mdavis

I've recently been in the market for a new car. I'd like the most exhilarating, best handling vehicle this side of the 911.

Test drove the following:

'95 E36 3.0L BMW M3 2-dr
'99 E36 3.2L BMW M3 2-dr
'01 E46 BMW M3 2-dr
'01 Audi S4
Honda S2000
BMW Z3 3.0L
Audi TT
Porsche Boxster-S


Current BMW owner.

High level pros/cons following...Have a detailed spreadsheet, that numerically rates these vehicles in 38 or so categories w/weights, etc. Guess which car won?, destroying the others in the end??
Read on folks...

note: my weighting significantly affects these results, so others many come to different conclusions.


In the beginning, I was dead set on an M3. However, I test drove the S2K and everything changed. The S2k is the reason for all the roadster's on the list.

'95 M3:

Pros: Fun to drive, good low-end torque, good handling. Seems to be moderately fast. Feels relatively smooth and refined. Relatively safe vs. roadsters
Cons: Felt heavy compared to some of the roadsters, much less nimble, much less confidence inspiring, less exhilarating than most of the roadsters

'99 M3:

Very similar to the '95, but even more refined, smoother, and slightly faster.

'01 M3 (redesigned E46):

Pros: Much more low end torque, seemed very fast, very classy interior, more "executive", relatively very safe, very high redline compared to prev. gen. BMWs
Cons: Steering isn't as good as E36 -- too much assist, still feels "heavy", less confidence inspiring than the E36 M3

S4:
Pros: Lots of interior room, good low-end torque, nice interior
Cons: Absolutely horrible suspension, felt "heavy" again, less nimble than M3s and much less nimble than the roadsters. Prefer M3 to S4, but no M3/4 for E46 yet.

Z3 3.0L:
Pros: Nice quality interior, nice quality top -- machanicals, more nimble than M3's, more road "feel", decent low-end torque -- less than M3, more than S2k.
Cons: Suspension dating to the E30 (16 years old), plastic rear window

Audi TT:
Pros: Nice interior quality, nice top open/automatic glass wind shield, AWD very nice, 6-speed decent, the most luxery oriented IMO, glass rear window
Cons: Not a performance car as far as I am concerned, suspension wasn't firm, accel./torque was just OK, handling was not confidence inspiring or precise, most isolating

Boxster-S:
Pros: Decent low-end torque, great handling (2nd best), firm suspension/good cornering, lots of storage, good road feel, incredible 911 brakes
Cons: Felt as "heavy" as an M3, didn't have the nimbleness of the S2k, couldn't feel the engine, shifter wasn't that good, plastic rear window, expected more.

And the winner is...Honda S2000 '01:

Pros: Best shifter in the group by a large margin, best chassis in the group, best handling in the group, most confidence inspiring in the group, best suspension in the group, excellent brakes (probably 2nd to the 911 brakes on the Boxster?), Incredible road feel, very exhilarating, very fun to drive, a single purpose drivers car -- the most fun I've ever had driving a car.

Cons: Cheap interior (carpet -- especially console, dash controls, etc), plastic rear window, scary issues w/1-2 grind (still not fixed?), redundent radio controls, cheap radio, very cramped, cheap lockbox that can easily be broken into, cheap factory alarm, very poorly designed hooks on soft top -- tension makes then difficult to get off from my experience, cheap windshield (easily gets chips) -- wish Honda would release a version that isn't so cheap in the quality --



Should I test drive any others? Agree with my observations?

HopkintonMA

Just buy the S2000 and start to enjoy it....sounds like you will not regret it based on your observations...the S2000 is the car for you!

smccurry

Test drive no further... I think you've found what you're looking for if you're as passionate about driving as you seem

rocketman

[QUOTE]Originally posted by mdavis
[B]
Cons: Cheap interior (carpet -- especially console, dash controls, etc), plastic rear window, scary issues w/1-2 grind (still not fixed?), redundent radio controls, cheap radio, very cramped, cheap lockbox that can easily be broken into, cheap factory alarm, very poorly designed hooks on soft top -- tension makes then difficult to get off from my experience, cheap windshield (easily gets chips) -- wish Honda would release a version that isn't so cheap in the quality --

mister_two

By "redundant" radio controls, I take it you mean the audio controls on the left side of the dash by the steering wheel. This should be moved from the "cons" to the "pros". It's one of the better features of the interior, having the radio controls at your fingertips. The only time I take down the radio door is when I need to change a CD. I really miss that feature when I am not driving the S.

FlyingPig

Those radio controls happens to be very useful.
As for cheap carpet for center console, get yourself Rick's signature series leather console cover. (get the boot cover and the knob sock

CoralDoc

Nice post mdavis. When I went roadster shopping in December '99 the short list was similar to yours - 2.8 Z3, M Roadster, and Boxster (Boxster S not released yet). After a round of test drives, the choice was between the Porsche and the Honda. After the second round, the Honda was clearly the right choice. I have since been a passenger in my friends Boxster S and it is one nice car. More torque than the S2000 and a wonderful engine note, but it displayed more body roll. I bet its very well balanced. Based on my price independent priorities, the Honda is still the clear winner.

Also note that non of these cars are without reliability and mechanical issues. Spend any time on Pete's Boxster Board or Z3,net and you'll hear about exploding engiens, slipping clutches and poor dealer service just like you see here.

Buy the S2000 and enjoy the ride.

dslts02

[QUOTE]Originally posted by mdavis
[B]Should I test drive any others?

Nin009

I would have to say that I agree with most of your observations. For me, however, a lot of those cons went away once I started driving the car.

Cheap carpet? That just means I don't have to worry about soiling the good stuff with dirty shoes.

Cheap factory alarm? I bought mine without. I will easily get twice the value at half the price when my Alpine is installed.

Windshield? Yeah, it sucks.

When I am driving, I am listening to the sweet song of VTEC. When I am stuck in traffic and do listen to the radio, I am watching the road while managing the volume and station with the flick of a finger. This process is way efficient.

I feel people make too much of an issue with the plastic backlight. It is a design compromise lets all deal with it. If you want to discuss the top, lets talk about the huge blind spot. That is an important issue.

I own a '01 and have had zero problems. No grind, other than user error. No significant oil consumption in 3500 miles. No number four cylinder failure. It starts every time I push the red button.

If you'll review your post, you might notice that all of your "Pros" had to do with driving the car. Most of your "Cons" came from sitting in it and pushing buttons and pulling on levers.

As you said, this is "a single purpose driver's car." It seems illogical to praise it, then flaw it, for achieving that goal.

pfb

If that truly is your criteria, the S2000 is probably the choice within the U.S.