Why give up the joys of driving alfresco to permanently insert yourself into a rolling phone booth, especially if it costs about the same as the ragtop? The new bumper and the roof's sweep into the tail trims the Z4's infamous Bangle Butt. A forged, nitro-carbonized steel crankshaft provides great strength in this critical component. Silence falls in the final stretch of the hill and all of a sudden, blam! At this point you're probably wondering when we're gonna insert the 400-hp Corvette into this comparison test. The Cayman's transitions are sharper than the Bimmer's, but Markus says it'll spin out of control more easily if you manhandle it with ham fists past its high limits. All maintenance is up to date no issues with the car. At the sides, the 18-in.
We all agreed that the M coupe is willing and easy to drive on the track, but it takes only one corner in the Cayman S to realize the Porsche has one of the best sports-car chassis this side of a Lotus. That's where the previous M roadster needed some help - it finished fourth of four in that 2001 comparo - and that's precisely what it gets in this next-gen offering. Why a sound system is important in a car such as this is a bit of a mystery. And, as a bonus I found the exact color combo I always wanted, silver gray, black leather, aluminum trim, no navigation! This was a strong suit in the previous M roadster, but it's even more so in the new one. Sure, it slides more progressively, but it still feels a bit crude. The S54 engine is very robust and can be driven like it was meant to.
How could you not like this car? Leather also appears on the door panels, console armpad, kneepads, handbrake grip and shift knob. As in the M roadster, the engine makes 330 horses high up at 7900 rpm, with 262 pound-feet of torque coming at 4900 rpm. Standard, for example, is the fully automatic softtop, which comes in a choice of three colors and includes an interior lining for enhanced weather protection. We can imagine that more than a few customers have walked into a Porsche dealership and balked at the idea that the fixed-roof car costs more than the ragtop. Turns without a bit of lean at crazy speeds. The M also has a limited slip diff, as all M's come equipped, to put the 330 horses to the ground.
Tons of power from one of the truly great engines, precise handling, once you learn to handle the over-steer ,comfortable sport seats with proper side bolsters, and a level of fit and finish that you expect from the M Division. Both have near-perfect driver's interiors, with well-bolstered seats and good steering wheel-to-driver-to-stickshift relationships. It's skin id a Z; it's guts are pure M3. The suspension tuning that produces those feline responses yields a ride that doesn't concern itself much with comfort. The M logo appears again here, on the left side of the trunklid. In April, we declared the new Cayman heir-apparent, lord-in-waiting to the Porsche 911 sports-car-icon throne. The interior of our Guards Red cayman S feels airier, with better outward visibility than in the Z4 coupe.
Under the long hood of the M coupe is the familiar iron-block inline six-cylinder engine with an aluminum head that currently propels the M3 and the Z4 M roadster. Race car is a term that also applies to this roadster's attributes as an all-around ride. I have almost all receipts and will show potential buyers. No 21st-century F1-style paddle shifters here. To achieve this revving capability, the engineers applied a number of detail measures. Besides, hearing an engine scream above 7000 revs evokes the raciness that sports cars are about.
That might be a stretch, but we can all agree that this M coupe's exterior design will turn on a larger swath of the populace than the previous M coupe did. I never had one hick-up with stock configuration, but I was looking for something to compete with 911 turbos. Car is mint and I just had it ceramic coated in December 2018. Turn-in is instantaneous and precise. A high-intensity headlight cleaning system is also standard.
You get more go, you need more stop. Steering has a lot to do with it. It just doesn't feel as coherent or as connected as it should. Automatic climate control is standard in the M, and its rotary knobs also include the new rubber touch surfaces that enhance their tactile feel. I'm at last used to der Bangle's ostentatious, body-slashing creases, but the interior strikes me as cold, minimalist, unsports-car-like. The M Roadster look: subtle and purposeful At the front, there is a complete new fascia - bumper, spoiler, grille framing - that makes a statement both esthetic and functional.
The clutch is an original unit and performs flawlessly after 45K miles! That last may sound a little peaky, but most of the torque is available from about 2500 rpm right up to max. No control yet smooth like sliding on ice. If the Z4 M is like a centrifuge, the Cayman S is like a toy top, rotating perfectly on its axis. Best suited for the track of twisty mountain roads vs the rush-hour grind. Riding in it, you'd never guess the Z4 M has near-perfect weight balance.