RE: The best sports cars to buy in 2020

[Jonstar]

Quadcamboy said:

Anyone done anything to improve this z4m unpredictability, like ohlinns or such? Be interested to hear

It's not unpredictable, it has near perfect weight distribution and is set up very conservatively with plenty of understeer then oversteer as you would expect from bmw. What I think people mean is the ride is st, and stock dampers/spring combination is crap, I hear Bilstein and KW do good setups.

[ddom]

Jonstar said:

It's not unpredictable, it has near perfect weight distribution and is set up very conservatively with plenty of understeer then oversteer as you would expect from bmw. What I think people mean is the ride is st, and stock dampers/spring combination is crap, I hear Bilstein and KW do good setups.

Very much a standard BMW OEM suspension issue. They just can’t seem to get the setup right for the UK roads? With new dampers and a few tweaks I’m sure the 4 would be immense.

[baconsarney]

ddom said:

Jonstar said:

It's not unpredictable, it has near perfect weight distribution and is set up very conservatively with plenty of understeer then oversteer as you would expect from bmw. What I think people mean is the ride is st, and stock dampers/spring combination is crap, I hear Bilstein and KW do good setups.

Very much a standard BMW OEM suspension issue. They just can’t seem to get the setup right for the UK roads? With new dampers and a few tweaks I’m sure the 4 would be immense.

Standard set up on the Chim/Griff cars were ok, (bilsteins) but transformed with Ohlins or Nitrons and a full geo..... Running Gaz Mono's on mine..........

[cerb4.5lee]

ddom said:

Jonstar said:

It's not unpredictable, it has near perfect weight distribution and is set up very conservatively with plenty of understeer then oversteer as you would expect from bmw. What I think people mean is the ride is st, and stock dampers/spring combination is crap, I hear Bilstein and KW do good setups.

Very much a standard BMW OEM suspension issue. They just can’t seem to get the setup right for the UK roads? With new dampers and a few tweaks I’m sure the 4 would be immense.

I know that I have a bit of a downer on the Z4M, but I genuinely couldn't believe how much better the ride/suspension/classis felt in the E92 M3 in comparison. So that proved to me that BMW can get it pretty much spot on when they want to.

I feel that the Z4 and Z4M are just a half hearted effort from BMW. Both the E90 330d/330i I had were better for me ride and suspension wise(even with the runflats). The Z4M has all the right ingredients for sure, but the recipe doesn't deliver sadly imo.

[shmikes]

Lotus Evora, Jaguar F-Type, Aston Martin Vanatage and McLaren 570S = lottery nirvana

[braddo]

TdM-GTV said:

Welcome to Pedantry Heads. There used to be a sister site about the enjoyment of cars but it's gone now...

Water Fairy said:

Clearly we've all been stuck indoors for far too long, bickering over such irrelevant nonsense.

I enjoyed reading the article and I find the idea that a 'sports car' must be a 2-seat convertible ridiculous. Quite why people need to get so worked up, especially when we know a separate article will come for soft-tops, is beyond me!

[braddo]

Jonstar said:

Quadcamboy said:

Anyone done anything to improve this z4m unpredictability, like ohlinns or such? Be interested to hear

It's not unpredictable, it has near perfect weight distribution and is set up very conservatively with plenty of understeer then oversteer as you would expect from bmw. What I think people mean is the ride is st, and stock dampers/spring combination is crap, I hear Bilstein and KW do good setups.

I've read that there isn't much rear suspension travel, and adding that to the short wheelbase makes the car inherently trickier than say a 3-series.

'Near perfect weight distribution' does nothing to make a car predictable. And stiffer suspension from the like of KW is not going to help a Z4 get down a bumpy road! But poor damping and overly stiff suspension do seem to be key issues for the Z4.

ETA - we need to see a Z4M with a 'Tuned by Lotus' badge.

[otolith]

braddo said:

I enjoyed reading the article and I find the idea that a 'sports car' must be a 2-seat convertible ridiculous.

Less ridiculous than that it can't be a convertible, though, which is what the article claims.

[braddo]

otolith said:

braddo said:

I enjoyed reading the article and I find the idea that a 'sports car' must be a 2-seat convertible ridiculous.

Less ridiculous than that it can't be a convertible, though, which is what the article claims.

Sure, but isn't that just so there can be one article for hard tops and another for soft tops?

[thewarlock]

Alias218 said:

I wouldn't put the 350Z in the <£5,000 bracket. For that money you'll be getting a real snotter. May as well bracket these in a way that the money at least buys you a decent example, rather than the bargain basement entry point.

I wouldn't really call a 350Z a sports car.

Bit too heavy and not focused enough, more of a GT IMO.

[otolith]

braddo said:

otolith said:

braddo said:

I enjoyed reading the article and I find the idea that a 'sports car' must be a 2-seat convertible ridiculous.

Less ridiculous than that it can't be a convertible, though, which is what the article claims.

Sure, but isn't that just so there can be one article for hard tops and another for soft tops?

Perhaps. Don't know why you would consider, say, an Exige or a Cayman to be more akin to an RCZ than to an Elise or a Boxster, though, or why you would decide that the group with the fixed roofs was the sportscars.

[Quadcamboy]

Jonstar said:

It's not unpredictable, it has near perfect weight distribution and is set up very conservatively with plenty of understeer then oversteer as you would expect from bmw. What I think people mean is the ride is st, and stock dampers/spring combination is crap, I hear Bilstein and KW do good setups.

Cheers

[cerb4.5lee]

braddo said:

I enjoyed reading the article and I find the idea that a 'sports car' must be a 2-seat convertible ridiculous.

The term "sports car" is massively subjective I reckon though, and I look at that list and I don't class a single one of them as a sports car.

The Evora gets the closest to it for me, but that is still too heavy in my eyes to be a genuine sports car. A sports car to me is something like a Caterham or an Elise. For me the GT86 isn't even close to a sports car, and that is a sports Coupe just like the TT and RCZ to me. The 350Z is a GT car in my eyes.

[baconsarney]

You guys are talking about the 350Z being a GT, a mate of mine had one and luggage space was very limited (allegedly less than a VW Polo), not a good trait for a GT I'd suggest....

[thewarlock]

baconsarney said:

You guys are talking about the 350Z being a GT, a mate of mine had one and luggage space was very limited (allegedly less than a VW Polo), not a good trait for a GT I'd suggest....

True, the boot space isn't up to much, particularly on the convertible, so what else do we categorise it as?

[cerb4.5lee]

thewarlock said:

baconsarney said:

You guys are talking about the 350Z being a GT, a mate of mine had one and luggage space was very limited (allegedly less than a VW Polo), not a good trait for a GT I'd suggest....

True, the boot space isn't up to much, particularly on the convertible, so what else do we categorise it as?

I often think that a none car enthusiast would class the 350Z as a sports car, but us as enthusiasts see it more of a GT for sure. I always looked at my Cerbera as more of a GT as well, although trusting it to go long distances without breaking down was a bit of a problem!

[justin220]

Interesting article. We're owned a few of the cars over the years.

Peugeot RCZ - We originally were looking for a TT, but Audi dealership really put us off with their attitude when we went in. We then happened to find an RCZ and really liked it. I think as its a bit different from the normal choices was a plus point for us. Its nice having something different. Served us well for 3 years, extremely practical and actually quite a nice car to drive short and long distances. I'm not sure I'd class it as a sports car though. GT maybe.

Lotus Evora - Owned one from new, not long after the launch edition models. I had a lot of minor niggles in the first 18 months, then trouble free for the next two years. Absolutely brilliant car. I really miss it. It did everything well, carried lots of luggage (within reason), GT'd well into Europe, great to drive on a back road. Again, it was also a bit different which is nice. Sure the Cayman is the default option at this price point, but I just can't get that excited about them.

McLaren 540C. Absolute bargain at this price, which isn't good for people like me who bought in when the market was still booming. I think the 540C is actually underappreciated. Its the cheapest, but at the end of the day it has all the features of a McLaren, the doors, looks, performance. As much as I'd love a 720S, I'm really not sure I can justify the cost to change for what would be a very similar car.

[otolith]

thewarlock said:

baconsarney said:

You guys are talking about the 350Z being a GT, a mate of mine had one and luggage space was very limited (allegedly less than a VW Polo), not a good trait for a GT I'd suggest....

True, the boot space isn't up to much, particularly on the convertible, so what else do we categorise it as?

Jap muscle car with a two cylinder deficit?

I wasn't a huge fan of the one my wife owned. Felt very ponderous to drive. Made a lovely noise, though, especially with the full stainless steel exhaust system she put on it.

Edited by otolith on Friday 16th October 16:01

[CABC]

thewarlock said:

baconsarney said:

You guys are talking about the 350Z being a GT, a mate of mine had one and luggage space was very limited (allegedly less than a VW Polo), not a good trait for a GT I'd suggest....

True, the boot space isn't up to much, particularly on the convertible, so what else do we categorise it as?

And where does leave the F-Type?

[cerb4.5lee]

CABC said:

thewarlock said:

baconsarney said:

You guys are talking about the 350Z being a GT, a mate of mine had one and luggage space was very limited (allegedly less than a VW Polo), not a good trait for a GT I'd suggest....

True, the boot space isn't up to much, particularly on the convertible, so what else do we categorise it as?

And where does leave the F-Type?

The F-Type is a GT for me...albeit a very heavy one. Some F-Type models weigh in at around 1900kg.