My impressions of 718 Boxster S versus e89 z4 2.8

MACK said:
Nictrix said:
New2Zed said:
Am I the only person who thinks that most Porches are but ugly? Bit shallow, I know.
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They dont do it for me either.
In the 80s I thought the 911 was cool but they really havnt changed much over the years and now look dated to me.
One I like the most is the Caymen but even then is it just because its a Porsche and the best of a bad bunch?
No offense to any Porsche lovers intended.
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For me its a bit like the Mini's. Having owned both Porsches and modern Mini's you do come away thinking great cars to drive but not the best looking/stylish thing in the world. I remember when the E89 came out and I was thinking of chopping my 987 for one, it looked so fresh/cool in comparison.
The thing is you can try to keep that classic look a bit too much, the current mini is horrible in my opinion (sorry owners!) Modern Mini wise the first gen was/looked cool, the second was ok, but this third one is terrible. Sames true for me with the Porsche 718, the rear is fugly, the post facelift car was much better.
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I completely aree with the minis, we owned one for just over 4 years and they are not the best to look at and the interior is just outdated.
The new minis have just been changed for the sake of changing, the rear lights just look oversized and spoil what little looks they had.
 
Nictrix said:
MACK said:
Nictrix said:
They dont do it for me either.
In the 80s I thought the 911 was cool but they really havnt changed much over the years and now look dated to me.
One I like the most is the Caymen but even then is it just because its a Porsche and the best of a bad bunch?
No offense to any Porsche lovers intended.
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For me its a bit like the Mini's. Having owned both Porsches and modern Mini's you do come away thinking great cars to drive but not the best looking/stylish thing in the world. I remember when the E89 came out and I was thinking of chopping my 987 for one, it looked so fresh/cool in comparison.
The thing is you can try to keep that classic look a bit too much, the current mini is horrible in my opinion (sorry owners!) Modern Mini wise the first gen was/looked cool, the second was ok, but this third one is terrible. Sames true for me with the Porsche 718, the rear is fugly, the post facelift car was much better.
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I completely aree with the minis, we owned one for just over 4 years and they are not the best to look at and the interior is just outdated.
The new minis have just been changed for the sake of changing, the rear lights just look oversized and spoil what little looks they had.
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I agree, the whole thing looks awkward and oversized, more Maxi than Mini these days. Wont be long before they are launching a model to sit below the Mini called er......The Mini Mini?! :headbang:
 
Well I have owned 2 e89's and now have 981 boxster GTS , I would say that in the beauty stakes the Z4 wins it however when it comes to driving in press on mode The Porsche is much better , in the z4 i always felt I was on the edge whereas the Porsche still feels composed this might be that my e89s were 35is and some people have said the chassis is not up to the power also although its slightly larger the porsche actually feels smaller which I like
 
chasBMW said:
Well I have owned 2 e89's and now have 981 boxster GTS , I would say that in the beauty stakes the Z4 wins it however when it comes to driving in press on mode The Porsche is much better , in the z4 i always felt I was on the edge whereas the Porsche still feels composed this might be that my e89s were 35is and some people have said the chassis is not up to the power also although its slightly larger the porsche actually feels smaller which I like
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From my experience chassis problems with regard to handling the power are resolved by upgrading the driver. The chassis does need the right touch to exploit its potential.
 
techathy said:
chasBMW said:
Well I have owned 2 e89's and now have 981 boxster GTS , I would say that in the beauty stakes the Z4 wins it however when it comes to driving in press on mode The Porsche is much better , in the z4 i always felt I was on the edge whereas the Porsche still feels composed this might be that my e89s were 35is and some people have said the chassis is not up to the power also although its slightly larger the porsche actually feels smaller which I like
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From my experience chassis problems with regard to handling the power are resolved by upgrading the driver. The chassis does need the right touch to exploit its potential.
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Well i'd be the first to admit im not lewis hamilton or even close but as my driving has been consistant and the Porsche feels much better it must be the car :)
 
chasBMW said:
techathy said:
From my experience chassis problems with regard to handling the power are resolved by upgrading the driver. The chassis does need the right touch to exploit its potential.
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Well i'd be the first to admit im not lewis hamilton or even close but as my driving has been consistant and the Porsche feels much better it must be the car :)
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That's where the 'right touch' comes in. The Boxsters & Caymans have a wealth of traction which is well balanced so accommodate a wide range of driving styles. The Z4 is much more picky about how you drive it, get it wrong and the Zed is never balanced and has this kind of slightly numb nervousness.
 
techathy said:
the Zed is never balanced and has this kind of slightly numb nervousness.
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no that would be the electric steering and runflats :P
 
chasBMW said:
Well i'd be the first to admit im not lewis hamilton or even close but as my driving has been consistant and the Porsche feels much better it must be the car :)
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I agree, my ol' Boxster made driving on the edge a far more manageable for a commute-a-day driver like me, but that's exactly the reason I prefer the Z4. Don't want to spend hours a day on the roads without occasionally feeling my heart in my mouth :evil: :poke:
 
Drove both the 2.0 base model and the 2.5 s today. The exhaust note on both is very different. The base model sounds much better than the s and certainly sounds better than the z4. It's also noticeably quieter than the s. Neither had the sports exhaust. Base had a manual and the s was pdk. The manual box is incredible, so slick and fast it puts the z4 to shame. Weird thing was the height of the stick, felt a bit odd having been used to the z4. Interior quality is miles ahead of the z4, except the indicator stalk. For some reason it felt cheap in comparison. One win for the Z4 at least. On the road the performance between the two models was pretty negligible. Steering was incredible, again far better than the z4.
 
techathy said:
sars said:
techathy said:
the Zed is never balanced and has this kind of slightly numb nervousness.
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no that would be the electric steering and runflats :P
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Oddly enough when you get it right there isn't this numb nervousness even on RFT tyres so :P back at ya.
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Have to agree. Even after 13k miles I feel like I'm learning my car. The slow turn in, coupled with rocketship launching from corners seems to be the better approach.

The car can feel very nervous and twitchy, but I enjoy the difficulty in driving it fast. :thumbsup:
 
stuartinzg said:
techathy said:
sars said:
no that would be the electric steering and runflats :P
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Oddly enough when you get it right there isn't this numb nervousness even on RFT tyres so :P back at ya.
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Have to agree. Even after 13k miles I feel like I'm learning my car. The slow turn in, coupled with rocketship launching from corners seems to be the better approach.

The car can feel very nervous and twitchy, but I enjoy the difficulty in driving it fast. :thumbsup:
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Doesn't help sars took the front part of that quote off so it lost its context:
techathy said:
The Z4 is much more picky about how you drive it, get it wrong and the Zed is never balanced and has this kind of slightly numb nervousness.
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Very interesting thread. (except when it got swerved into a which looks better debate)
Sounds like the 2.8 handles very well, better than the 335. I don't think the 335 is much like a Boxster/ Cayman.

As far as nervousness, I have had cars like that. It is usually due to tires and inflation in my experience. My 335 is very stable even at high speeds on crappy roads. It is quite a bit heavier on the front end tho. I do play with the tire pressures somewhat and find they are sensitive to ambient temperature changes, which can be extreme if you change to a cooler mountain elevation or have a day that goes from 70f in the a. m. to 90f mid day.

I have not (yet) encountered any handling vices but it is not a real easy car to drive and corner fast. It has a learning curve (pun?) as others have said. This makes it challenging and involving in a different way than a Porsche. Sometimes I sense that the adaptive suspension which tries to continually optimize the shock settings is not ready or is not keeping up and this is making the handling more difficult to figure out and may cause a wallow on the first hard turn. Sometimes I am taken by surprise by how much the DSC reduces power and speed to avoid a skid, just when I would like more. I don't like to turn it off completely on a public road.

The Porsche is also easier to place because of the low short hood and prominent fenders.

All in all the E89 provides a great addictive roadster experience and its versatility makes it the perfect car for me now.

The comments by owners in this thread are appreciated. The automotive magazine and Blog writers are stuck on trite, shallow stereotyped comments as they promote this weeks latest and greatest new thing.
 
Nictrix said:
What 335??
Do you mean 35is?
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The thread is about comparing the Z4 2.8 with a Boxster 718S. The difference that I was referring to was the weight on the front end of the 2.8 compared to the 335 cars with the N54 turbos. The 2.8 is around 300 pounds lighter and is closer to the Boxster weight. All of this weight difference is at the front of the Z. I assume the 2.8 at about 3100 pounds is more like a Boxster than the 3500 pound 335i and 335is. Hope this makes sense.
Glad to see the comments that the 2.8 is so comparable and that the E89 rear suspension is so good.
 
extaz said:
Nictrix said:
What 335??
Do you mean 35is?
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The thread is about comparing the Z4 2.8 with a Boxster 718S. The difference that I was referring to was the weight on the front end of the 2.8 compared to the 335 cars with the N54 turbos. The 2.8 is around 300 pounds lighter and is closer to the Boxster weight. All of this weight difference is at the front of the Z. I assume the 2.8 at about 3100 pounds is more like a Boxster than the 3500 pound 335i and 335is. Hope this makes sense.
Glad to see the comments that the 2.8 is so comparable and that the E89 rear suspension is so good.
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Nope still doesnt make sense.
Why bring a 335 saloon car into the equation?
 
extaz said:

We are in a z4 forum so I thought 335 would read Z4 335i or 335is and mean the cars with the N54 twin Turbo. I was wrong. Too vague :driving:
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That was why I asked if you meant 35is. The 335 is a completely different car as in a 3 series with N54 engine.
 
The e89 is much more squirrely than any of the Boxsters with PSM.

The stupid runflat tires are one reason.

It also helps to have wider front tires. I actually run a square tire set. The 225mm are idiotic and the wheel arcs are big enough for 255mm.
 
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