The Best Roadster on the road Under USD$40K

[The Vanishing Boy]

There are so many roadsters in the world, especially the fine expensive ones. But lets get closer in reality, what is the best roadsters on the road today?

Rules:
-Any roadster in the world that doesn't exceed with a equivalent currency of USD$40,000.
-Road cars (past or cars coming in the few months), no concept cars
-Roadsters are 2-passenger vehicles, Convertibles are 4 or 5 passenger vehicles.
-Must be factory made not an aftermarket.

My picks:
*Honda S2000
*2004 Nissan Z Roadster
*Mazda Miata

 

[1X83Z]

1 - Mazda Miata: Seminal, yet still the best. It redefined the roadster, and it made BMW, Audi, and even Mercedes follow.

2 - BMW Z4 V6: Yummmmm... Well-styled because it's daring, but good-daring. V6 only way to go. Looks fast, handles extremely well. Trunk a tad short.

 

[The Vanishing Boy]

I prefer the Z3 than the Z4 (even thou that I personally dislike the both of them). Z3's shape has more balanced styling, but quikry for a BMW, and the Z4 made it worse.

 

[1X83Z]

Z3 was seriously underpowered in all forms except the 3.0i, and with it, it was way too expensive. It was a mistake on BMW's part, akin to the 8-series and buying Rover.

 

[The Vanishing Boy]

I drove a Z3 1.9, and I don't feel underpowered, in fact it was peppy for a 4-cyl german car.

The biggest BMW mistake is I think when they hired the designer of the next-gen 7, 5, 6, 1, series.

 

[1X83Z]

Originally posted by The Vanishing Boy

The biggest BMW mistake is I think when they hired the designer of the next-gen 7, 5, 6, 1, series.

Since I've seen pictures of all those cars, I can safely say that I truly enjoy the designs currently coming out of BMW. The 7-series was not good (after much review), but I love the 1-series and new 6-series, and the new 5-series looks like a wonderful product rejuvination.

The worst mistakes BMW ever made were buying Rover, and the 8-series.

 

[Joey D]

I think this will pass since its under 40g's

Chevy SSR, but what the hell it is is beyond me. I think its a roadster.

 

[Hooligan]

Originally posted by M5Power
2 - BMW Z4 V6: Yummmmm... Well-styled because it's daring, but good-daring. V6 only way to go. Looks fast, handles extremely well. Trunk a tad short.

There are no BMW V6's. They either use an inline-4, inline-6, V8, or V12. No turbos, no superchargers, and a well-designed variable-intake system. [Of course, with the upcoming twin-turbo 5-series, this is all moot....]

 

[Hooligan]

Originally posted by M5Power
Z3 was seriously underpowered in all forms except the 3.0i, and with it, it was way too expensive. It was a mistake on BMW's part, akin to the 8-series and buying Rover.

1: The first Z3's were limp-wristed, but the last Z3 3.0i was reasonably powerful. It was the handling and still-limp body control that made it a has-been. The M Roadster was almost too powerful for the body, considering how loose it got on even mild corners.

2: The Z3 was also reasonably priced. That is, it was reasonable compared to other BMW's. It was still built well, and it was, after all, a BMW.

3: The 8-Series was, and still is, a great car. It moved well, looked decent (at the time), and in V12 CSi form, was considered a nigh-supercar. Drive one and see for yourself. Lots of grunt, oversteer on demand...a real adjustable car.

4: Buying Rover was not a mistake. Not doing anything with Rover was the mistake. Rover/MG as it is now has great ideas, and is trying real hard. If they could have had backing from a stalwart like BMW, you'd probably see an entire Rover group here in the US (rather than just the Mini) with rear-drive Rovers and MGs. Picture it: A ZT-T+ 190 in rear-drive form. Even with the semi-pokey engine, it'd blow away all other mid-size wagons.

 

[bigwhlkid]

s2000
350z
cooper s
z4
silvia s15

 

[1X83Z]

Originally posted by Hooligan

3: The 8-Series was, and still is, a great car. It moved well, looked decent (at the time), and in V12 CSi form, was considered a nigh-supercar. Drive one and see for yourself. Lots of grunt, oversteer on demand...a real adjustable car.

Now wait! It didn't move well, it was as heavy as all crap, and it handled like a large sedan. The CSi was nice, but extremely expensive new. And they left it unchanged for years.

4: Buying Rover was not a mistake. Not doing anything with Rover was the mistake.

I don't understand why they bought it in the first place if they had no intentions to do anything with it.

 

[Hooligan]

Originally posted by M5Power
Now wait! It didn't move well, it was as heavy as all crap, and it handled like a large sedan. The CSi was nice, but extremely expensive new. And they left it unchanged for years.

Did you drive it? Even ride in it? For the time, it performed quite well. Yes, it's a bit of a barge, but so's a Bentley coupe and that will do most people just fine. A 7-Series is expensive, and it also moves kinda bargey. So picture a new 745i as a coupe. That's your "8-Series". BMW doesn't change any of their cars often. Look how flabby the Z3 was, and it remained unchanged for almost a decade. The E36 M3 hung around way too long, even after being trounced by competitors and after being trounced by the press who claimed it's "not a real M3". From 1991 to 1997, that's just as long as the Z3 was around. BMW stands by their cars until the bitter end.

I don't understand why they bought it in the first place if they had no intentions to do anything with it.

I don't either. But the idea of buying Rover wasn't bad. If they had no plans to do anything with it from the get-go, then it truly was dumb, especially considering the sale price.

 

[1X83Z]

Originally posted by Hooligan
Did you drive it? Even ride in it? For the time, it performed quite well. Yes, it's a bit of a barge, but so's a Bentley coupe and that will do most people just fine. A 7-Series is expensive, and it also moves kinda bargey. So picture a new 745i as a coupe. That's your "8-Series". BMW doesn't change any of their cars often. Look how flabby the Z3 was, and it remained unchanged for almost a decade. The E36 M3 hung around way too long, even after being trounced by competitors and after being trounced by the press who claimed it's "not a real M3". From 1991 to 1997, that's just as long as the Z3 was around. BMW stands by their cars until the bitter end.

At the time the BMW 8-series came out, BMW made the 5-series sedan for people who needed the room, the M3 for people who needed quickness but no room, the M5 for people who needed quickness and speed, and the 8-series which gave you less than 5-series room, cost more, and didn't go as well as the M5.

The difference between the 8-series and the Z3/E36 M3 was that the latter vehicles sold well. The 8-series was never what BMW wanted it to be.

I don't either. But the idea of buying Rover wasn't bad. If they had no plans to do anything with it from the get-go, then it truly was dumb, especially considering the sale price.

I can't assume they actually planned to do nothing with it from the get-go, but with the money they paid, they should've had some sort of plan before buying it.

 

[B Campbell]

1-year old Boxter.

Not the fastest, but has the most cachet. And the title doesn't say fastest, does it?

 

[Hooligan]

Originally posted by bigwhlkid
s2000
350z
cooper s
z4
silvia s15

The question is roadster, right? So the Silvia, Cooper, and 350z (at least this year) are out.

But best world-wide roadster for less than US$40,000? Probably the Leading Edge 190RT. (LE, formerly known as Vemac RD180, formerly known as TommyKaira ZZ). Great MR car, 180HP, stripped out, and optional hard top cover-thingy.
http://www.evo.co.uk/driven/driven_story.php?id=26483

Within the US, however, it'd have to be the Boxster 2.7...which is really $42K. Then it'd have to be the Z4 3.0i...which is still just over $40K.

Actually sticking to the "under $40K" rule, we have the Toyota MR2 and Honda S2000. (These are the only two that are worth it.) The MR2 is a far more enjoyable car, if noticeably slower than the S2000. Call it character, call it a connection...I call it a car that communicates with the driver. The Honda left me with a limp handshake, where you felt just about every extra MPH in the MR2.

But do yourself a favor: scrounge the extra $1-2,000 for either the Z4 or Boxster. They're so superior to either the MR2 or S2000, they'd injure the Japanese roadsters.

 

[B Campbell]

In terms of performance, the Boxter and the S2000 are almost equal. The Boxter S begins to whup on it. However, if you have other things to consider apart from performance, the Boxter is surely the way to go.

Now, under $10,000... How about a nice 914-6.

 

[12sec. Civic]

Originally posted by M5Power
Z3 was seriously underpowered in all forms except the 3.0i, and with it, it was way too expensive. It was a mistake on BMW's part, akin to the 8-series and buying Rover.

The Z3 was available with both of the engines available in the Z4, and the Z4 is MORE expensive than the Z3. read Car and Driver Jan.2003. It is also about 50 lbs heavier.



I LOVE: Porsche Boxster, Honda S2000, MB SLK32 AMG, BMW M Roadster.


I would take a SLK32 AMG over them all simply because it would blow away the Porsche and Honda and lose the M-Z3 pretty consistently.

However, on the contrary, I am a true car enthusiast and I would have to ditch the SLK32 AMG because it only comes in Auto and is kind of overweight. I would get the Porsche Boxster S (260hp) because it would haul ass.

Supercharged 3.2L V6 (350hp)

3.2L Boxer/Opposed six cyl. (260hp)

3.2L Inline Six Cyl. (315hp)