books on sport cars thru history, one clearly stands out; Two seater, front engine, rear wheel drive, soft top. This definition would then exclude the Boxster and indeed include the 370Z.
 
surely the 350Z would not count because it is a convertible variant of a coupe.... otherwise the Jag XK8; AMV8 get in ?

think i can live with the SLK and E89 Z4 being termed Coupe-Roadster... glad to hear so many satisfied E89 owners :thumbsup:
 
Gonna stick my neck out here and agree with the OP, proper sportscars do seem to be dying out.

I have nothing against the E89 and I agree with him its become more of a GT car than a sportscar its just to refined and grown up, there's also something about the overall design of the car in so far that I don't think it will age as well as the E85. On a different track my good lady is after a new car and was really taken by the new Fiesta when it came out but now, 2 years later that funky interior looks a little naff, so she has now starting to change her mind.
 
RichardG said:
Gonna stick my neck out here and agree with the OP, proper sportscars do seem to be dying out.

I have nothing against the E89 and I agree with him its become more of a GT car than a sportscar its just to refined and grown up, there's also something about the overall design of the car in so far that I don't think it will age as well as the E85. On a different track my good lady is after a new car and was really taken by the new Fiesta when it came out but now, 2 years later that funky interior looks a little naff, so she has now starting to change her mind.
Click to expand...

I agree on one point. I think the first gen of the Z4 is more "sports car" than the E89. My 3.0si Coupe was more "TVR" to drive than my present one. More raw. I prefer the one I have have now mind as it ticks more boxes for me.

I don't agree that the present one will age worse than the old shape though. I think the old Z4 looks a little dated side by side to the new one now. The E89 has more on road presence. From the front the 1st gen looks a little "soft" in comparison. Not dissing the 1st gen Z4 mind as I still think it's a great design, especially the coupe (I was never a big fan of the 1st gen roadster if I'm honest)!
 
As long as you can take the top down and your companion is beside you (and no one else behind you - means only 2 seats) then it's a roadster :)

End of discussion as far as I am concerned ... will ti die out .... never I say :driving:
 
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