would a Boxster bore you?
May 3rd, 2006On paper and in motion the Porsche Boxster is a textbook example of how a car should be laid out (flat engine mounted in the middle of the chassis) and dialed in (rigid body, uncorrupted steering, low inertia handling, a suspension that maintains body control and travel). But some have said of Boxster (and Cayman) that it lacks the edge that makes the 911 so rewarding – its not just the fact that the power’s been capped to protect the 911’s sales numbers but rather the sense that anyone and their 16 year old could extract all it has.
Now that M engineers have stripped the Z4 of electric steering and runflat tires and stuffed it full of motor, magazines are running a string of ubiquitous comparisons, and I’m seeing a surprising trend: German cars, particularly BMWs, have often been criticised for lacking soul and being laden with too many electronics. The Z4M is a refreshing departure from that stereotype.
Here’s a quote from evo
:
Objectively, the Boxster S should win. It copes more convincingly with a wider range of roads and conditions thanks to polished damping, silken steering and a benign, infinitely adjustable on-limit balance. It’s not challenging but, given a clear road, it is totally absorbing. However, if you’ve stepped out of the M Roadster…the Porsche feels a bit flat, lacking poke and playfulness… The M Roadster…doesn’t set a new benchmark for sports car dynamics (that accolade still belongs to the Boxster), but it’s a bold, ballsy car that exhilarates and challenges in a way the oh-so-accomplished Porsche can’t match… that’s enough to give it the nod by the narrowest of margins.