Z4/M Owners Thread

Psycho Sonny · 22 Jul 2017 at 18:39

ultralaser said:
Test drove a few today I think the 2.0i felt a little underpowered. Still a little surprised at the expense of more modern Z4's (13k for a 2009 23i with 35k on the clock seemed expensive!)

the 2 litre is a waste of time. there is a reason why they are so cheap. buy cheap - buy twice

grudas · 22 Jul 2017 at 18:42

[TW]Fox said:
Because the coupe defeats the object of a Z4 and gives you most of the downsides without the major advantage.

pfth! what do you know

because £6k is decent 3.0 roady territory

£6k will not get you decent coupe.

ultralaser · 22 Jul 2017 at 19:34

[TW]Fox said:
Because the coupe defeats the object of a Z4 and gives you most of the downsides without the major advantage.

5k or so buys as nice an example as you can hope to find if you want a pre facelift, bearing in mind these are seriously old cars now. Never buy from the bottom of a market especially not a performance car.

If finding an extra 2k isn't an issue then it's a sensible move. If it is an issue then playing with old performance cars is probably a silly idea anyway.

I just think the Coupe looks about 10x better than the roadster (IMO it's one of the best looking cars of recent times, no surprise it's getting flagged as a future classic), and as grudas points out if I was to buy a Coupe I'd be talking much more money. I think the issue for me is at the 2.5-3k.5 range I could see a Z4 as just a punt on something shiny to mess with mess for a year (that price range is about what I'd spend on a half decent lease for a year anyhow), where as at 5k+ I wouldn't be so happy if it went balls up after 6 months. I guess my brain sees things as:
1 < 3.5k : Disposable car, not worried about it lasting.
3.5 < 8K : Want it to last a few (2-3) years and probably would want some sort of resale possibility
8k < 15k : Want it to last ~4-5 years and definitely want some sort of resale possibility.

Defo still mulling over the options, but at north of 4K it becomes less a toy and something I have to think more about...

9designs2 · 22 Jul 2017 at 19:35

I sold my pre face lift 3.0 Auto recently with 89k on the clock. Was in lovely honest condition and was no trouble. It went for 4.8k... there were others asking more than me and some cheaper, which looked a bit tired. So I would budget on 4-5k for a pre face lift.
Don't buy a high mileage 5 speed auto, I was advise they only good for around 100k, manual or 6 speed auto is okay.

If it doesn't have a straight six then don't bother, buy an MX5
Facelift bank on over 7k for a 3 litre.

grudas · 22 Jul 2017 at 20:01

dirty zed at the shopping centre today..

hurfdurf · 23 Jul 2017 at 17:38

I have had a 07 Z4M for 3 years now, before it I had MX5's in some guise or other for a good 10 years.

I definitely got spoilt rotten handling wise with the MX5's, especially the last one I had for 6 years with upgraded suspension and lightened everything.

I love my Z4M's engine, I love the looks and the interior, I cannot get on with the handling how ever. I have swapped the tyres for Pilot Sports as needed and it has improved slightly, but on the latest early morning hoon out it really cemented in me that whilst the car is fast, and handles well, its version of handling is not for me. It is a car that likes brute force, not a scalpel like my old cars, and for the kind of road driving I do, getting the back end out and forcing yourself round corners is not fun on British roads, never mind how crashy over bumps it is.

I don't want to change it for a lot of reasons, its a really good example and its options are great, but I think I am going to have to unless someone can suggest to me some handling mods that might improve things? I am thinking of changing to a Boxster S of the same age or maybe slightly newer, which from what little test driving I have done and all the user and journalist reviews have said, is much more my kind of car.

Pic of yesterdays morning drive out group just because.

grudas · 23 Jul 2017 at 18:09

why dont you drop a kw3 suspension in it, get a proper geo done and see how that goes?

Invertigo · 23 Jul 2017 at 18:31

Removed the side badges today when giving it a clean, think it looks much neater without a 3.0i badge whacked on the wing!

grudas · 23 Jul 2017 at 18:41

Invertigo said:
Removed the side badges today when giving it a clean, think it looks much neater without a 3.0i badge whacked on the wing!

I debadged mine completely.. including the rear z4 badge xD didnt like them at all.

Invertigo · 23 Jul 2017 at 19:56

For the coupe, sure. With the roadster though, the Z4 badge sort of offsets the key slot for the boot. As this is hidden on the coupe it isn't an issue.

The sides look an awful lot cleaner, although those panels do need a proper polish now to get rid of the outline. It's very faint but I can still see it if I look closely, so not good enough

ultralaser · 26 Jul 2017 at 19:46

After flirting with the idea of a Z4, ultimately I listened to my head and not my heart and bought something more sensible

9designs2 · 26 Jul 2017 at 21:31

A Z4 is sensible, assuming you only have one passenger.
What did you get ?

Psycho Sonny · 27 Jul 2017 at 12:44

9designs2 said:
I sold my pre face lift 3.0 Auto recently with 89k on the clock. Was in lovely honest condition and was no trouble. It went for 4.8k... there were others asking more than me and some cheaper, which looked a bit tired. So I would budget on 4-5k for a pre face lift.
Don't buy a high mileage 5 speed auto, I was advise they only good for around 100k, manual or 6 speed auto is okay.

If it doesn't have a straight six then don't bother, buy an MX5
Facelift bank on over 7k for a 3 litre.

that's funny. a auto box specialist who repairs them day in day out said that the 4 speed and 5 speed torque converters are the most reliable of that era on z4 forums.

Uncle_Gravy · 27 Jul 2017 at 14:29

Would it be worth sending my front bumper off to be repaired or source one that's in excellent/new? If the latter what would I be looking pricewise for a complete facelift bumper in Sterling Grey?

The facelift bumper on mine is in terrible condition now after a family member decided to reverse the rear of an Accord into the front of my car, Was only a 3-4mph bump but was enough to cause a nice crack around the centre of the nose cone which now has the paint flaking off, and the usual stone chips and small chunks missing on the bottom of the bumper.

Also anyone used Mr Vanos on their M54 engines? Not sure if my Vanos has ever been touched so thought it be a good idea to get mine sorted with the better seals and stuff they use, Wondering if anyone had this done by them and what was the general cost?

Cheers.

Usel · 27 Jul 2017 at 14:45

Uncle_Gravy said:
Also anyone used Mr Vanos on their M54 engines? Not sure if my Vanos has ever been touched so thought it be a good idea to get mine sorted with the better seals and stuff they use, Wondering if anyone had this done by them and what was the general cost?

Cheers.

Are removing the vanos yourself? If you are then thats the hardest part and you may as well change the seals yourself.
If you are travelling to them to do the whole job then its around £500.
Ducklakeview on Z4 forums does it for around £250 but you would have to travel to Merseyside.

Uncle_Gravy · 27 Jul 2017 at 14:55

It'll all be in their hands, Only recently changed my first ever spark plugs and coils on a car, so definitely won't be tackling that job

Does Duck do the same job as Mr Vanos but at half the price?

Usel · 27 Jul 2017 at 15:03

Uncle_Gravy said:
It'll all be in their hands, Only recently changed my first ever spark plugs and coils on a car, so definitely won't be tackling that job

Does Duck do the same job as Mr Vanos but at half the price?

Yes he does. He did a how to on the forums will see if I can find it.

http://www.z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=97381&hilit=vanos

Uncle_Gravy · 27 Jul 2017 at 15:21

Cheers, £250 sounds a lot better than £500

It's more of a preventative, and also I'm not sure if it's in my head but low end grunt for me doesn't feel as impressive as it did when I first had the car two years ago, and I'm sure I can feel a surge of power as I get past the 2.5-3k rpm mark.

The DISA Rebuild kit is still on my list of things to do, Suspension stuff can be removed with the MOT only coming back with a worn inner tie rod which has now been replaced with a Lemforder part.

Edit

At 102k Mileage reckon it'll be worth just replacing the DISA valve altogether? I have no history showing it's ever been changed during its life and some posts on forums seem to suggest it'll be worth replacing after 80/90k

Usel · 27 Jul 2017 at 15:54

Found the thread where he talks prices for the vanos = http://www.z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=98075&hilit=vanos

Psycho Sonny · 27 Jul 2017 at 16:13

Uncle_Gravy said:
Cheers, £250 sounds a lot better than £500 It's more of a preventative, and also I'm not sure if it's in my head but low end grunt for me doesn't feel as impressive as it did when I first had the car two years ago, and I'm sure I can feel a surge of power as I get past the 2.5-3k rpm mark.

The DISA Rebuild kit is still on my list of things to do, Suspension stuff can be removed with the MOT only coming back with a worn inner tie rod which has now been replaced with a Lemforder part.

Edit

At 102k Mileage reckon it'll be worth just replacing the DISA valve altogether? I have no history showing it's ever been changed during its life and some posts on forums seem to suggest it'll be worth replacing after 80/90k

i have 2 spare disa valves atm. one original used. the other brand new third party OEM. i don't know why i bought 2 tbh. i could sell you one of them but i cannot even remember what i paid for them.

there are 2 parts which can fail on the valve. i upgraded mine so i'm pretty intimate with them and it's a simple DIY job. in fact out of the 3 jobs i've done personally on the car this was 1 of them. the other being 3rd brake light and the third i'll be attempting soon is the headlight back cover re-seal to stop moisture getting in.

the first is the flap itself. this is made of plastic. on some cars with use and wear and tear the plastic can become brittle and break. the flap rips off and goes into the engine destroying it. you can replace the flap with a metal upgraded kit. rough cost of the kit is £50 iirc.

the flap appeared absolutely fine on mine but i replaced it anyway as i had bought the kit plus you never know how long it would last. the upgrade kit is solid and should never break. albeit it would be heavier and put more strain on the vacuum pump.

the second part to the disa valve is the vacuum pump this helps hold the flap at the right angle. iirc the correct way to test it is. move the flap. press down on the pump and it should go to half way and then stop. if it continues all the way round then it's defective. i watched a few youtube videos but beware 1 of the YouTube videos out there is actually wrong. he says the valve is fine if it slowly returns back to normal. that is incorrect it should stop at the halfway mark iirc.

i tested the used flap and it works fine. iirc the engine it came out of had only done 40k miles. was a write off. the new flaps aren't original and made in some eastern european country. also beware flaps differ depending on the engine. both flaps i have are for the 3 litre only. the smaller engined cars use a smaller disa valve which is thinner.