The BMW M2 has been compared to almost every single possible rear-wheel drive sports car on the market since its debut. It’s taken on the Corvette, the Jaguar F-Type, the Porsche Cayman and even its own sibling, the BMW M4. Now, though, it’s being compared to one of the absolute most delicious driving cars on the planet, the new Porsche 718 Boxster GTS. Can the BMW M2, the humble performance car that also happens to be the cheapest one BMW M makes, take on the blue-blooded Porsche scalpel with a name that harkens back to Le Mans? Motor1 finds out in this new video review.
These two cars are similar in some ways but also very, very different in others. They’re both rear-wheel drive, both available with six-speed manual gearboxes (which they both have in this test) and they both make about 365 hp. However, the BMW M2 is a two-door, four-seat coupe based off of a humble 2 Series. The Porsche 718 Boxster GTS is a mid-engine convertible built on a bespoke sports car chassis. The BMW M2 also has bigger engine, a 3.0 liter turbocharged inline-six cylinder, rather than the Porsche’s 2.5 liter turbocharged flat-four.
So they’re both design to do the same thing — be fast and fun. But they go about it in very different ways. So which car is better?
Well, it’s a tough one to call. The BMW M2 is a bit punchier and a touch quicker, thanks to its bigger engine and more torque, is more practical, thanks to its backseat, and it makes a much better noise. The M2’s I6 makes an angry, growly noise that the Porsche just can’t match. The Boxster GTS sounds more like a diesel tractor than a purebred sports car. However, the Porsche’s chassis is better, its steering is sharper and it feels more special to drive. That’s not to say the M2 is significantly worse, as it’s very good fun to drive, but it just feels more like a 2 Series made to feel special while the Boxster GTS feels like it was born special.
And that’s really the difference in this comparison. The Porsche Boxster GTS wins this comaprison by a very, very small margin as an outright sports car, but the BMW M2 would probably be the better daily driver. However, price must be taken into account and, there, the M2 should get some serious kudos. You can get a fully loaded M2 out the door at under $60,000. The Boxster GTS? It starts at $81,000. So you can have the BMW M2 as your daily fun car but buy a Mazda MX-5 for a Sunday drive all for less than the price of a decently equipped Boxster GTS. And I’m sorry but for damn-near $100,000, I want something more exciting and faster than a turbocharged, roofless Beetle.