S2000 or Z4 3.0?

panthro · 10 Apr 2007 at 19:56

As per the title, Ive been bitten by the convertible bug after driving a friends Z4 3.0. Always been a fan of BMW's and enjoyed my 330Ci ownership, so I would love to get back into something with that great 3.0 engine, but Im torn between that and an S2000. Never driven one but really like the looks, the engine and see it as a slightly cheaper alternative.

Are there any other comparable cars out there? Which one would you go for and for what reasons?

Gibbo · 10 Apr 2007 at 19:59

Hi there

I'd say the S2000 is a more fun car with a far more enjoyable engine if thats your thing. S2000 will have slightly better handling and will sound better. Performance I suspect similar or slightly in the Z4's favour but very little in it.

However the S2000 to my knowledge does not have traction control which to some maybe off putting as it does have like go-kart handling and does let go quick wheras the BMW will no doubt have DSC and all that wizardy stuff to keep you on the black stuff.

Why not look at the Z4 Coupe M as those are awsome but I suspect cost a lot more money.

Lord-Jaffa · 10 Apr 2007 at 20:00

I would go for an S2000 without a doubt, will be what im after next year!

Killa_ken · 10 Apr 2007 at 20:01

Z4 Any day of the decade :cool:

Honda S2000< BMW Z4

A guy in my class has one and man it looks cool!

paradigm · 10 Apr 2007 at 20:03

I'd take the bimmer please, VTEC engines are not my prefered power delivery style.

Drive both, you may hate one or the other.

panthro · 10 Apr 2007 at 20:04

Gibbo said:
Hi there

I'd say the S2000 is a more fun car with a far more enjoyable engine if thats your thing. S2000 will have slightly better handling and will sound better. Performance I suspect similar or slightly in the Z4's favour but very little in it.

However the S2000 to my knowledge does not have traction control which to some maybe off putting as it does have like go-kart handling and does let go quick wheras the BMW will no doubt have DSC and all that wizardy stuff to keep you on the black stuff.

Why not look at the Z4 Coupe M as those are awsome but I suspect cost a lot more money.

I wish I could look at those, but they are a bit too far out of my budget, and I get scared off by BMW's initial 3 year depreciation period. Not too bad on cars like the Z's, but on the bigger models its horrific. Always great for a 2nd hand buy though. Been thinking of asking for a test drive in a Z4M roadster

Morba · 10 Apr 2007 at 20:04

z4 for me, looks fantastic.

-Neil- · 10 Apr 2007 at 20:05

Are you keeping the 330? if not you change cars more often than I have hot meals

S2000 for me

Neil.

panthro · 10 Apr 2007 at 20:05

paradigm said:
I'd take the bimmer please, VTEC engines are not my prefered power delivery style.

Drive both, you may hate one or the other.

Yep, I love the power delivery of the 3.0, never tried the S2000 so will have to get a test drive in one to see if im suited to the vtec.

panthro · 10 Apr 2007 at 20:06

-Neil- said:
Are you keeping the 330? if not you change cars more often than I have hot meals

S2000 for me

Neil.

The 330Ci has gone!.....wish I never sold it, but you live and you learn.

Hilly · 10 Apr 2007 at 20:06

s2000 for me. Though the Z4 sounds great/

This is for sure though, you won't get a definitive answer from a forum. Go drive them both and see which suits you.

Simon · 10 Apr 2007 at 20:12

Try the S2000, a lot of people slate them as they have turbo cars and think they are slow just by looking at torque curves.

I was very impressed with mine when i test drove it. This was coming from my Rover. Read a few comparions on the S2000 forums of people who tried both plus the boxster, might help you out.

Handling and braking is awesome. Its more of a drivers car than the Z4 though, mate at work has the 2.0. Ride is more bumpy than mind cause of the runflats, interior is nice.

Really depends what you want. I love the frantic rev happy nature of the S2000. The Z4 will be easier to drive fast, but so is a diesel.

Simon · 10 Apr 2007 at 20:26

Dear all, I've dismissed the Boxster and Z4 as my first ever sports car purchase in favour of an S2000, for various reasons:

Boxster:

+ Perceived prestige

+ Porsche iconicity

- Not built in Germany (production outsourced to a non Porsche manufacturer in Finland).

- Porsche claims residual value of Boxster 75% after 3 years, besting S2000 which has 65%. But they fail to remind us that the Boxster 3.2 S costs £10K more than the S2000. Therefore, in real terms, the S2000 depreciates about the same if not less.

- I found the driving position of the Boxster too high, and the body itself too chunky for my liking.

- Too many on the road.

- Not a bona fide roadster. It is mid engined; not front engined with rear wheel drive and a steeply raked bonnet, which is the pure definition of "roadster".

- Running costs are high to the point of ridicule and idiocy for a car of this type.

- Scornful, pretentious Porsche dealership staff

Z4

+ Perceived prestige of BMW marque

- Built in South Carolina. Nothing against my beautiful American cousins, but this fact puts me off. I'm not convinced this makes for a truly German car...?

- Too many issues with reliability according to internet owner reviews.

- Too many on the road

- Aesthetically, the car is automotive marmite. But such an outcome is sometimes not necessarily a good thing...

S2000

+ Best engine

+ Best car in the UK for 4 years running according to the Topgear satisfaction survey.

+ Actually built in JAPAN, not Swindon, not Spain, not Fiji or any other random place.

+ Not so many on the road, the car has more personality and charm.

+ More sensible running costs

+ Without doubt, hands down, slam dunk the finest driving position

+ The most fun

In summary, therefore, notwithstanding my bias for Honda the marque, I've concluded that everyone on this forum deserves a little praise for taste and wisdom.

But let's put it this way; if each car was a dinner party guest, following might be true:

S2000, the working class intellectual, would arrive first, would be well mannered, engaging, fun and well dressed. Certainly sexy enough to draw glances from both the sexes.

Boxster, the scornful heir to an inheritance, would arrive late, taking the guests for granted and mingling at the table only with the rich or pretentious.

Z4 would arrive last, the pretend aristocrat whose lack of charm and try hard nature would rub most of the guests up the wrong way.

The winner comrades, is therefore unanimous.

DO ANY OF YOU AGREE WITH THE POINTS OF MY ANALYSIS?

S2000!

My new Z4 has the 18" wheels and M Suspension. The ride is STUPID hard, and really unsettling. Any corner with a potholed surface cannot be taken with any speed, the suspension just doesn't seem to have enough travel.

The steering on the Z4 has more feel, and you get a lot more feedback - over the limit the car is a lot more controllable than the S ever was. However on the verge of the cars limits, especially in sport mode it's a nightmare to drive. The hair trigger throttle combined with the generous torque, means adjusting the car on the ragged edge is really tricky. All your inputs seem exagerated. Also it's a little to heavy, and understeers a bit too much. I'm constantly arriving at corners to fast and having to work the brakes hard - which although they have bags of feel have crap stopping power.

However I'd say the Z is quicker than the S, it absolutely steams out of corners like a sledgehammer, and the engine is absolutely fantastic. I miss the hyper revs of the s and how everything is concentrated into that manic 3,000 rpm top, but the Z engine is like a train. I've not cleaned under the bonnet yet though because it just looks like a lump of plastic.

I loved the S - but I do admire the Z4

Hi guys, first post in advance of picking up my s2k this coming saturday. Ive owned a boxster, a boxster-s and a 2.5 Z4 (amongst others). Ive only had brief drives in the s2k and this is my reason for choosing against getting another of the above:
1) Its different i.e. quite a rare sight and to me personally having had the others
2) The looks
3) Build quality
4) Reputed reliability and service costs
5) The interior
6) The engine (reminds me of when I rode bikes)
7) The handling
8) The purity of the design
9) the missus quite liked it

The boxster and z4 lost me a fortune in depreciation, the service costs of the Porsche are silly as are the warranty renewals. The handling of the boxster is outstanding, best ive ever experienced but they can get tricky in the wet. The Z4 was fast but never felt that well connected with the road (great grip but remote), its biggest advantage is being a BMW, its easy to own. BTW ive also got a 1990 mx5 with 19k on the clock, a very different animal but such great fun for so little money.
cheers

panthro · 10 Apr 2007 at 20:35

Cheers for that post Simon....going to have to organise a test drive this week I think. Few questions...

a) How much does servicing cost?
b) How much are rear tyres? Ive heard that for the smaller wheels you can only use certain types?
c) What sort of mpg do you get?

Tempted by this outsider too :cool:

not tempted by the running costs

Homeslice · 10 Apr 2007 at 20:36

Head says BMW but heart says S2000 for me

Simon · 10 Apr 2007 at 20:45

panthro said:
Cheers for that post Simon....going to have to organise a test drive this week I think. Few questions...

a) How much does servicing cost?
b) How much are rear tyres? Ive heard that for the smaller wheels you can only use certain types?
c) What sort of mpg do you get?

Tempted by this outsider too not tempted by the running costs

[/QUOTE]

Servicing is about £250-300 every 9k miles. Rear tyres on the early post 04 models are ......

Blah why am I typing. Read the FAQ on the S2000 forum, will tell you everything, there are a few revisions to look out for too.
[url]http://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=301506[/url]

can download a pdf of it too:
[url]http://www.s2kuk.com/technical/faq/s2000_tech_faq_030107.pdf[/url]

I get about 25mpg on my daily drive, drove 210miles from reading to manchester and got about 31mpg. Nothing this side of a supercar can come close on a hot day round some country lanes singing above 7000rpm with the top down and an aftermarket exhaust

CocoPops · 10 Apr 2007 at 20:51

I love my S...

Roof down, Engine singing away at 6000+ rpm. Fantastic.

Granted,

isn't for everyone and it does require a slightly different driving style, but I like to stir the gearbox to make progress, not let some lazy oaf of an engine lazily work through the revs.

Oh... the sound, no... THE NOISE through a tunnel with the roof down! Awesome.

Honda reliability, relatively low servicing costs (for a sports car) a great package.

D4VE · 10 Apr 2007 at 22:03

How often will you drive it - daily or once or twice a week?

The BMW will be an easier proposition for daily driving, but the S2000 is more of a drivers car, although it may get tedious.

Only 1 way to decide - test drive them both.

Ollie's Gadgets · 10 Apr 2007 at 22:24

Relevant youtube video

Top gear s200 vs boxter vs Z4

panthro · 10 Apr 2007 at 22:44

D4VE said:
How often will you drive it - daily or once or twice a week?

The BMW will be an easier proposition for daily driving, but the S2000 is more of a drivers car, although it may get tedious.

Only 1 way to decide - test drive them both.

Most days I imagine. Never really do long journies as I live close to work and most of the people I see are never more than 40 mins away.

I will still have a Focus to use when I really need 5 seats or when I need to lug stuff about.