Im after a BMW Z4...

[mr tommo]

Hi, I was looking to buy a new car next summer...But quite frankly I cant wait that long. I need cheering up
So, I went on the open day when the Z4 was first released and got taken out for a drive in one, instantly making it my goal to have one.

My options were narrowed down to the Z4, S2000 and 350Z kept cropping its ugly rear up too.
Ive not driven any of them but Ive got my heart set on a Z4. Bit of a daft mentality but I just prefer the looks, spec and interior of the Z4.

Ive seen this one and its got pretty much everything that I want on it. Not fantastically priced however..

http://www.davidbrowncars.co.uk/veh...in=&intMax=&RSpage=1&ID=731387&popup=&Modela=

Its 130 odd miles from my house so It will be a bit of a trek but I dont mind that If its perfect.
I want the 18" 5 spoke, the Sat nav and a decent sound system (for the intravee II ipod interface).

What do you think I could knock him down to realistically and how do I go about it?

Also, the 2.5 is 300 cheaper on insurance but cant help thinking id feel short changed, Is the 3.0 worth the extra?

I know there's some BMW experts on here and a few z4 owners too so id appreciate your contribution

 

[mr tommo]

£11k on a Z4? Are you insane? Could get a Fiat Punto for that.

Woah the road tax saving is unbelievable...quick, to Fiat!

Yes! If I am not mistaken, the MPG rating on the 2.5 and 3.0 are exactly the same. The 3.0 will also hold its value better than the 2.5.



~ £1000 - 2000. The Parkers guide price for a 3 year old Z4 of this spec is £13k. Being an independent dealer, I imagine he would be pretty keen to get rid of a 2-seater sports car at the moment. Remember, people pay for the metal - not for fluffy addons. Are you sure you want Satnav that much? It will be old, the interface is crap and you'd do much better getting a TomTom fitted for < £200.

Looks like they are running a "3yr warranty for the price of 2".

I have heard that the MPG is similar. A relatives been telling me theres a massive difference, but I think thats becasue he has a 325ci!
Ive got the Tomtom 720 (IIRC) anyway, but wanted the sat nav mainly for the easier ipod control Plus it should be easier to sell on afterwards.
Do I just go in with a low offer of about £11000 then? Not bartered on a car before. Has anyone done this over the phone before?

I dont think its that expensive, really. Perhaps 500 quid over? Looks like a nice example.

Cool, my top price was 11.5 anyway. Is the your mums the 3.0? Whats town mpg like?

EDIT: How do I find out if its an SE?

 

[mr tommo]

Yea hers is a 3.0. The fuel economy is suprisingly good - better than my 530i. It gets about 23-25ish around town and high 30's on a run

Most of the 3.0's are SE's and the 3.0 has Sports Suspension as standard. Those wheels enjoy corroding, though.

That MPG just convinved me even more Planning a 3-4000 mile road trip for the summer and calculated it on my new car doing 25 average so thats a bonus.

Is that the sport suspension that got hammered on top gear? Think it was the test against the S2000 and the Boxster.

Ah man! I would so love to go out and blow what money I have to spend on the house on one of these! Damn the insurance! Damn the road tax! And Damn not being able to rack my bike to the thing!

Its got enough space to stick 2 sets of clubs in the back from what i remember reading on an owners forum.

Im 21 and insurance is coming out at £1000 with DOC through bell so pretty happy with that. Ive convinced myself that if I dont get one now at 21 I probably never will.

http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?i...nw=143&prev=/images?q=z4+boot&um=1&hl=en&sa=N
There ya go, No excuses

EDIT : Im off out now but expect this to get bumped in the morning!
I will get 12months MOT from a garage wont I?
Tax is another issue though

 

[mr tommo]

The Sport Suspension isn't THAT bad especially if you bin the horrible funflat tyres. It isn't a car I'd pick to do 4000 miles in though but then perhaps I'm just too used to the 5 Series ground covering ability, I dunno.

Suprised you can get insurance at 21. It's Group 19. Be careful with it, it is NOT a slow car and if you dont treat it with respect it will bite you.

They are great fun.

mmmm I want! Glad to hear you can get rid of the runflats because the price of them seem preety steep tbh.
Im sure I will just about be able to manage the drive down to Siclily with the roof down

The cheapest ive found is with bell. 21, 4 years 1 month driving, 3 yeards no claims and not a particularly good postcode with the DOC cover for £1050. Which isnt too bad considering a £6000 clio 182 is £1400 to insure. It will be my first RWD car and I definately will be having some tution on a track after christmas.

I forgot to ask, you mentioned them wheels corroding, have BMW wiped their hands of this problem or is it covered under some kind of body work warranty?

Just for info, I bought my Mercedes from this dealer 2 years ago. No complaints or worries, definately recommended.

Thats very reassuring to know, thanks.

 

[mr tommo]

See now they really are tempting! Im going have to arrange a test drive before I see that Z4 I think. Its just the interior and lack of kit that puts me off.

 

[mr tommo]

Those wheels corroding is very common but the age of car you're looking at will be out of BMW warranty. BMW has replaced them for cars in warranty and recently they've had the inner surface changed to a more painted finish to try and stop all the replacements.

The Z4 3.0 is a great car, more economical than the S2000 and 350z, although you could pick up a s2000 cheaper.

If you can find them, get the sports seats, much better side support. Although they didn't start until 2004. Get one with electric memory, heated seats, it's great being able to warm up quickly in the winter.

The satnav is very nice to have, yes it's not as good as a TomTom but I love having it built in, no wires and sucky pad marks to worry about. Plus you can add the Ipod connection and get good control over it. The multi function steering wheel would be good to go along with this. The 6 cd changer is prone to jamming (mine has done it recently) so I'm probably going to remove it and fit an Ipod connection (other than the aux in I already have)

Even with normal tyres, the ride is firm but I still find it comfortable on long journeys.

That price is pretty good, it's probably £2k cheaper than it would have been 5 months ago. For a 2003 car, that looks to be pretty much top spec, sat nav, heated seats, bluetooth, xenons, upgraded speakers, the only thing that seems to be missing is the multifunction steering wheel.

Thanks for that.

So if the alloys aren't under warranty, would it be a case of me getting them refurbed?

Oh, I never noticed the multifunction steering wheel was missing. Is that just radio control?
If I get the intravee ipod connection does this mean I will have to stretch over to the sat nav to change tracks?

I agree sports seats would be a bonus but this is the top end of my budget already, and having the carver system in it is a massive bonus!

Just received this email from the garage...

Hi Tom
Yes the Z4 is still available.
The next service due is @ 14,300 miles & is an oil service, the MOT runs through to 25th July 2009, there is no tax but we can arrange that, all vehicles come with a 6 month parts & labour warranty, which you can extend up to 2 years for an extra £245.00 inc vat.
If you decide to extend with in our 2 week promotional period which ends 16/11/08 the warranty company will add an extra 12 months giving you 36 months in total parts & labour.

If you would like to view/drive please contact me to arrange.
Regards
Robert Brown
David Brown Cars Limited
01483 237926
01483 236417


Whats the service schedule for these? Im guessing he meant in 14,300 miles.
I know there is inspection 1, 2 and oil services.
What order are these and which is the expensive one?

 

[mr tommo]

Im going to give the garage a ring in the morning hopefully, try to sort out a price over the phone before I waste everyones time by travelling down there. Hopefully Its still available

I realised I forgot to ask how many previous owner the vehicle had. Fairly sure if it was only 1 then he would have mentioned this as a selling point. How many previous owners would put you off this car?

The only way a 2003 Z4 would have sports seats would be if they were a retro fit and the seats are like rocking horse doodoo second hand. Unless you want to pay £1400 from german online auctions...

Seems odd that the next service is an Oil service, at 44k miles I'd expect it to have just had it's oil service done and the next one to be the Inspection 2. Unless the precious owner got the services done early or based on years between services.

The steering wheel controls the radio and bluetooth, satnav has to be done from the headunit anyway. It's no big loss, but it is nice to have. You could always pick up a second hand steering wheel at some point in the future, they aren't too expensive if you're patient. It's not a huge car, so it's not a big stretch to reach the radio.

Yeah, the alloys would have to be refurbed by yourself if they need doing, but they do look great. The 18" Ellipsoids look great too, and don't have such bad corrosion problems.

Definately getting the Intravee ipod thing for christmas. It doesnt seem strange that the next service is an oil one

Sports Seats are very rare on a 2003 Z4 and most of them dont have a multifunction wheel either.

Servicing is like this:

Oil Service (£150ish)
Inspection 1 (£250ish)
Oil Service
Inspection 2 (£350ish)
Oil Service
Inspection 1
etc

Servicing is variable with 15k miles as a base.

So really as herminator said at 45k miles (what it currently has) It should have just had the oil service done.

The 108's are split rims and are pretty expensive to refurb, I've been quoted £100 per wheel!

But if thats the price for great looking alloys I have no choice!

 

[mr tommo]

I actually like them!

Im going to view it Saturday morning. Excited isn't the word.

Signed up on the Z4 forum and just had two local guys offer me passenger rides in their Z4's tomorrow before I test drive mine. Going to take them up on the offers though!

@ meeting strange dudes from the internetz.

 

[mr tommo]

When they turn into the forest, have a courtesy check of the glove box for lubricant.

as an s2000 owner here is my 2p

I personally think the s2000 would be a better driving experience if your a petrol head. If you want to do and track days I think with the vtec engine you have a great combination.

The only issue with them really is lots of the cheaper ones have issues. Examples being seized bushes, roof tears or worn seats. These can be sorted but to do it right isn't cheap. I have had a new mohair roof with heated glass rear screen and a centre gravity suspension assessment and repair with mugen castor bush replacement done at the same time.

I love my s2000 but it's just spanked me another big bill this week. I guess what I am saying is just because it's 12k now it won't have 12k running costs unless you try and do it on the cheap..... So take your time finding one and read up on common issues.

See now I am a bit of a petrol head and by the looks of things, the way the s2000 needs to be revved seems pretty cool but im not sure if it would become a little tiresome.
In the looks department IMO the Z4 wins hands down but obviously its all down to driving one at the end of the day.
Im going down my local dealers today to test drive a 3.0 Z4 so I hope it lives up to expectation.

Im pretty much resigned to the fact that whatever I buy for £12k wont have the running costs to match but thats life.
Ive been looking at s2000's quite a bit recently and there are some quite cheap ones about like you said but Id still be looking at spending around £12k.

It's a low mileage car so it's probably spent most of its life around town which will mean the interval will be rather lower than 15k.

Cool. Would there be any use in me ringing that garages it had been serviced at? Would I gain anything from this?

 

[mr tommo]

Well... I got one!

Pictures to come on tuesday when I pick it up. wooooooooooooo!

 

[mr tommo]

Cheers guys <--- Thats actually my face still, 8 hours later, minus the blue tinge

Pics will be up after Ive given it some meguiars TLC

 

[mr tommo]

Getting sedated until Tuesday sounds like a plan! Been out this morning to waste a little time buying new wash mitts, roof cleaners, more wax, new wash leather etc..

What spec/price did you go for in the end? Did you test drive an S2000 as well?

Well I didnt go for the one in the OP in the end.

Spec..
Metallic black with Red Leather.
Manual 6 speed
Sat Nav
Bluetooth & telephone connection
Upgraded Carver 10 speaker system (sounds amazing)
Xenon lights
Upgraded 18" 108 Alloys
6 CD multi changer
Heated seats with driver memory
Individual New England leather
Rear windshield
Rear parking sensors
Climate control
Auto headlights and wipers,
Sport button (though thats standard and probably doesn't do anything, just looks cool).
Its had the runflats ditched already, which saved me a job.
Full BMW service history
3 Owners
50,000
Service 9,300 Miles away which is an Inspection II
Just had rear pads replaced, How much is a disc change on these?
_____________________________________
£10,500
He wanted £11,500

Congrats tommo, be careful where you park. Some really jealous plonkers around, especially seeing a 21 year old.

My manager had the Z4 M come fresh from the factory and what a car is all I can say! Unfortunately I had to be 21 to drive that car under BMW's group insurance policy. Ah maybe one day

Look forward to the pics

Yeah Im a little worried about that tbh if I drive up town for a night out or what ever. Its secure in the day and at home though really.

I was hoping it could be added to my parents fleet insurance with Norwich Union so I could pay a knocked down price, but found out before I went to view it that I couldnt.

I have a Z4 you will love it! It's such good fun to drive and the ride is pretty good. I love it so much were doing a driving holiday next year

Your insurance figures are good, my lack of no claims means I pay £1500!

Great minds think alike! Ive been planning a driving holiday down to Sicily to visit family next summer. I did it as a passenger 2 years ago in dad's Espace. Though driving the Z4 with the roof down through Europe will make it many many many times better.

With regards to Insurance, like I said above was hoping it could be added to fleet, however.. It cant (unless all drivers are over 25). And they also told me that I havent accumulated any no claims bonus, which I was told I would. (not full NCB but that they would be able to get me 1 years for every 2 I did on the fleet, when we took the insurance out)

So Im in the same boat no, Group 19 Z4 with zero NCB
Works out at £1379 now.
Who are you with for your insurance?

 

[mr tommo]

Cool thats a decent price

Unfortunately SatNav and the Carver sound system were necessities for me and finding them was quite difficult.

Enjoy your car, I know I will!

 

[mr tommo]

New model due out early next year! Amazing to think they will drop even more. As long as I still get 5-6 grand in about 2 years times Ill be happy!

 

[mr tommo]

Agreed! Love red leather in cars.

Nice weather? Thats what the heated seats are for

 

[mr tommo]

Where are your pics? Didn't you pick it up today?

Dont Rolleye me bitch!

I ended up picking it up late monday night. Its freaking awesome and I cant stop smiling Apologies for the serious lack of pics so far..Ive been far to busy driving it around.
Gonna get some decent pictures up tomorrow night

 

[mr tommo]

Ok, thanks. What else can they do?

Quite a lot i think. im getting my roof programmed to open with the key and will have a look what else they do. think the company is called autologic if you do a search on z4-forum.com

 

[mr tommo]

Well.. I have a picture, but its awful

Borrowed Camera from work, got in the car and drove off to get some arty photos. Found a nice spot...went to the boot only to realise Id forgot the tripod and the flash wouldnt work


IMAGE REMOVED because it was crap.
Wil have some photos up tomorrow morning (gives me a chance go for an early morning blast ).

Plus i've always wanted a "My New Car" thread so I will get some pictures and have them up on here before work