magnetic vs non-magnetic panels?

[jparnes1]

Originally Posted by nicknaz

Boxster costs the same and is 500lb lighter. I guess BMW was trying to make a discount SL and not a boxster competitor.

I've priced out similarly equipped boxsters and they are always 10-15k more. Porsche options are through the roof.

[tranquility]

Originally Posted by jparnes1

I've priced out similarly equipped boxsters and they are always 10-15k more. Porsche options are through the roof.

Agreed, tangibly more expensive and I couldn't get over it having a soft-top. This goes w/o saying that the Cayman was even more expensive (to me, that is more of a cross-shop car for the Z4 instead of the Boxster).

[nicknaz]

Originally Posted by jparnes1

I've priced out similarly equipped boxsters and they are always 10-15k more. Porsche options are through the roof.

I just priced out a boxster s with sports suspension,Pdk and xenons on truecar.com and the offer was $63k. A z435is was $60.5k with no options because the z4 was discounted more deeply (xenons, dct and sport suspension already standard)

I guess if you load it up like a touring car the price gap will escalate.

[jparnes1]

Originally Posted by nicknaz

I just priced out a boxster s with sports suspension,Pdk and xenons on truecar.com and the offer was $63k. A z435is was $60.5k with no options because the z4 was discounted more deeply (xenons, dct and sport suspension already standard)

I guess if you load it up like a touring car the price gap will escalate.

My impression was that a Boxster S was comparable to the 35i, not the 35is. In any case, I'm not going to go through the build item by item, but I can tell you for sure that to get a Boxster with the same features as the Z4, you're spending lots more. For example, you have to pay for a lot of features that are standard with BMW (rain-sensing wipers, auto-dimming mirrors, etc) And guess what? these aren't available a la carte. You're buying an options package $$$. Want leather sport seats with 14 way adjustments? $4840 compared to $2500 for the M sport package. To be fair, you have to build them apples to apples.

[Asbjorn]

Originally Posted by nicknaz

Boxster costs the same and is 500lb lighter.

If you take the official numbers from the BMW and Porsche China websites you end up with a slightly different conclusion. Their price and weight specs compare quite well because they include common optional equipment such the automatic transmissions.

This is because you simply cannot buy a base-spec (ie non-iDrive etc) 35i or Boxter S in China. You have to buy the 20i or non-S to "get" that.

[Kessler35is]

Roof is Aluminium.


"The new BMW Z4 is the first BMW roadster to protect its occupants from wind and weather with a fully retractable hardtop. This two-piece lightweight aluminum shell opens and closes at the touch of a button within 20 seconds. The compact packaging of the folding roof enables the Z4 Roadster to retain the *characteristic, slender proportions of its predecessor."

[nicknaz]

Originally Posted by Asbjorn

If you take the official numbers from the BMW and Porsche China websites you end up with a slightly different conclusion. Their price and weight specs compare quite well because they include common optional equipment such the automatic transmissions.

This is because you simply cannot buy a base-spec (ie non-iDrive etc) 35i or Boxter S in China. You have to buy the 20i or non-S to "get" that.

Its the same conclusion jparnes reached.. If you option both cars up, Porsche is more expensive

But back on topic thought, given how much Al is in the Z4. Is the +400lb to +500lb compared to the Boxster really all down to the soft vs. hard top?

[Asbjorn]

Originally Posted by nicknaz

Its the same conclusion jparnes reached.. If you option both cars up, Porsche is more expensive

But back on topic thought, given how much Al is in the Z4. Is the +400lb to +500lb compared to the Boxster really all down to the soft vs. hard top?

Apparently not... in below table soft-tops add, on average, 180lbs, compared to the fixed-roof versions of the same platforms. Hardtops add 330lbs.

So hard-tops add, on average, 150lbs more than soft-tops.

The previous Z4 and the current boxter/cayman platforms are "special" cases where the soft tops add no extra weight compared to the fixed-roof version.



So to try and guess the answer to your question, the Boxter vs Z4 weight difference may be explained by:

• 50% Soft-top vs hard-top. Adds on average 150lbs.
• 40% Turbo Engine vs NA Engine. The weight difference between a sDrive30i and a sDrive35i, both 6MT, is 209lbs.
• 10% Others: More compact drive-train due to center-engine layout. More/better use of Al due to lower cost price (leveraging VW group purchasing power). Others? Weight difference: Unknown.