A plea for help - why can't I make a decision? (what car)

[Bob Fossil]

Right, I'm usually a fairly decisive chap (my last "what car" thread went from thinking about which car to buying in the space of two days)... but this one really has me stumped. I'll apologise in advance for the rambling nature of this post - but I'd really be grateful for the thoughts of the wider PH world on the cars I'm considering next.

I've had a good scout around the various fora, had a good look at them all in the "flesh" and have test drives lined up for next week, but I'm still no closer to reaching a decision, so here goes:

I've just changed jobs, which means my mileage has plummeted from c. 30k p/a to about 10-12k. This, of course, means I have the perfect excuse to swap my present car (Alpina D3 BiTurbo) for something I've always wanted - a two seater sports car... which is where the trouble starts.

You see, I have a fairly specific set of criteria:

• must be convertible
• two seats
• reliable
• usable every day
• great fun on the twisties, but tolerable for a monthly 400-mile round trip

But, a wide-ranging budget (I'm not averse to financing a car due to the fact I receive a car allowance, so use that to pay for whatever I drive). This means that whilst I'm fairly certain I've narrowed the car choice down to the three usual suspects (Boxster 987, Elise S2, S2000), my budget is anywhere from £13k (i.e. an S2000 bought for cash), through to £25k (for an Elise SC / Boxster 3.4S on a PCP).

Within that, I have a million and one questions floating around in my head, such as:

• If I buy the S2000, would I always wish I'd bought an Elise / Boxster?
• If I buy a Boxster, do I really need the "S", or is the 2.7 a perfectly good car?
• If I buy an Elise, do I want / need an S / R / SC?
• Is the Boxster twice the car of the S2000?

They all seem comparable in terms of performance (well, maybe the Elise is quicker on paper but in the real world I'd never use the full extent of it), they all have their + / - points but I can't split them. Head says "get an S2000", heart says "you must own a Porsche / Lotus at least once, so do it whilst you can afford it".

My thoughts on the three currently stand as follows:

Elise - the most capable of the 3 in terms of handling, but the most compromised in terms of build / quality / "liveability"?

S2000 - the sensible choice, most reliable but worst handling (appreciate it's a relative thing), maybe I'd not love it in the same way I would a Lotus / Porsche?

Boxster - the most "polished", refined - but the most expensive, too (by far).

Help! Over to the floor...

[Ari]

MX5. Seriously. Good MK3 2.0 Sport for under £10K with all the toys (leather, air, Bose) and 20K miles on it.

[trickywoo]

You'd have to be very dedicated to run an Elise every day. I'm pretty sure you'd soon fall out of love with it.

Have you thought about a supercharged S2000?

MX5 is a good call if you don't need down the road G.

[kambites]

A 400 mile motorway trip in an S2 Elise is perfectly doable, but whether you'll enjoy doing it will depend very much on you. I find mine quite comfortable in terms of driving position, but I certainly wouldn't considering doing trips that long without a good set of ear plugs.

I also find them quite tiring to drive long distances on the motorway because of the amount of information that both the steering and the chassis bombard you with. It's very difficult to avoid concentrating on making tiny corrections to things that you wouldn't even have noticed in something like a Boxster.

I probably would use an Elise for that usage, since you're only doing long trips once a month, but I could fully understand why someone would go for the more GT-orientated Boxster instead.


I don't really rate the S2000, although I know that many people do. The wonderful engine doesn't make up for the fact that the MX5 is a better car in every other way, IMHO.

Edited by kambites on Friday 31st December 10:39

[Bob Fossil]

Thanks - forgot to add, I really don't like MX5's (well, the modern ones) - a BBR Turbo would be right up my street, but a bit dated for everyday use.

The Supercharged S2000 seems interesting - do you have any more info?

ETA I'm no stranger to long trips in unsuitable cars (regularly used to commute from Doncaster to Newcastle in a 1974 Mini, 10" wheels and a straight-through exhaust)... in reality it's probably more to do with the wife hating it!

Edited by Bob Fossil on Friday 31st December 10:40

[FamilyDub]

I'm sure the default choice would be a Boxster S.

[deeen]

VX 220 Turbo?

[wanacoop]

I think out of your 3, I would go for the Boxter. But maybe fit a sports exhaust to make it a bit less 'normal' as they sound lovely!

Have you considered a Z4M?
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2306054.htm

[Mr Roper]

SLK AMG?
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2259823.htm

[eldar]

SLK. It has airscarf, roof down for 400 miles is far easier with that, when its cold. Boxster S if you'd rather dress up like the red baron

[Bob Fossil]

Mr Roper said:

SLK AMG?
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2259823.htm

I did consider an SLK, but ruled it out on the grounds that a) it's too expensive, and b) it's a bit "old man" for me (a personal thing, no reflection on any younger AMG owners!)

[paddyhasneeds]

I have a 987 Boxster, I've had it for just over 4 years from new, and I'm looking to change because I fancy a change - it's a very tough act to follow to the extent that I'm looking at going totally sideways to an SUV/compact AWD because I believe if I jumped in anything else vaguely similar I'd be thinking "Compared to the Boxster".

For what you'd suggested you're looking for, it's perfect. Usable every day as a daily driver, suitable for long journeys so long as you accept it's a 2 seat sports car so you'll never have the space you would in a saloon.

An Elise would, IMO, be too much hard work to drive day-in day out, the Honda would probably never break, it's a lot cheaper, people say you the engine's only good when you're working it.

The flip side is that the 987 is a cheap car to run, but could be very expensive if it breaks - mine hasn't other than the odd RMS/IMS and a power steering pump/pulley and I've done nearly 60k.

[Rawwr]

987S. Incredibly well-balanced, reliable, rapid and not horrific to maintain and insure. Comfy when you want comfy, lively when you want lively.

That'd be my choice, anyway.

[havoc]

Elise/VX will be too much hard work for an 'every day' car.

I ran an S2000 as a weekend car for 3 years and (practicality aside) it could easily have been my only car. Lack of torque isn't that big an issue in give-and-take driving, but if you're used to a nice thick mid-range then you will miss it.

PM mikey k about s'charged S2000's, or hop over to s2ki.co.uk. "Properly rapid" is the only way to describe 340-400bhp in a 1.3t car...


Boxster - Box-S will definitely be the best all-round car of the 3, and running costs (as long as nothing big goes wrong) shouldn't be much higher than an S2000 (insurance and fuel will be similar). But depreciation will of course be higher if you spend £20k+ on a Boxster than <£15k on an S2000... And it's MR not FR so anything resembling 'hooligan' behaviour will be more difficult.

[Zippee]

For me it would have to be the Boxster, though in S spec. I had a 987 in 2.7 guise for a while and it just lacked that bit of oomph that you felt it should have - running out of puff just that little bit too soon. The handling was sublime, it was well built and extremely comfortable but as mentioned I wanted that little bit more power.

[fwaggie]

I would suggest wait until you've had a test drive in them all, and then one will just leap out at you and you'll know.

I did that and the 986 Boxster S pushed all my buttons, loved it and went out and bought one.

Now own a 987 Boxster S.

Yes it'll cost a lot more to buy than the S2000, it'll cost a bit more to run (servicing at an indy), don't run it without insurance of some kind cause they're expensive to fix if something big goes wrong (although I can't see the S2000 being that cheap if the engine goes bang)

what about an NSX? Not convertible but a brilliant car that can be had for not a lot of money now.

[kambites]

There's a targa version of the NSX, isn't there? That's nearly convertible.

The Elise isn't really a full convertible either, come to that.

Edited by kambites on Friday 31st December 11:34

[DanL]

I've run a VX220 (which may as well be an Elise in terms of day to day practicality) and currently have an S2000, having test driven the old shape Boxster S prior to buying the S2000.

Unless you really, really like what the Elise does well, I don't think it's something you could live with day to day. The compromises you make in build quality and comfort are large compared to the other two, but it will "feel" the best on road.

For your usage, it'd be between the Boxster and the S2000 for me. The Porsche is the better car, but only you can decide if it's worth the extra cost and the engine niggles. A test drive should clarify things nicely!

To put the cat amongst the pigeons, you could probably get a used 370z roadster for 25k - I've not driven one, but the interior of the 370z is miles ahead of the old 350z. Might be worth a look.

[havoc]

fwaggie said:

what about an NSX? Not convertible but a brilliant car that can be had for not a lot of money now.

As above, they did a targa. Not sure it's a daily driver though. You COULD, for sure - comfier and at least as practical as as S2000 or Boxster. But you'd feel like you were abusing it, just taking it to the shops or into town...

Given the age of the sub-£25k cars you'd want to give it some TLC* too.




* Preventative maintenance

[hornetrider]

The Porsche. All day long.