Ugly

I realize I may be the only guy in the solar system who finds these guys irritating, but I quickly thumbed through Top Gear's car of the year issue today.

I was happy to see the Boxster, as opposed to the 991, listed as a finalist for sports car of the year, but was somewhat surprised to see the BMW M135 take the prize. Anyone have thoughts on this? I was also surprised to see the new Toyota sports car as the overall car of the year.

2001 Base, purchased in 2004, replaced engine at 130K+, RIP 2017

they are weighting value-for-money (a pretty reasonable thing) and possibly practicality, since not everyone can have a fleet of cars. In that case its back to overall value.

Did they make their criteria clear?

Grant

Grant

gee-lenahan-at-gee-mail-dot-com

I just skimmed it, so I can't really say. I did notice that, while this was not the only criterion,, they noted that the BMW M135 was something like £10,000 cheaper than the Boxster. They also said the BMW provided the sort of driving experience sports-car lovers look for.

I'd be interested in others' thoughts, particularly others who have driven the BMW car. We also have a BMW 3 series, and I think it is an absolutely outstanding automobile and friends who have aging BMW 2002s and 5 series cars are ecstatic with them. If BMW could produce a sports car that provided the satisfaction of a Boxster (so we're not talking about the Z), I would definitely be interested in it.

in the height of the gas crunch to a guy who drove up in an Eldorado (huge car, one of two of them he owned) and paid me hundreds over what I had paid for it (hundreds was big bucks back then folks). Kid across the street had a green one and I watched it age none too gracefully as the rust took hold of most of the '70s cars.

Only drove one BMW roadster when I was looking and before buying my first Boxster. Got about 200 yards away from the car lot and turned around, just wasn't for me. Reminded me of a truck and had rattles galore.

Some reviews of the M135 (not comparisons) are here. Generally very favorable. But a 3 door hardtop. At the bottom of that page there is a comparison link to a 911 drive off.

One of the commenters on the M135 calls it ugly.

I'm not crazy about it, but this raises an important point. Porsches are attractive cars, and for some of us, that's a factor. I love the looks of my 986, I like the 987 and 981 also. To be honest, one of the reasons I'd buy a 911 next if I could, is its looks. The main reason my car is appealing is that it drives so well, otherwise I would have given more thought to an Audi or a BMW Z (which didn't impress me either). However, if you can add in looks, it's worth something if you can swing the dough. I still like looking at XKEs, slab-sided Lincolns, MGAs and vintage Alfa Romeos, even if they're standing still.

Model A two door
'58 Chevy
'63-'67 Vette
Lincoln Continental Mk II (around 56)
Volvo PV544
BMW 2002
Datsun 510
Honda Civic '87 era
Porsche 914 (never a big fan of the 912/911 series)
Porsche 928
Jaguar E-type early
BMW 850
Acura early
VW Jetta around mid to late 90s

I note that functional and pretty plain are common in that list. Fortunate to have owned more than half on the list.

And, as I think of it, the Boxster isn't on the list though the prototype might have made it. Yet I owned and loved 2 which is a tribute to its functionality, reliability and fun factor.