E36 M3 Vs Boxster

[rawlo]

Hi,
Probably been done to death but looking at a 98-99 M3 for some weekend fun, heard they can suffer from crank problems, are there other probs I should look out for and is it better to drive/own than a boxster (the other car I was looking at?

Cheers

[Great Pretender]

Do a search for more info, but it short, the Boxster is a better steer, but the M3 is much quicker.

[Luke.]

Great Pretender said:

Do a search for more info, but it short, the Boxster is a better steer, but the M3 is much quicker.

Much quicker than the 'S'?

[ammw]

I think that depends which Boxster you're talking about ...

M3 will be much quicker than an old 2.5 986, but will likely be slower than the latest 3.4S 987.

I have a 987 2.7 Boxster (240bhp) and I previously had a 3.0 E36 M3 (286bhp). Both very nice cars, but I just feel the Boxster is a bit more of an event - probably due to the fact it's a 2 seater sports car, rather than a 4 seater coupe. The M3 was slightly quicker, so in and ideal world I would go for the Boxster S.

[ljw350]

hi, see the link for a very clean boxster.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/1997-PORSCHE-BOXSTER-SILVER-...

[chippy17]

Luke. said:

Great Pretender said:

Do a search for more info, but it short, the Boxster is a better steer, but the M3 is much quicker.

Much quicker than the 'S'?

yes, in a straight line

[MarkwG]

rawlo said:

...looking at a 98-99 M3 for some weekend fun, heard they can suffer from crank problems, are there other probs I should look out for...Cheers

- not heard of any crank probs for e36 M3s of that age - some of the early e46 threw cranks, but I believe they were a waranty fix anyway, so should all be clear by now.

[swannynhb]

if you want a car that you can get in drive fast without thinking will it break, buy the m3. if you want a great handling 2 seater sports car to pose in, that your forever be worrying about engine rebuilds, rear main seals, ims failure then buy the boxster. if you want a 3rd option go and drive a s2000

[Luke.]

swannynhb said:

if you want a car that you can get in drive fast without thinking will it break, buy the m3. if you want a great handling 2 seater sports car to pose in, that your forever be worrying about engine rebuilds, rear main seals, ims failure then buy the boxster. if you want a 3rd option go and drive a s2000

Not that you're biased of course.

[swannynhb]

Luke. said:

swannynhb said:

if you want a car that you can get in drive fast without thinking will it break, buy the m3. if you want a great handling 2 seater sports car to pose in, that your forever be worrying about engine rebuilds, rear main seals, ims failure then buy the boxster. if you want a 3rd option go and drive a s2000

Not that you're biased of course.

lol, i see your point! yeah i have a s2000 and recently sold my boxster in order to buy another one (this one being my 4th). ive got friends who swear by m3's and ive always found them to feel asthough it doesnt matter how much abuse you give it it just wont break, its a shame ive never felt that way about the boxster. yes its a great car and im sure theres plenty of people out there who have never had any problems with theirs. you pay your money you take your chance, as they say. the safe bet is the m3, if your feeling lucky go for the porsche (but make sure you have plenty of money in the bank.....just in case

[andye30m3]

swannynhb said:

Luke. said:

swannynhb said:

if you want a car that you can get in drive fast without thinking will it break, buy the m3. if you want a great handling 2 seater sports car to pose in, that your forever be worrying about engine rebuilds, rear main seals, ims failure then buy the boxster. if you want a 3rd option go and drive a s2000

Not that you're biased of course.

lol, i see your point! yeah i have a s2000 and recently sold my boxster in order to buy another one (this one being my 4th). ive got friends who swear by m3's and ive always found them to feel asthough it doesnt matter how much abuse you give it it just wont break, its a shame ive never felt that way about the boxster. yes its a great car and im sure theres plenty of people out there who have never had any problems with theirs. you pay your money you take your chance, as they say. the safe bet is the m3, if your feeling lucky go for the porsche (but make sure you have plenty of money in the bank.....just in case

M3's aren't entirely reliable, I should know I blew up 2 E36 M3 evo bottom ends before giving up and selling the car and know replacement engines are still bloody expensive.

I'd expect in the real world the boxster S would be quicker than an E36 M3 but the M3 would be quicker than the 2.5 and 2.7 boxsters.

I also ended up going for an S2000 recently and at the moment would choose 1 over both the M3 and the boxster mainly due to reliability, and general running costs.

I'm holding out for the funds to go for a GT3 before I make the plunge and trying a porsche.

[falkster]

I wouldnt compare a Boxster with an E36, maybe an E46. We were going to buy an E46 but got the Boxster S instead. Ive since swapped my car a few times and each time Ive thought about an E46 but never did.

E36 is nowhere near as quick as the Boxster, 321bhp will actually struggle to be 300 in reality.

Cracking value if you can find the right one and they are very reliable - if anyone mentions vanos theyre potty!

[CRACKIE]

falkster said:

I wouldnt compare a Boxster with an E36, maybe an E46. We were going to buy an E46 but got the Boxster S instead. Ive since swapped my car a few times and each time Ive thought about an E46 but never did.

E36 is nowhere near as quick as the Boxster, 321bhp will actually struggle to be 300 in reality.

Cracking value if you can find the right one and they are very reliable - if anyone mentions vanos theyre potty!

Sorry falkster but I can't agree with any of that. Properly maintained M3 EVOs do make the specified power i.e. 317bhp (321PS) which gives it a better power to weight to weight than all Boxsters with the exception of the very latest 3.4S. There is nothing in it between E36s and E46s in raw pace terms either, in fact E36s appear quicker than E46s above 100.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NlXXqgNfro&fea...

As for vanos issue ~ it is overhyped and can be fixed for sensible money now http://www.mrvanos.com/ but to say vanos isn't worth mentioning is just foolish. Vanos condition should be considered when buying an EVO and should also be considered when driving an S50B32 engine from cold.

Back to Rawlo's OP ~ IMHO the Boxster steers & handles far better than an EVO but they can get fidgety on poor surfaces and with larger alloys. Early 2.5 & 2.7 Boxsters didn't have much power and the tiptronic gearbox is slow witted at best.

I'm not sure what the total budget is but £8000 buys a top EVO and a relatively basic Boxster. The E36 M3 is derived from a family car and a standard car will feel heavy next to a Boxster but EVOs are easily upgraded and there is a well developed updrade path for them too. Loads of well loved track day E36s out there.

Edited by CRACKIE on Monday 17th May 09:02

[rawlo]

Thanks for all the info, was looking at a budget of £8.5k tops, so an early S might have been on the cards but condition may be questionable. Had a go in my mates Evo at the weekend and am now looking for a mint one!

[andye30m3]

I would suggest setting aside some cash to have the bottom end bolts replaced with up rated ones to avoid the expensive issues I had, These can stretch causing the shells to spin.

I was speaking to a guy on saturday who'd had exactly the same issue on an early Z3M.

I don't think it's that expensive to have this done and it's something I would do if i go for another M3 which is quite possible at the end of the year.

[dan101smith]

A bit late on this, but thought I'd chuck in my 2p as I have an M3 and a Boxster S.

The M3 is far quicker than the Boxster. It doesn't steer as well, but it rides better. I'm much more comfortable spending a day bouncing the M3 off the limiter than I would be in the Porsche, but then I can't take the roof off the M3.

I don't know if I could choose between them purely because they perform very different roles, but at a push, I'd get a £5k M3 and spend the rest on upgrades.

[chris7676]

I have both - 3.2 Boxster (252HP) and 3.0 M3. Performance wise - little in it, BMW revs keener and purer, Porsche's power feels more instant though. But the Boxster feels much more special. You can get a good one for 9k but then you can get a good M3 for 4k.