The M4’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The 718 Boxster doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.
The M4’s standard pretensioning seatbelts also sense rear collisions and remove slack from the front seatbelts to help protect the occupants from whiplash and other injuries. The 718 Boxster doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.
The M4 has a standard PostCrash iBrake, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The 718 Boxster doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.
Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The M4 offers an optional Active Park Distance Control that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The 718 Boxster doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.
The M4 offers all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The 718 Boxster doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.
The M4’s lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. The 718 Boxster doesn’t offer a lane departure warning system.
The M4 offers an optional Surround View to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The 718 Boxster only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.
The M4 has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them and moves the vehicle back into its lane. A system to reveal vehicles in the 718 Boxster’s blind spot costs extra.
To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the M4’s standard Cross Traffic Warning uses sensors in the rear to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. The 718 Boxster doesn’t offer a rear cross-path warning system.
The M4’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The 718 Boxster doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.
Both the M4 and the 718 Boxster have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, daytime running lights and rearview cameras.
The BMW M4 weighs 605 to 1286 pounds more than the Porsche 718 Boxster. The NHTSA advises that heavier cars are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.