So my 911 is in the shop for running over a piece of debris (not sure exactly what it was) on the freeway (was kicked up and shot back by another car). The front bumper was very lightly damaged, but I heard whatever it was bouncing underneath the car before exiting out the back. The car still drove perfectly, but the body shop quoted 14k in damages! (Which of course insurance is paying for). Oh and there is no engine damage, just panels, condenser, and other random things. Anyways, I use a high end insurance company that's hands out pretty good rental cars, and in my case I got a 2013 Boxster with only 150 miles!
This was a bones base Boxster, so msrp must have been in the low 50's, which does not include MANY of the must have options.
Interior:
The craftsmanship of the car felt great, which is to be expected. It should come to no surprise that the it beats the interior of the Z, but for that money it better.. The seats are comfy yet supportive, dials look great and the right dial has a very useful screen that can display anything that the main nav screen can. The material of the wall behind the seats is cheap though. I would much prefer the inexpensive pleather material over the trunk surface material it uses. Top opens and closes quickly, but there is a a very slight wind noise where the glass meets the roof wheat he top is closed. I would have expected there to be none.
Engine:
No one should be worried about Nissan downsizing the next Z's engine. The small 2.7L engine in this car was SO fun and had so much life to it! It may have been a combination of the PDK transmission or the low weight of the car, but it felt just right. It may not be as strong as our 3.7L, but it was just as enjoyable. This car should be the poster car for 'hp isn't everything'. I hope Nissan uses a smaller 6 cylinder instead of a turbo 4.
Suspension:
Everyone raves about this car's handling power, but honestly it not that good over 65. Don't get me wrong, under 65 it's amazing, no brake dive, no roll, great feedback. It's perfect under 65. But anything over that and the suspension becomes very upset and start bouncing around. Maybe if it was equipped with the amazing PASM suspension system Porsche offers, this would be a different story, but it wasn't. I honestly did not feel safe taking fast turns in this car, or even go fast in a straight (bumpy) line. The Z feels a lot more planted at higher speeds (especially with a cheap sway bar upgrade). It is more comfortable than the Z over bumps though (although I have not tried the new European suspension on the '13's).
After you get a couple options, you'll be in M3 price range, and for the price I'd much rather get an M3 coupe / M4. The car doesn't really excel in anything particular. It's not crazy luxurious. It's not amazing performance wise. It is just fun and enjoyable, but for a little too much money. And I feel manly when I drive the Z (and I'm not talking about the teenage girl with rich father stereotype that the Boxster has - I'm talking about the aggressive nature of the Z compared to the dainty nature of the Boxster). It's a great car but the driving feel is not worth the money, whereas the 370Z IS WORTH EVERY PENNY. Honestly if they took off the Porsche badge (which does come with the amazing Porsche engineering) and degraded the interior a bit, this would compete with a BRZ turbo.
Bottom line, I don't think people should upgrade from a Z to a base Boxster or cayman, and for the money I'd rather get the new M4 when it comes out.
Edit: I just configured a base Boxster with my must have options, and it topped over 64K without the PDK.
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