BOXER V TESTAROSSA

I used to own one same time with the Boxer and I even run them against each other side by side.
My Boxer is an 84 totally stock so was the testarossa both with miles below 10k and both running perfect when tested........the Boxer was much faster of the line and stayed faster all the way up to the first triple digit speeds
The boxer was also much more responsive and a better handling car at medium speed mountain road turns.
Testarossa felt more planted straight line at insane speeds but the Boxer got this feel also after some minor suspension mods like a little more spring rate and ride height set at factory specs with two normal weight people in it.(Boxer was sitting too tall while stock and all original)
The Boxer with all its documented paper work was running in european trim ...no cats etc where the testarossa was late year production us car
Testarossa is a much heavier car than the Boxer and maybe if I remember right it could have been a little taller geared but not sure on this last point.
Had the Testarossa for a year and a half and the Boxer for 18 plus now I think....I loose count.


Mario

 

The boxer is smaller and feels it when compared to the TR. The 90 TR I drove felt slower than my boxer, less responsive and bulky. My car is full euro and the TR was US spec which means more weight and 10 less HP than the euro version TR would be. I still love the look of the TR, big fat ass and low plus it sounds great and its no slug.

 

It also comes down to which design/style you prefer. The classic BB or the more dramatic TR. Since I am old, I like the BB.

 

I still prefer the looks of the Boxer, but that's not what you asked. I have no experience with the 'early' Testarossa, just the 512TR.

My BBi just feels more like a 'sports car' and less like a 'big wide GT' than the 512TR if that makes any sense. The feeling is more raw, more connected, better steering feedback. I put 6 new shocks on my car and some of the former 'floaty' feeling vanished.

Yet my experience says the 512TR is vastly quicker, faster, (an advertisted 421 hp vs 340) and more stable car. Decent amount more interior room, a pretty usable trunk too. (Last Saturday I put 2 cases of beer, 1 case of water and a couple small bags of groceries in the trunk. I was amazed. Couldn't/wouldn't do that in th Boxer.)

In time, I have grown increasingly fond of the 512TR. The AC is ice cold, radio is nice enough, exhaust note makes the hair on my neck stand up (Tubi). It is certainly a 'wilder' looking car. In the BBi, I can ride around with not so many noticing, yet the 512Tr generally gets cell phone pics and gabbing of all sorts at gas stations.

They make a great pair though! Within the Testarossa range, I'd talk to some technicians about the service histories between the Testarossa and the 512TR. Maybe spend some seat time in each. Though the price is a little ways different, your experience may be more rewarding. Just a thought.

 

I sense another Boxer/TR smack down brewing! I'll get the popcorn.

They are both great cars, the only flat 12s out there.
The Boxer is a classic shape, very much hand built, and is the last of carbed cars.
The Testarossa (esp the 512TR) is a dramatic shape, has next-gen build and bits like Bosch Motronic ECUs.

 

My brother owned an early TR from new until just a few years ago, and it was the first Ferrari I ever drove. He's also driven my Boxer, and is always telling me how much better the TR is...

From a practical perspective, he's right. The TR has rear-mounted radiators, which eliminates the Boxer's unfortunate situation of blowing hot air over the cabin. It also allows it to have a usable trunk.

However, the TR always felt much bigger to me than the Boxer, especially around town. I think the width has a lot to do with this.

All in all, I wouldn't trade my Boxer for a TR.

 

Testarossa all the way. Cool A/C, great at top end, exotic. I love all F-Cars, my gone crazy and racked up 20K miles on my TR in the last three plus years... If you were to buy a TR, look for 1990 and get ready for you pic to be taken everytime you drive the car. Look in my profile for pic.

 

Ditto.....Everytime I take out my TR, I can at least expect one cell phone pic to be taken. People are exited when they see it. The first Ferrari I drove was a boxer when I was in my 20's What a rush!!! I have always loved the look of the boxer. However I feel the TR is a more refined and improved version of the boxer. The TR today is just rough enough in this day and age to keep my attention. Unlike todays cars I feel like I have to drive it instead of feeling like I am just riding in it.

 

i think before you decide against a testarossa, try the euro version. most of the responses here come from US spec owners. i have owned two US cars, but no boxers, and i agree with the descriptions of the testarossa. however, the euro version is 350+ pounds lighter with a little more power so it will almost surely be a different comparison with the boxer. i find it hard to believe the euro testarossa will be slower or less capable, performance-wise, than a boxer. it doesn't make sense for a succeeding model to be slower than its predecessor.

john

 

I hope you weren't counting my post as a "+1" on the Boxer! Mine is equally split, depending on your goals.

If your goals include driving more, in more comfort, with a bit more attention, and a faster (512TR) more civilised car, the redhead wins.

If a beauty or rarity contest, the BB. A tough call, depending purely on merits desired.

 

Me too. My brother would clearly be in the TR camp, and while I would agree that objectively the TR is superior, I like the Boxer anyway.

 

Buy the car based on how it makes you feel, not how many donkeys take your picture when you go out in it. If anything, that kind of attention would steer me away from a car because driving it, not posing for pics is what im into. Bought my boxer because its special, rare, cool, fast and its not depreciating.

 

Very different cars. Like Newman said, buy the one that works for you.


BB does feel smaller, lighter and more responsive. TR is a much better car to travel in. HVAC is far better, quieter and more comfortable. TR is much more stable at high speed which was one of the prime goals when designed.

BB is a better mountain road car, TR is a better open road car.

 

i am a boxer owner / lover...but i must say the 512tr is looking better and better to me w/ each new day!

i don't know why but the 512tr looks considerably better than the other testarossa versions including the "m".

 

I agree and I love them both, two very different cars though.

 

Here's why: You have superior taste.

 

Never liked the looks of the TR512. Looks like a fat hunchback.

 

I haven't owned both, only the BBi, but driven both. Ditto in that the TR feels more refined, plenty quick, still exciting viscerally, and what a difference more modern and bigger rubber make than the crappy TRX's.

The driving quirks of the Boxer actually add to the experience for me, but most drivers will feel more confident behind the wheel of the TR. Very capable cars both, but you just don't worry as much that the TR will slap you if you do something silly behind the wheel. With the radiators and the engine/transaxle all behind you, you would think the TR would feel more tail heavy. Whether its the tires, longer wheelbase, or whatever, I never felt that the TR was uncomfortably prone to oversteer.

Looks are more subjective, and while some design elements are inspiring and iconic, the front end of the whole series just didn't do it for me. I also like the more subtle beauty of the Boxer. The TR's sure get the looks, though.

I have to believe the TR is also safer (relatively) than the Boxer, though I don't have a shred of evidence to support that. I do sometimes find myself worrying what would happen if I get into a scrape at any kind of speed in the Boxer. And it certainly changes how I drive with passengers.

Good luck!
W

 

that's the one thing that i've never liked about the 512. the rear pillars extend all the way back to the edge of the engine lid. really turns it into a hatchback-looking car. also, there is no slight dip from the roofline as there is in the original testarossa. i was trying to figure out the motivation for these changes, and finally found it in the boxer. it has the same flow from rear roofline to rear pillars all the way back to the edge of the engine lid. but for some reason on a boxer it doesn't give the hatchback look. the car looks great otherwise.

 

Sort of like comparing a Daytona to a Maranello

Both awesome and related

I love BBs they are super sexy, love 512TRs too

I'd have both ideally

 

I remember the day I looked at the first TR photo and I thought Ferrari lost their touch.
Shortly after and to this day I feel the early TR looks great and in my opinion better than the later versions and even more so with the larger wheels like the later 512TRs have.
I have driven both to long trips and if both running perfect I feel the BBi wins over where you feel you have been entertained after a long trip and never get enough of the feel the Boxer has.
With 285-40-17s at the rear and 245s at the front the handling of the BB at corners of all speeds feels like a true race car on the street,I never got this thrill from the TR but I sure had the attention from people which I do not enjoy even when it happens with the BB
The BB is sprung super soft and with more spring rate and stock fresh shocks with modern tires can be a great handler contrary to some peoples opinions.
Much less weight can equal more power and there is several hundreds of pounds in difference I believe as I was told when I tried to explain why was the TR so much slower than the BB.
I have gone once out of a demo in a 512TR and back to the Boxer and the best way to descibe it is the BB feels raw and nimble like a race car where even a fast late TR is just not such a thrill.

Mario

 

i vote BB for look, rarity. lightness
to get the complete package, i would go for a weber car (the last old school ferrari!)

a black or white BB is one of the best looking ferrari ever (imo)
do not get me wrong: the TR is a great looking car but too heavy, it has some notorious weack mecanic points and they made too many cars

you should consider diablo and countach to
but the countach only if you like wild, uncompromised once in a weeck machine...it is so extreme that makes the BB a refined gran tourer