Great comparison. A lot of people don’t realize this, but the Emira actually has LONGER gearing in every gear except 1st and 6th. It just feels shorter because the fuel cutoff comes in at such low RPMs compared to Porsche’s 4 liter unit. On the point of suspension, I think the advantages of double wishbone are way overhyped/overstated by reviewers and various online car communities. Your commentary on the Boxster’s handling is evidence of just that. I think in many cases, double wishbone will outperform strut, but Porsche has truly mastered strut suspension to the point where any disadvantages are negligible. And Porsche strut out-handles a lot of the double wishbone competitors out there.
Not wrong, but when people are talking gear ratios they mean that as a combination with engine redline, not in isolation. So a car with a lower redline will obviously change the perceived length of gear ratios, but we care about what speed you have to shift into the next gear and how short the gears feel to drive, not in the spreadsheet. regarding strut, it definitely has limitations when you push it harder that cannot be overcome even with great engineering. GT4RS track video coming out soon with more details.
@ agreed, strut has limitations at the absolute extreme end of the spectrum. But few of us operate in those extremes, even on track days. I just think double wishbone is overhyped when it comes to ‘sports’ cars. Emira vs 718 GTS is a perfect example of this, with the 718 exhibiting almost perfectly neutral handling characteristics on the road and track without the tendency to push/understeer. I think part of that is the emira’s softer suspension setup, more geared towards grand touring even with the more aggressive suspension option from the factory. And yes on gearing it is of course a package deal. I just find it interesting that the Emira has a longer 2nd gear than the 718. I plan to re-gear mine in a few months, although that’s the only modification i plan on doing (and I plan to own it til the wheels fall off!)
![PORSCHE 718 Boxster GTS 4.0 | TOP SPEED on AUTOBAHN [NO SPEED LIMIT] by AutoTopNL](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/NGU8_iTdZlM/mqdefault.jpg)
Nice driving there! Looks like you had a tonne of fun. Emira vs Cayman/Boxster is really an interesting one.
Great comparison. A lot of people don’t realize this, but the Emira actually has LONGER gearing in every gear except 1st and 6th. It just feels shorter because the fuel cutoff comes in at such low RPMs compared to Porsche’s 4 liter unit.
On the point of suspension, I think the advantages of double wishbone are way overhyped/overstated by reviewers and various online car communities. Your commentary on the Boxster’s handling is evidence of just that. I think in many cases, double wishbone will outperform strut, but Porsche has truly mastered strut suspension to the point where any disadvantages are negligible. And Porsche strut out-handles a lot of the double wishbone competitors out there.
Not wrong, but when people are talking gear ratios they mean that as a combination with engine redline, not in isolation. So a car with a lower redline will obviously change the perceived length of gear ratios, but we care about what speed you have to shift into the next gear and how short the gears feel to drive, not in the spreadsheet.
regarding strut, it definitely has limitations when you push it harder that cannot be overcome even with great engineering. GT4RS track video coming out soon with more details.
@ agreed, strut has limitations at the absolute extreme end of the spectrum. But few of us operate in those extremes, even on track days. I just think double wishbone is overhyped when it comes to ‘sports’ cars. Emira vs 718 GTS is a perfect example of this, with the 718 exhibiting almost perfectly neutral handling characteristics on the road and track without the tendency to push/understeer. I think part of that is the emira’s softer suspension setup, more geared towards grand touring even with the more aggressive suspension option from the factory.
And yes on gearing it is of course a package deal. I just find it interesting that the Emira has a longer 2nd gear than the 718. I plan to re-gear mine in a few months, although that’s the only modification i plan on doing (and I plan to own it til the wheels fall off!)
Nice driving but there is no such thing as MacPherson struts on all four corners. Boxsters have a multi link rear suspension like most sports cars.
Any thoughts on comparison to c8 corvette stingray?