[frosty]

Had the loan of a Porsche Boxter S for 1/2 a day. We just swapped cars and went about or dailies in the other car.

The S is a little faster I feel but not as much as I feared. Lots less grunt, very much so down low - much more gearchanging required.

Fair bit more go in the upper rev range - where the Z gets somewhat asthmatic, the boxter pushes right on and on.

The most noticeable difference was in the ride generally and PARTICULARLY UNDER HARD CORNERING.!!!

The S was smoother, more compliant and much sharper feeling.

None of the annoying (and unsettling) "jiggling" and "leaping" that the Z exhibits at the limit. And no wheel tramp under heavy acceleration, either.

And every pebble on the road wasn't felt as a bump thru the car.

I'ts my feeling that a more compliant suspension would enhance cornering ability on all but the most even of surfaces - the present rates probably suit the track where the surface is perfect, but our bouncy roads together with the stiff compression rates of the standard shocks goes a long way towards tossing the car weight upwards and not absorbing the unevenness of the surface and thereby unsettling the balance of the car and tosses you offline.

Porsche certainly have this worked out.

Reducing the unsprung weight without changing the shock compression/rebound would be a useless exercise, IMHO.

Value for money - gimme the Z.

The Boxter sure 'aint worth 2 Z/s!

FROZZLEY

 

[mchapman]

I suspect it might 'feel' faster but in reality is not.

Just change your suspension Bill and your still ahead $$ wise. There are alot of options available for the 350z ranging from comfort cruizing to circuit racing.

I saw in a US thread that the engine damper could reduce wheel hope and on SportCompactCar their project 300zx had bad wheel hope and when they changed away from rubber bushings the wheel hop was eliminated.

Seems Nissan engineers tried to reduce the wheel hop in the 350z.

"Engineers also focused on eliminating rear wheel hop in the axle windup mode, especially considering the Z’s abundance of horsepower and torque."

Quoted from:
http://www.nissannews.com/nissan/2003vehic...echnology.shtml

 

[davidm]

I came close to purchasing the BoxsterS 2x now. It's one of the best cars around for any more IMHO. It does everything really well. Though, if you just want to focus on one aspect, then there are other, cheaper cars around that can do it almost as well (if not as well) .. .which is why I have always (so far) bought something else.

I prefer the Boxster S to regular 911s ... 911 C4S is a different story.

 

[mchapman]

With performance etc aside, did the fact that some dont consider it a real Porsche factor in? From what I know of you I dont think this sort of thing would weigh into your equation, but i'll ask anyway

 

[JTS2005]

i havent got to drive one of these little things yet. i have also heard that they dont consider it a real porche, and for the money i coldnt justify buying one.

 

[frosty]

MURRAY - not sure what you mean.

FRIZZLE

 

[mchapman]

Sorry mate,

Which bit? The suspension comment?

I meant whatever you dont like about the handling in the zed change so your happy with it. The Zed is still good value after spending a bit more on the suspension. And there are alot of options available to suit anyones needs/price ranges.

 

[davidm]

With performance etc aside, did the fact that some dont consider it a real Porsche factor in? From what I know of you I dont think this sort of thing would weigh into your equation, but i'll ask anyway.

To me it's a Porsche just like 911 ... and in some ways a better sports car as the Boxster is better balanced (and IMHO better handling) than a regular 911. Even a 996 does not feel too crash hot to me when driven hard ... I was actually dissapointed as I was expecting a lot. Not that it's bad or anything, but compared to Boxster the front and back of a 'regular' 911 are not matched up. They don't have cosistant feel. On the other hand the Boxster is very much all about balance and grip .... very few cars have a combination of both to such a degree. It took a 996 C4S for me to be impressed by the 996 .... the C4S was close to flawless in terms of feel and balance.

This might sound be a shock, but 1st time I drove a Boxster (ie. '98), I also drove an Elise (for the 1st time). It was the original Elise with 80kW or so. The Boxster, even with the original 2.5L engine, was the car that impressed me a lot more. I actually preferred the handling feel of the Boxster, even though the Elise was lighter, more direct and more nimble.

ps. The only Porsches I don't concider 'real' Porsche are 924 as Porsche had very little to do with those cars ... all the other ones are very much Porsches to me. Well, maybe not the Cayenne ;-)

 

[lionkiller]

911 is a how-many-year-old-design? Boxster is 'new'. Porsche, IMHO, has reached the limit of the '911 envelope' with their latest turbo beast. The 'S', being a new design ...well, not surprised it feels better (more balanced) to some, though don't go saying it to 911 die-hards.

I put coilovers on my Z33 & called it a day. I like the look better than the Boxster IMHO....though the 'S' exhaust is kinda cool...

 

[frosty]

MUZ: I just make the point that a different shock/springrate etc would have been much more satisfying (and better handling) for the situation that most of us are in: ie, daily commuters with the urge to "play" a couple of times each trip and maybe the occasional 9/10ths to get rid of the pent-up adrenalin and for you young nuts, testosterone.

The suspension as is is possibly perfect for better roads than we get in Aus - I get the shites every time I push a bit and feel the car "humping" on the undulations on the corners.

Someone come up with a better set-up and I'll be for it.

BTW - was it Wuff, Snuff or Tuff that was looking at a group buy on some shocks?

FAST FRIZZLE

 

[ky350]

Frizzle - must remember where the car is made. Pothole are unheard of in Japan, so the stock suspension would be ideal on the black ribbons they call roads.

 

[zuffy]

Yeh, no wonder teh Zed feels so bad on our roads! Reminds me of when i was visiting Africa....

Ok..maybe not! :lol:

 

[Perth 350z]

Thanks for the write up Frizzle - You lucky *******!

 

[mchapman]

Originally posted by frosty@Oct 28 2004, 03:32 PM
MUZ: I just make the point that a different shock/springrate etc would have been much more satisfying (and better handling) for the situation that most of us are in: ie, daily commuters with the urge to "play" a couple of times each trip and maybe the occasional 9/10ths to get rid of the pent-up adrenalin and for you young nuts, testosterone.

The suspension as is is possibly perfect for better roads than we get in Aus - I get the shites every time I push a bit and feel the car "humping" on the undulations on the corners.

Someone come up with a better set-up and I'll be for it.

BTW - was it Wuff, Snuff or Tuff that was looking at a group buy on some shocks?

FAST FRIZZLE

Yep thats cool, I was giving some examples of ways others have reduced wheel hop / axel tramp and on a seperate note I was also suggesting changing your suspension so it handles more like you want it to. i.e If you dont like the way the car leans and you want to remove some understeer giving it a more 'direct feel', then sway bars will achieve this without lowering your ride height or physically using harder springs.

Regarding the axle tramp,
I have Cusco coilovers and get axle tramp when I try to launch very hard and get a bit of wheel spin, I think my tires might be contributing to it as I dont remember getting it when I had the S03s + Cusco's on.
For reference a guy on my350z said the engine damper reduced his axle tramp by ~60%.

 

[cedusett]

I can't say I've ever driven a boxster, but I don't understand why people don't consider them porsche's. The way I look at it, it was made by Porsche, and just because it's cheaper than a 911 doesn't change that. I don't really like what they're doing with the Cayenne, but that's up to them in the end.

I have raced my friends Boxster (not an S), and the Z took it pretty easily. I've heard the S is much better but I have no first hand experience with them. I also like the exhaust design though

 

[mchapman]

Originally posted by cedusett@Nov 1 2004, 08:50 AM
I don't understand why people don't consider them porsche's.

Some possible reasons why it isnt considered a real Porsche.

1. Some think a real sports car isn't a convertible.
5. Its performance was lacking.
2. Its at the bottom end of the Porsche line, some would draw the conclusion that its the worst Porsche.
3. Some think its the ugliest Porsche.
4. Some see it as a bit girly.

Note: I don't necessarily agree with these reasons.

 

[studybuddy]

That's like the Sentra not being a Nissan. That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. Of course it is girly and perhaps ugly. That doesn't mean that Porsche should completely ignore their bottom end car. I mean, it's not a Daewoo, so what does porsche have to worry about.

 

[mchapman]

Sort of, but Porsche was known for producing super cars, so for them to bring out a low end car could be more offensive to some than Nissan bringing out a sedan.

I dont think any manufacturer should ignore their low end cars. Low end cars have their uses and I think they should be high quality as well.