A couple of days ago, we discussed the Audi TT RS sounding better than the new Cayman, and one of our users kept saying that the Porsche is much faster. He is, of course, correct. And just to prove it, we are going to look at a drag race between the Boxster S and the epitome of BMW compact sexiness, the M2.
South Africa is a lovely place this time of year, so Germany's finest entry-level performance cars gathered there for a shootout. The Bimmer is undoubtedly the more desirable car here, thanks to its hourglass figure resembling Nicki Minaj. By comparison, the Boxster looks as flat as a plank, but it doesn't need any fancy tricks.
This little roadster is the result of decades of development from Porsche, and finally, it's got a turbocharged engine. Sure, it's down 0.5 liters of displacement and 20 horsepower, but other things can help a car go fast.
This is like a reboot of the race between the NSX, GT-R and McLaren 540C. Having the engine right on top of the rear wheels infinitely improves traction while keeping everything else nice and light compensates for the power. How much lighter? Well, the 718 S with PDK tips the scales at 1,385 kilos, a full 185 less than the M2. With those kinds of differences and the well-known launch problems, even the M4 would have struggled in this drag race.
Of course, diver skill also plays a part in a race like this, even though both cars are using twin-clutch automatics. It takes a lot of time to master launching a turbocharged BMW M car. Launch Control is not the quickest way to get moving. But even the M2's best wouldn't have been enough.
I think decades of pointless wheel spin should have taught us that BMW M doesn't make good drag racing cars. But in any case, both the 718 and the M2 are designed for something completely different than this.
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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