The C8 Corvette doesn't have any direct rivals as a mid-engined sports car with a large naturally-aspirated American V8. However, the Corvette, in general, has been competing with the Porsche 911 for a really long time. But what about a smaller Porsche roadster that's really good, the new 718 Boxster GTS 4.0?
It's a shocking comparison at first since almost all Boxsters come with little four-cylinder engines now. But they are really expensive and well made, plus is the GTS 4.0, which should tell you it's no slouch in the engine displacement department.
Comparison reviews from TheStraightPipes are usually entertaining rather than outright funny. But we found this one amusing for indirect reasons. For example, just look at the background. This is a review of summer cars released in July, but there's not a leaf in sight. Also, why is it sports car buyers care so much about golf clubs?
Being able to fit a decent 9 iron is apparently a major requirement of a sports car, especially a convertible one. Lexus, older Jaguars, even the Acura NSX, all try to meet this strange requirement. And the customers get really upset when they don't. TheStraightPipes claims the Boxster GTS can't hold golf clubs, but people in the comments say you need to know how to angle them.
But maybe we just need to focus on performance before this gets too weird. The GTS 4.0 has a special flat-six engine producing 394 horsepower and 317 lb-ft (429 Nm) while the C8's 6.2-liter makes the usual 495 hp and 470 lb-ft (637 Nm). There's a gap there, sure, but Porsches always do more with less.
The claimed 0 to 60 times (0 to 97 kph) suggest the Corvette will be much faster. However, during a short drag race part of the video, the Canadians got them down the quarter-mile within a couple of car lengths. That should anger Corvette owners and Porsche fans at the same time, much like the golf club thing. At the end of the day, that's just competitiveness manifesting as comments.
Of course, the whole point of this comparison is to highlight two very different convertible sports cars that you can buy for similar money. There are many subjective elements that stand out, like the supercar-like exterior of the Corvette or the GTS 4.0's superior balance on the track.
Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida. Full profile
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