My Toys - MB SL500, Audi TT 3.2 V6 & Porsche Boxster S
Discussion
Over the past few years I've bought and sold numerous cars but now have 3 garaged "toys" in additional to my everyday commuter car (although I do still use them sometimes to commute in). They are no garage queens either, I do try and use mostly at the weekends and each averages around 5k miles pa. I'm planning on up loading a sequence of videos to You Tube soon as there seems to be a significant lack of real world (owner) reviews of cars, focusing on real world issues/running costs and driving enjoyment, rather than 1/2 hour blast around a test track that doesn't represent 99% of their use. I've summarised some key points below, but would appreciate any comments from other owners of any of the cars so as to give a more balanced view of each one.
They are all c.15 years old, between 70-80k miles, and range from between c.£5k through to c.£10k in value, offering similar bhp, from either 6 or 8 cylinder engines delivered through RWD or 4WD - Each of the 3 has very different characteristics and very different pro's/cons to each other. There's no such thing as the perfect car!
At the bottom of the re-sale value is my mark 1 Audi TT 3.2 V6. It may be the more affordable to buy but it doesn't feel any less special than either the Boxster or SL500. And in most real world driving the car is quick enough to stay with the other two cars. Looks are very subjective but I think the mark 1 TT has aged really well and still looks box fresh compared to the others. Other than the fact the numbers sold were so high, then price of TT's has been kept very affordable. With looks this good and an engine note this great the TT does really offer you so much value. The paddle-shift DSG gearbox is also a joy to use and easily better than the Tiptronic Boxster. If ever it was just about value, for me the TT would be the hands down winner. The biggest negative for me is the overly firm ride (bordering harsh) and rear seats that really don't offer anything to many people unless you have very short children (under 5) or friends that don't have heads!!!!
Next up the re-sale value is the SL500. Condition and history are everything here and as such you see a large price range with some dropping down towards the £5k mark. Personally I wouldn't want to go anywhere near at that price as repairs/servicing could end up costing more than the purchase price. The R230 range of SL's were a "tech-fest" back in the early 00's with new prices being £70k plus options. As time and use have taken there toll so does the servicing and repairs to keep the car in A1 condition. As this tends to get "missed" by buyers not being able to fund such an expensive car, SL's are very heart pumping cars to buy. But buy a good one, with great service history and you could be buying a MB legend. The previous SL range (R129) is starting to show prices slowly rising (for the best ones) and it is inevitable that the R230 will do so too, but the question is whether you can keep funding the car in this interim period! The electrics are the issue, but once you open up the glorious 5 lite V8 you soon realise what a special car the SL is. The retractable electronic roof is a work of art, or an expensive repair should anything fail during its operation, depending on your experience!!!! It's no sports car though, it's GT through and through and would be able to cover huge distance and speeds that could leave you licence-less by the time you arrive! The question I always ask is "do you turn around and look back when you've parked your car" - the answer with the SL500 is simple ..... every time :-)
And finally my most expensive car, the Porsche Boxster 3.2 S 987.1. If it were purely about driving pleasure down a B road then I'd go with the Boxster every time. It's just such a well balanced car, with handling that the TT just can't match. The ride is firm but compliant, and it just goes and stops so well. It's also very practicable, space for luggage in the front and rear, cup holders for two (that the TT doesn't have!) and seats that just hold you perfectly. But is it too good? Does it feel really special? I don't think it looks as special as either the TT or the SL. It does suffer from "it ain't a 911" perception (although that's no fault of the car) and the exhaust just doesn't sound as exciting as the TT or SL. Running costs are high too, with Porsche parts being very expensive compared to the reasonable Audi specialist parts.
Mates often ask why I don't sell them all and buy one "really nice" car. Well the answer is simple. On that bright sunny Sunday morning when I open the curtains I wouldn't have the choice to which of these 3 "toys" I could take for an early morning drive. And that wouldn't feel the same.
Any comments on any of the cars above would be greatly appreciated and enjoy your driving.
They are all c.15 years old, between 70-80k miles, and range from between c.£5k through to c.£10k in value, offering similar bhp, from either 6 or 8 cylinder engines delivered through RWD or 4WD - Each of the 3 has very different characteristics and very different pro's/cons to each other. There's no such thing as the perfect car!
At the bottom of the re-sale value is my mark 1 Audi TT 3.2 V6. It may be the more affordable to buy but it doesn't feel any less special than either the Boxster or SL500. And in most real world driving the car is quick enough to stay with the other two cars. Looks are very subjective but I think the mark 1 TT has aged really well and still looks box fresh compared to the others. Other than the fact the numbers sold were so high, then price of TT's has been kept very affordable. With looks this good and an engine note this great the TT does really offer you so much value. The paddle-shift DSG gearbox is also a joy to use and easily better than the Tiptronic Boxster. If ever it was just about value, for me the TT would be the hands down winner. The biggest negative for me is the overly firm ride (bordering harsh) and rear seats that really don't offer anything to many people unless you have very short children (under 5) or friends that don't have heads!!!!
Next up the re-sale value is the SL500. Condition and history are everything here and as such you see a large price range with some dropping down towards the £5k mark. Personally I wouldn't want to go anywhere near at that price as repairs/servicing could end up costing more than the purchase price. The R230 range of SL's were a "tech-fest" back in the early 00's with new prices being £70k plus options. As time and use have taken there toll so does the servicing and repairs to keep the car in A1 condition. As this tends to get "missed" by buyers not being able to fund such an expensive car, SL's are very heart pumping cars to buy. But buy a good one, with great service history and you could be buying a MB legend. The previous SL range (R129) is starting to show prices slowly rising (for the best ones) and it is inevitable that the R230 will do so too, but the question is whether you can keep funding the car in this interim period! The electrics are the issue, but once you open up the glorious 5 lite V8 you soon realise what a special car the SL is. The retractable electronic roof is a work of art, or an expensive repair should anything fail during its operation, depending on your experience!!!! It's no sports car though, it's GT through and through and would be able to cover huge distance and speeds that could leave you licence-less by the time you arrive! The question I always ask is "do you turn around and look back when you've parked your car" - the answer with the SL500 is simple ..... every time :-)
And finally my most expensive car, the Porsche Boxster 3.2 S 987.1. If it were purely about driving pleasure down a B road then I'd go with the Boxster every time. It's just such a well balanced car, with handling that the TT just can't match. The ride is firm but compliant, and it just goes and stops so well. It's also very practicable, space for luggage in the front and rear, cup holders for two (that the TT doesn't have!) and seats that just hold you perfectly. But is it too good? Does it feel really special? I don't think it looks as special as either the TT or the SL. It does suffer from "it ain't a 911" perception (although that's no fault of the car) and the exhaust just doesn't sound as exciting as the TT or SL. Running costs are high too, with Porsche parts being very expensive compared to the reasonable Audi specialist parts.
Mates often ask why I don't sell them all and buy one "really nice" car. Well the answer is simple. On that bright sunny Sunday morning when I open the curtains I wouldn't have the choice to which of these 3 "toys" I could take for an early morning drive. And that wouldn't feel the same.
Any comments on any of the cars above would be greatly appreciated and enjoy your driving.
I’ve just up loaded Part 1 of a sequence of videos I plan to do on YouTube this year to compare real world ownership of these cars at their respective age/mileage.
Link is here https://youtu.be/VgZ-xFVjfQI
Link is here https://youtu.be/VgZ-xFVjfQI
I've just uploaded Part 2 of my video which focuses mostly on my mk1 TT 3.2 V6. Link is here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dbp4ueaP6B8&t=...
I’ll be reviewing both the Porsche and SL500 in the next few weeks, covering similar points around what I covered during the TT review. They’re both very different cars to the TT and offer very different experiences. If there’s anything specific you’d like me to review during the video just let me know and I’ll cover it.
Part 3 of my video on the SL500 R230 https://youtu.be/Ryj0tzXI4DQ
I look forward to your updates, some interesting cars there. On face value seemingly not that different from one another, and I’m intrigued why no manual. But that’s just my take and therefore largely irrelevant to your garage.
Look forward to your vids too, will be good to see a regular petrolheads take on running such cars.
Look forward to your vids too, will be good to see a regular petrolheads take on running such cars.
Richard-rjbph said:
Over the past few years I've bought and sold numerous cars but now have 3 garaged "toys" in additional to my everyday commuter car (although I do still use them sometimes to commute in). They are no garage queens either, I do try and use mostly at the weekends and each averages around 5k miles pa. I'm planning on up loading a sequence of videos to You Tube soon as there seems to be a significant lack of real world (owner) reviews of cars, focusing on real world issues/running costs and driving enjoyment, rather than 1/2 hour blast around a test track that doesn't represent 99% of their use. I've summarised some key points below, but would appreciate any comments from other owners of any of the cars so as to give a more balanced view of each one.
They are all c.15 years old, between 70-80k miles, and range from between c.£5k through to c.£10k in value, offering similar bhp, from either 6 or 8 cylinder engines delivered through RWD or 4WD - Each of the 3 has very different characteristics and very different pro's/cons to each other. There's no such thing as the perfect car!
At the bottom of the re-sale value is my mark 1 Audi TT 3.2 V6. It may be the more affordable to buy but it doesn't feel any less special than either the Boxster or SL500. And in most real world driving the car is quick enough to stay with the other two cars. Looks are very subjective but I think the mark 1 TT has aged really well and still looks box fresh compared to the others. Other than the fact the numbers sold were so high, then price of TT's has been kept very affordable. With looks this good and an engine note this great the TT does really offer you so much value. The paddle-shift DSG gearbox is also a joy to use and easily better than the Tiptronic Boxster. If ever it was just about value, for me the TT would be the hands down winner. The biggest negative for me is the overly firm ride (bordering harsh) and rear seats that really don't offer anything to many people unless you have very short children (under 5) or friends that don't have heads!!!!
Next up the re-sale value is the SL500. Condition and history are everything here and as such you see a large price range with some dropping down towards the £5k mark. Personally I wouldn't want to go anywhere near at that price as repairs/servicing could end up costing more than the purchase price. The R230 range of SL's were a "tech-fest" back in the early 00's with new prices being £70k plus options. As time and use have taken there toll so does the servicing and repairs to keep the car in A1 condition. As this tends to get "missed" by buyers not being able to fund such an expensive car, SL's are very heart pumping cars to buy. But buy a good one, with great service history and you could be buying a MB legend. The previous SL range (R129) is starting to show prices slowly rising (for the best ones) and it is inevitable that the R230 will do so too, but the question is whether you can keep funding the car in this interim period! The electrics are the issue, but once you open up the glorious 5 lite V8 you soon realise what a special car the SL is. The retractable electronic roof is a work of art, or an expensive repair should anything fail during its operation, depending on your experience!!!! It's no sports car though, it's GT through and through and would be able to cover huge distance and speeds that could leave you licence-less by the time you arrive! The question I always ask is "do you turn around and look back when you've parked your car" - the answer with the SL500 is simple ..... every time :-)
And finally my most expensive car, the Porsche Boxster 3.2 S 987.1. If it were purely about driving pleasure down a B road then I'd go with the Boxster every time. It's just such a well balanced car, with handling that the TT just can't match. The ride is firm but compliant, and it just goes and stops so well. It's also very practicable, space for luggage in the front and rear, cup holders for two (that the TT doesn't have!) and seats that just hold you perfectly. But is it too good? Does it feel really special? I don't think it looks as special as either the TT or the SL. It does suffer from "it ain't a 911" perception (although that's no fault of the car) and the exhaust just doesn't sound as exciting as the TT or SL. Running costs are high too, with Porsche parts being very expensive compared to the reasonable Audi specialist parts.
Mates often ask why I don't sell them all and buy one "really nice" car. Well the answer is simple. On that bright sunny Sunday morning when I open the curtains I wouldn't have the choice to which of these 3 "toys" I could take for an early morning drive. And that wouldn't feel the same.
Any comments on any of the cars above would be greatly appreciated and enjoy your driving.
Nice write up. Thanks for sharing. I had both the SL500 and the 3.2 Quattro. I agree with your sentiments regarding the Audi. They are all c.15 years old, between 70-80k miles, and range from between c.£5k through to c.£10k in value, offering similar bhp, from either 6 or 8 cylinder engines delivered through RWD or 4WD - Each of the 3 has very different characteristics and very different pro's/cons to each other. There's no such thing as the perfect car!
At the bottom of the re-sale value is my mark 1 Audi TT 3.2 V6. It may be the more affordable to buy but it doesn't feel any less special than either the Boxster or SL500. And in most real world driving the car is quick enough to stay with the other two cars. Looks are very subjective but I think the mark 1 TT has aged really well and still looks box fresh compared to the others. Other than the fact the numbers sold were so high, then price of TT's has been kept very affordable. With looks this good and an engine note this great the TT does really offer you so much value. The paddle-shift DSG gearbox is also a joy to use and easily better than the Tiptronic Boxster. If ever it was just about value, for me the TT would be the hands down winner. The biggest negative for me is the overly firm ride (bordering harsh) and rear seats that really don't offer anything to many people unless you have very short children (under 5) or friends that don't have heads!!!!
Next up the re-sale value is the SL500. Condition and history are everything here and as such you see a large price range with some dropping down towards the £5k mark. Personally I wouldn't want to go anywhere near at that price as repairs/servicing could end up costing more than the purchase price. The R230 range of SL's were a "tech-fest" back in the early 00's with new prices being £70k plus options. As time and use have taken there toll so does the servicing and repairs to keep the car in A1 condition. As this tends to get "missed" by buyers not being able to fund such an expensive car, SL's are very heart pumping cars to buy. But buy a good one, with great service history and you could be buying a MB legend. The previous SL range (R129) is starting to show prices slowly rising (for the best ones) and it is inevitable that the R230 will do so too, but the question is whether you can keep funding the car in this interim period! The electrics are the issue, but once you open up the glorious 5 lite V8 you soon realise what a special car the SL is. The retractable electronic roof is a work of art, or an expensive repair should anything fail during its operation, depending on your experience!!!! It's no sports car though, it's GT through and through and would be able to cover huge distance and speeds that could leave you licence-less by the time you arrive! The question I always ask is "do you turn around and look back when you've parked your car" - the answer with the SL500 is simple ..... every time :-)
And finally my most expensive car, the Porsche Boxster 3.2 S 987.1. If it were purely about driving pleasure down a B road then I'd go with the Boxster every time. It's just such a well balanced car, with handling that the TT just can't match. The ride is firm but compliant, and it just goes and stops so well. It's also very practicable, space for luggage in the front and rear, cup holders for two (that the TT doesn't have!) and seats that just hold you perfectly. But is it too good? Does it feel really special? I don't think it looks as special as either the TT or the SL. It does suffer from "it ain't a 911" perception (although that's no fault of the car) and the exhaust just doesn't sound as exciting as the TT or SL. Running costs are high too, with Porsche parts being very expensive compared to the reasonable Audi specialist parts.
Mates often ask why I don't sell them all and buy one "really nice" car. Well the answer is simple. On that bright sunny Sunday morning when I open the curtains I wouldn't have the choice to which of these 3 "toys" I could take for an early morning drive. And that wouldn't feel the same.
Any comments on any of the cars above would be greatly appreciated and enjoy your driving.
Three cars that on face value do the same thing, but in fact each and everyone of them drives so differently. I do often get asked the question about judging getting one better car, but that’d lose the point of growing my classic car collection and then I wouldn’t have the option of which key to pick each and every morning 👍🏻
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