What to go for Z4, Vx220 Boxster or S2000??

[Mr Whippy]

Won't put down the others, because every car has it's merits, but the Z4 is a decent car for the money these days.

Not as focussed as you might think, just enough of a hard edge to be taken seriously as a sports car, which is a good thing for an every day car I rekon. In winter it has great heaters and heated seats for roof down motoring on sunny but cold days, and even days after I bought mine I was driving to work in snow/compacted ice and it was 'ok'

Looking back now, I'm glad I got it over the VX/S2000/Boxster I was looking at too.

VX not practical enough. I can do my shopping in the Z4 easily. Suitcases for two for a break away nicely too.
S2000, too peaky and edgy. OK, I'm a nancy Honestly though, I just wanted a big engine and 6 pots + for my sports car.
Boxster, fantastic in so many ways, but the interior is rather hideous vs the competition. Also, the 3.2's I wanted were too much.
987 S with their nicer interior would be my punt in a few years though!

Z4 just manages to blend all the above really nicely. A test drive will always confirm what you need to know, but I think BMW got the sports car spot on with the Z4 (E85)... just dump the RFT's and mod the sound generator!

Dave

[vz-r_dave]

schmalex said:

N10k said:

schmalex said:

paoloh said:

LeightonBuzzard said:

Thought about a 350z?

Why?

He might want a lumpen piece of crap with a Renault engine

Have either of you had or driven a 350z?

You get a lot of car for your money, the shape is better than both the VX and the Z4, you get 3.5l pushing 300 bhp, they drive well in the city and out on the twisty. Cheap to maintain and sounds amazing. Its an animal if you want it to be or be a comfy city runner.

I have had both the 350z and the VX220. I test drove the Z4 and wasn't very impressed with it compared to the competition

Yes. I thought it was neither particularly well made, or particularly nice to chuck about. Hence my considered opinion.

Its just an opinion, the sales and reviews of the 350Z speak for themselves. Watch out with the 350Z and the Z4, both have now been superseded with later models and will loose a fair amount quickly in the coming years. S2000 well, it hasn’t been replaced and the Porsche has the badge. VX is to raw imo.

[Hot1]

Crusoe said:

If you are looking at z4 the 3lr is the engine to go for, the added sound ducting makes it sound a lot more like a sports car and there is noticeable difference in the way it pulls to the red line compared to the 2.5 which is similar lower down but runs out of puff a bit around 5500 rpm. Difference in running costs is just the mpg which is only 2 or 3mpg difference. 2.5 on 17in wheels and the non-sport suspension would me a more comfortable cruiser though if you were doing lots of miles though even the sport 3lr is better than the other options mentioned for motorway work. When looking a s2000 make sure you check when they last had a full alignment done, that they have the same rubber all round in the original spec tyres and that they have had the adjustment bolts greased as lots have had problems with seized bushes which is a costly fix. On vx220 there are lots of recalls to make sure they have completed, should have had brake hoses and expansion tank replaced and most earlier ones had alloy wheels replaced too, and lots used in winter have had bubbles forming in the fibreglass which causes paint problems. Lots of extra info on the specific forums for each car with things to watch for and buying advice, a second hand car from a forum member might also be a good place to start looking as they should have an easy to trace history and have the known issues fixed:

http://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?s=0fb4f212afb...

http://www.vx220.org.uk/

http://www.z4-forum.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=11

Thanks for the great info and links. After reading what you have said I definatly want the 3.olr z4 over the 2.5lr my only concern is weather I could find a reasonable 3.olr with my budget!

[Hot1]

N10k said:

hmmmm
Nice decision to have though!

Hey thats true it is a nice choice just not easy to decide which one to go for as they all have their pros and cons. When you picture them like that all together it is the vx220 all the way especially that particular one as its the lightening yellow edition i like it alot! The nissan is nice and has a great sound but just dont appeal to me like the others do!

[Hot1]

I think the boxster is definatly out of the question I love them dearly but fo my budget the ones I can afford are starting to look dated especailly compared to the later ones. I would also want the 3.2s idealy but again the ones I can afford my not be the best examples. So this leaves the s2k z4 and vx.

The vx has alot going for it for me as it is the cheapest one to insure ,and i could get a nice one for less than 10k but I may find it too raw and i have no garage so winters could be horrible.

This is where the z4 may be more suitable as its not as raw has good heaters and most have heated leather seats so would be better in winter use. The downside is I really want the 3.0l version if I get one and I dont no if I could get a nice example with my budget I have seen the odd one but they do not come up that often.

So that leaves the S2k I could easily get a nice one for my budget even one below which would be handy! But the downsides to this car for me would be the lack of torque, im not a fan of that my Rx8 is the same and does fraustrate me at times, but apparently vtec sounds nice! The other down side is group 20 insurance I am 23 with 5yrs no claims its not going to be cheap!

This is why I find it a hard choice lol but all the info iam getting is very helpful thankyou all!

[ad551]

I had a similar choice to you a few months ago - and ended up with a VX220.

I was looking at other tin-top cars as well, but none of them appealed. I didn't think about Boxsters at this price range - they were all either leggy, had a very patchy history, or came in some magnificently awful colour combo!

S2000s interested me but I found every insurance quote I got for them was crazy (I'm 25 with 7 years NCB). Not sure why, as I could insure a 350Z for around £400, the cheapest S2000 quote I could find was almost £1000.

Z4 looks OK but if I'm honest I discounted it on the basis that the one I really wanted would be too expensive and I'm not totally sold on the looks/image.

I've had my VX for two months now and yes, it's raw, but not that raw. It's quite quiet unless you have a crazy exhaust on it (perhaps too quiet for a sports car...?) and it doesn't ride as badly as many modern German cars - don't get me wrong, it isn't a soft ride but it is also quite 'supple' - I guess when there isn't much weight to carry around you don't have to have such hard suspension to contain the mass moving around on top of it.

I'm 6ft but I don't really have a problem with getting in and out - OK it isn't as easy as say my Golf was but I never expected it to be! You will get bored of telling people how to get in and out though - "no, don't sit on the sill" and "no, don't hang off the windscreen surround"!

I think the car is fine on the motorway - not quiet though as there is a lot of road noise and you are very low, so I like to have my lights on to increase how well I'm seem, but even so you'll need to drive a bit more defensively than normal.

A VX isn't for everyone though, so I would definitely recommend a test drive, or at least having a ride in one before you buy. If you pop along to http://www.vx220.org.uk you could post up your location and see if there is anyone local to you who could give you a pax ride.

Enjoy making the choice

[havoc]

Hot1 said:

So that leaves the S2k I could easily get a nice one for my budget even one below which would be handy! But the downsides to this car for me would be the lack of torque, im not a fan of that my Rx8 is the same and does fraustrate me at times, but apparently vtec sounds nice! The other down side is group 20 insurance I am 23 with 5yrs no claims its not going to be cheap!

S2000 engine FEELS notably torquier than the RX8, and sounds better, but is still the same TYPE of engine - peaky.

I'd describe it as 'enough' below VTEC to easily keep pace with the TDi's, but that's it - you DO need to wring it out to make real progress (at which point it's properly quick - more so than the RX8). So if you're frustrated with the RX's lack of torque, maybe give the Z4 a go?!? Research what the right geometry is and it'll probably handle very nicely indeed, and BMW I-6's have an excellent reputation...

[chimera40]

Hot1 said:

Hey guys a BIG hello to you all I am new here and this is my first post!

Then how come it says this is your 10th post and you have been registered for ages.;)

[Hot1]

chimera40 said:

Hot1 said:

Hey guys a BIG hello to you all I am new here and this is my first post!

Then how come it says this is your 10th post and you have been registered for ages.;)

Good point completly forgot that I had registered myself,that long back!!

[havoc]

haworthlloyd1 said:

...but you don't really get chance to get the top down often

This summer no, but I'd say probably 1/2 of my drives in the S were 'topless' (OK, it was a 2nd car, but I drove it in snow and had the roof down at night, etc. etc...).

I'd also suggest the Z, while quick, FEELS a lot heavier (and slower-witted as a result) than all the OP's choices - it's a good car, but a bruiser to the scalpel of the VX and the others...

[Diderot]

Z4 for me had absolutely diabolically horrible steering (that stupid electric setup which has no feel, and is crazily vague). Also the run flats shake the filling out of your teeth. Engine is nice, body is the usual BMW ugly as sin flame surface crap.

S2000. Above 5k rpm it's reasonably swift; below 4k rpm, you might as well get out and walk. Looks a bit noddyish to me also. Nice cockpit binnacle, reliable and handles tidily. Twitchy in the wet though.

350Z. Crap interior. Coarse but effective and good sounding engine. Great value. Very good handling - LSD is well set up - lovely steering. Surprising amount of stuff can be carried.

VX220. Haven't driven one so can't comment.

Boxster. Completely different league than the Z4, S2000 and the Zed. Mid engine, sublime balance, steering is beautifully weighted, brakes superb and the 3.2 is a very nice unit.

My vote would be: Boxster followed by 350Z.

[DanL]

kambites said:

DanL said:

kambites said:

They also aren't much fun on the motorway, although most of the problem is noise levels so wearing ear plugs can help.

VX's aren't too bad on motorways - they're significantly quieter than S2 Elises of the same era.

Hardly a match for a Boxster though.

Well no, but then it's not as comfortable as any of the other cars on the list. However, you don't need ear plugs to get from A to B. If he wants what the VX220 offers, none of the other cars on the list will do - however, there are compromises in other areas to be taken into account when going down that route.

[Gompo]

Where are all these 350z convertibles for less than £10k?

Cheapest on AT is £11k, and cheapest I can see on here is £12k.

Out of the cars you've mentioned in my circumstances I'd go for the S2000 - but for you I reckon the Z4 would fit best, and also seems the one you want.

[threespires]

heebeegeetee said:

A supercharged MX5 will be easily obtainable for under £10k and will be a better car than all those mentioned, but it doesn't have the image.

Interesting choice..

[Hot1]

The 350z was never on my list of choices, and if I was to go for one it would have to be hard top as I could not afford the soft top version. They are nice but I prefere the others that I have mentioned. A supercharged mx5 would be nice and they are a great car but they dont intrest me enough to buy one.

[havoc]

Diderot said:

My vote would be: Boxster followed by 350Z.

Nothing like an unbiased opinion eh?!?

...and that was nothing like an unbiased opinion!

[Vintageseekers]

I had a S2000 for three years and drove all round western europe and took it Skiing twice, If you actually love DRIVING a car, they are very, very hard to beat. utterly reliable, only downsides are unfair group 20 insurance and rear tyre wear - eats them! I've personally never been a Boxster fan, you'll always wish you'd bought a 911 (which I've owned and utterly loved, probably the best car to actually own FULLSTOP as for the VX220 although great fun to drive, is just a tad to extreme to live with 24/7.

Drive them all, give the S2000 a chance as it takes a while to get used to the high revs, If you've ever ridden motorbikes, you'll get it straight away. as for the supposed twitchy handling, I pushed mine many times to tail slide heaven and it NEVER bit me in the ass.


Happy huntin'

R

[Herman Toothrot]

I just got a VX220 2.2 as a daily driver, I do a 40mile A/B road round trip commute in it and so far I think its great. Only issue I'd say is getting in and out, as long as your not bothered about having to haul yourself in and out unlike any other type of car then its going to be fine. Mines turning out to be far more economical on fuel than the MR2 it replaced. Insurance was also fine £500, lives on drive, 32 with 3 years ncb. Big ish compulsory excess though of £400. Service parts are also nice and cheap, i.e. brake discs are £11, pads £50 etc Vectra mechanicals after all. So probably the cheapest to run out of our list.

Edited by Herman Toothrot on Saturday 1st August 12:36

[Herman Toothrot]

heebeegeetee said:

A supercharged MX5 will be easily obtainable for under £10k and will be a better car than all those mentioned, but it doesn't have the image.

No it wouldn't be.

[heebeegeetee]

Herman Toothrot said:

heebeegeetee said:

A supercharged MX5 will be easily obtainable for under £10k and will be a better car than all those mentioned, but it doesn't have the image.

No it wouldn't be.

Wouldn't be what, obtainable or best?