Happy to take feedback one way or t'other and hope you enjoy the read....
I'll start with photos, since everyone enjoys them!
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[/url]I collected my Sept. 2011 registered Z4 from Elms in Cambridge last Saturday; a two owner car (BMW plus one private individual) with 25,862miles on the clock, following a lengthy testdrive and equally lengthy period of considering what was the best thing to do. The car replaces my 2004 1.4i Polo Twist, which although stupidly reliable, cheap, in great condition and perfectly suited to the job of second car and station car, did nothing to fuel my petrolhead desires and left me feeling a bit empty. Although Mrs Spuff has a very nice F25 X3 for family duties and although the 2.0d powerplant is a wonderful mix of performance and economy, it also does nothing to set my pulse on fire.
Enter the Z4. It's stupidly impractical for a family of three. It's a complete waste of money sticking nearly 20k into a car which will do no more than 3-4k p.a. It's far too good to be left in a station or airport car park. But that's missing the point - this car is about livening up what are otherwise tedious, but necessary journeys and for bringing back a little of that excitement of driving and as a reward for working hard.
Collection day - Elms had done a fab job of prepping the car. All the marks on the bodywork (not many, but some could've been problematic) had been removed without trace. SMART repairs really have come on a huge way in the last few years. The wheels and tyres are brand new - I did think initially that they had just refurbed but one look inside the wheel rim confirms they are indeed new.
The car has a fairly sparten spec list, which is unusual for me. Starting with the engine. I'm usually one to go for the biggest non-///M engine I can find - 550i, 535d, 330Ci, xDrive40d etc. But I don't know whether it's a mixture of me growing up, realisation that power doesn't get you anywhere quicker, or whether the Polo, a 118d and owning a motorhome has taught me a valuable lesson that power doesn't necessarily equate to fun. Either way, when I truly reflected on this car, the important thing for me was the sensation and the emotion as much as the engine and performance. I read a lot of reviews prior to pulling the Trigger and although most circled on the 35i and 35is, there were one or two 23i Reviews which mirrored my own feelings; the chassis becomes even more exploitable with the lower powerplants and more fun can be had at "normal" (and dare I say, legal) road speeds.
The car is no slouch - 60mph comes up in a little over 6secs and in all but 6th gear, the slightest nudge of the throttle indicates there is the willingness to shift along. What is different to a lot of cars I've driven recently though is the torque. Having driven turbo diesels for a while, it's easy to get lazy and rely on huge blobs of torque - this car is different; it thrives on revs and not being overly endowed with power or torque, you really need to work it to get the best performance, which is great fun. And when doing so, it's possible not to get into silly speeds, which might otherwise be the case with more potent versions. But as above, speed is only half the story - the sound from this 2.5l straight six is glorious and as much fun can be had from listening to it across the entire rev range. First gear and the overrun are particularly good friends of mine - the pops, burbles and little bangs you can illicit continue to put a smile on my face in a very childish way.
In terms of the spec, when I looked at the spec sheet, it appeared pretty "poverty spec" and I'd be the first to say it. But a good think about what I was really looking for had rational decision making overrule the childish desire for more toys. Being the Highline Edition, I believe this brought satnav & leather, but otherwise the options ticked were left to just:
- Park Distance Control (Front & Rear);
- Auto-dimming interior mirror;
- Rain Sensing Wipers & Auto Headlights; and,
- Heated Seats.
The standard spec includes dual zone climate control and xenons. I have added the all important Wind Deflector which adds the netting between the headrests and also more inside the rollhoops, which results in a very calm cabin, even at an indicated 80mph. Otherwise the things I've missed out on are things like cruise control (ok, so might've been nice, but given I'm mainly on country roads, it would not be used often enough), storage pack (it's unlikely I'll be doing seriously long trips or touring so existing storage is fine for me, audio upgrade (more to this later), folding and Auto dimming exterior mirrors (this is the option I wish I had, but I made my decision on the basis of the overall package, so this was something I decided was ok to pass on).
First impressions as an owner?
Love it. Pure and simple.
The car illicits a smile every time I drive it or even think about driving it. I keep coming up with excuses to pop to the garage and look at it. The shape of it evokes a real sense of pride, excitement and a bit of awe. It's such a beautiful shape; a bit of a squint and it has E-type proportions and curves. It looks so much more expensive than it is! 
I was a bit like a kiddy waiting for Christmas on Sunday night at the thought of driving to LCY Monday morning.When the morning came, I fired the Zed up in the garage (sounded awesome!), pulled it out and dropped the roof. At 5am and 13degs C it felt a strange mixture of stupid and indulgent! But with the heated seats set to postion 2 and the heating fired up to 24degs, I was nice and toasty warm all the way down the A11, M11 and A406 to LCY. Even a few miles through a heavy rain shower, there was no need for the roof - as long as 70mph was held, the rain was kept out of the cabin and only the smallest of drips made their way over the tops of the windows onto my shoulders.
The run was also a good test of the audio system. Given how sublime the engine note is, there has been relatively little reason to listen to anything else so I had been having second thoughts about the AudioFile upgrade; particularly going the whole hog. But even I had to confess that listening to the engine for over an hour was a little boring so I cranked up the stereo. It's ok. I have to say, I'm actually quite impressed at just how ok it is for the base system and in some ways there's little reason to spend the money. But you really do need to crank it up and it feels and sounds a bit weedy, so maybe some additional amplification and decent cones will do it justice. It's not the imperative I thought it would be, so I've just cancelled my booking with AudioFile until I've spent more time in the car and know what it is I'm looking for - if anything at all. Music might be mor of a thing when winter hits and I spend more time with the roof up, but every journey (so long as ist dry) is roof down!
Costs
I had to pay for the Wind Deflector. Scary thing, even at cost price, I was removed of nearly 400quid for supply and fit! But it does make a difference so worth it. Just a shame the original owner didn't think it worthwhile enough to drop 200quid on at the time of ordering.
I have now done well over 200miles. Average fuel consumption is 30.1mpg with the "norm" I reckon settling around 29mpg. Countryside hooning has me around 28mpg, motorway up to around 40mpg and gentle A-road cruising around 33mpg
Considering Beryl (the Polo) did 38mpg, I don't think the fuel penalty is that great for the performance and enjoyment on offer.
I notice that the car is due an Oil Service in 8000miles. Haven't checked on the date stamp for that, but it is doubtful I will hit that in two years, so the date stamp will be important to note and may consider having an Interim done.
So, to do list:
- Aerial upgrade to stubbie - DONE. Thanks to a former owner on BMWLänder for the kind donation of his stubbie, the Zed already has a very nice mod, which really does look good.
[/url]- Private plate needs to come off Beryl and be transferred to the Zed;
- Elms have ordered a set of velour mats for me, which I am waiting upon, so have hedged my bets with a set from Cotswolds;
- I am trying to source a set of front mudguards which Elms & Cotswolds weren't able to source (out of production, I understand). Ideally would like to find some since it would be nice to get some additional protection on there given we live on farm and down a 1/2 mile private road;
- AudioFile upgrade - to be confirmed;
- I will source some white LEDs to update the corona rings, given the current yellow ones date the front end;
- In due course I would like to do the front wing LCI indicator mod, which adds LED indicators and chrome "swoosh". I need to research the right parts on this and how easy it is to fit. I believe it is an easy task.
- A full detail - it's in great condition but could do with a polish and coat of wax. There are some swirls visible, but not that bad.
- Source some winter wheels.
Other than that, I love my car.
Truly.
I can't think of a time since owning my S2000 where I enjoyed driving just for the hell of it, quite as much as over the last few days. I'm currently stuck out in Frankfurt but can't wait to get back to LCY tomorrow evening so that I can drive Zed home.
So, to go back to my original "Mission Statement" for the car - a vehicle which brings fun, excitement and smiles to even the most mundane journey? Has the Zed achieved it? Yes, in spades.
And it's not a bad "Family car" either - my daughter loves it so much that she and I went everywhere together in it at the weekend, whilst Mrs Spuff travelled behind in the X3!
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2009 Z4 3.0 sdrive auto :2016 TTS roadster
