E85 2.0 M sport thinking of going to a E85 Z4MR

[PDJ]

Ok spending a bit of time thinking about this well probably too much time thinking and looking (on the internet)

So this is the story so far I bought a 2.0 Z4 m sport 8 months ago and like it a lot but it lacks the out and out kick that I have had in the past, and i am not sure I would go back to the raw road legal race car that my Westfield was, 255bhp and 510kgs fuelled with a full cage.

So looking at the prices of a Z4MR and they are falling into the price I am prepared/have to spend (pockets are not a deep as some peoples) but I spend a lot of my money on cycling I have a fleet of Pinarello bikes. To this end I am torn between just keeping the 2.0 and enjoying the drive and spend some money on it, like doing the jobs that may need to be done before they actually need to be done i.e. it looks like it is on original shocks at 93,000 miles had a strut fail at around 98,000 on my 1 series coupe (daily drive)

The questions are is the M worth the money over say a 3.0 or even the 2.0 in the driving experience, ignoring some of the the lack of kick/speed, there comes a point on the public highway that the extra power is not appropriate and I would not want to track day a Z4

What are the extra cost in maintenance I know that some or most of the M parts carry an extra cost but is there anything that is high cost that a competent maintenance technician/fitter cannot do at home, I built my Westfield from a space frame chassis and built two engines the first a Zetec and the second a Duratec that was the 255 bhp one also fitted a sequential dog box.

Is there a big difference in tyre wear and cost, depends on how it is driven, but in general use.

Fuel and running cost differences is there a big difference, I would like to be able to drive it rather that thinking best take the 120d because the fuel will be half the cost as I like to drive the Z4 as much as I can in the summer, it is SORNed for the winter so in a way the costs are halved.

Maybe the thoughts in my head will just pass or I will end up with something else.......

[Zoomer]

I’ve thought hard about moving up to a M today from my 3.0 today and to be honest I find it hard to justify myself as tax is £500 + a year , insurance is more and you brakes and rotors are a lot more. The engine needs shins and a few of the guys recon that if it’s got miles on it then you also need to look at engine bearings to be safe. So I’ve kept my 3.0 . My father in law moved from a 2.0 to the 3.0 though and thought it very worthwhile

[PDJ]

The cam shaft shims are not too big a job just time consuming form the instructions I have seen on the web, the Ford Duratec shims are the tappet bucket it's self so you have to remove the cam shaft to change the shim/bucket now that is a pain.

Engine bearings or big end shells and main shell bearings can't be too hard sump off main caps off (Duratec was a ladder rack frame for the mains) and then into the bog end bearings and new con rod bolts and torqued up and or stretched and measured depending on the bolt instructions

Tax may hurt a bit

Insurance did an online car change/quote and was not much more

Still only thoughts......

[Mr Tidy]

Interesting dilemma!

I just had to buy a Coupe, so my only choices were 3.0Si or M. I toyed with the idea of an M, but as M's tend to be about twice the price that would have blown my preferred budget, so 3.0Si it was and I still love it 4+ years later.

The M uses the S54 engine (as fitted to the E46 M3) which by all accounts is rather special, but the N52 in the 3.0Si is pretty good too - and it still revs to 7,000.

Quoted power outputs are 265 bhp for the 3.0Si and 343 bhp for the M. Quoted 0-62 times are 5.7 seconds (3.0Si) and 4.9 seconds (M). Both are limited to 155 mph.

Other notable differences are that the M has hydraulic PAS instead of electric, an M diff instead of an open one and comes on non-runflat tyres. But many on here prefer using non-RFTs on any model. It may not matter to you, but the M has a smaller boot because the battery is in it due to the 2 extra tailpipes.

As for running costs one you will notice is road tax - 3.0Si is Band K but M is Band M. So a 3.0Si is going to be more economical - mine is only ever used outside of rush hours and primarily on A-roads or motorways and is showing 33.6 mpg average on the OBC.

Servicing will cost more for an M as parts are generally subject to the "M-tax", and they don't have hydraulic valve lifters so routinely need clearances checked and adjusted with shims. And from what I've read they often suffer from scored bearing shells so changing them as a preventative measure anytime after 100K miles seems to be what most owners do.

Anyway my thinking is I've got 80% of the car for 50% of the cost.

Hopefully someone who has owned both may be able to offer a bit more insight, but you could always try a 3.0Si and then decide if you really want more.

Good luck whatever you decide to go for.

[jampudding]

I would do the move if the M's came in auto. I find the 3.0 (M54) good enough (as an auto). I was thinking of installing a super charger. However, I think I would rather spend the money trying to improve the Sat Nav situation.

[buzyg]

Just do it. You only live once. The engine is a absolute peace. The rest ain't too shabby either and as the basics are all in the right place can be made even better.

[PDJ]

Interesting ref the boot size asI go to cycle races with the Z4 and bike in the boot

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[Mr Tidy]

Interesting ref the boot size asI go to cycle races with the Z4 and bike in the boot

That may be a problem with your bike frame - I found this photo of an M boot on Google.

[PDJ]

As i have to remove the seat post but not the handle bars to get the frame and 3 wheels in the boot the rest goes on the passenger seat it may just go in

[Sgr74]

Without doing the sums, if I had the disposable income to buy the M, I would. No hesitation. It is a dream car. It may throw up a problem or two somewhere along the line, which performance car doesn’t? Enjoy the good, deal with the bad and enjoy.

[Trav]

Seems it's more of a budget issue than a car issue. Having owned a Westfield the OP will know what excitement they are trying to regain. I don't hear anyone worrying about the 3.0 resale values plummeting on here. Why not get a decent 3.0, give it a go? If it doesn't work out there is no massive losses. If any losses depending on mileage you put on it. If you get the M then don't maintain it properly, you will want to sell it. But it will be a hard sell.

[Jembo]

Having owned a daily 3.0, the M is all about the experience

- 0-40, not much difference... beyond, those extra ponies suck into the speedometer very quickly, far more than the 3.0
- brakes: some say are overservoed. I like them as the heavier CSL spec bite makes for more effortless braking
- steering: it’s hydrolic, not electric... makes a huge difference, where the M Coupe uses the CSL rack
- reliability: we’re talking about a normally aspirated 340 ponies from a 3.2 litre. I cannot name any other exotica that is capable of so many miles yet after about 80-100k you should undertake ‘preventative maintenance’...

Then there’s the noise, where coupled with a Gruppe sounds like a Gatling gun on full chaff... highly intoxicating

So, if it’s a 2nd car it’s a no brainier, for a daily driver will certainly work out more expensive than a 3.0... your call there. This era of petrol heaven is coming to an end, your choice whether to grab a piece of motoring history...

[greg81]

. This era of petrol heaven is coming to an end, your choice whether to grab a piece of motoring history...

Didn't Jeremy Clarkson say something similar in an Aston Martin about 10 years ago?

[Jembo]

. This era of petrol heaven is coming to an end, your choice whether to grab a piece of motoring history...

Didn't Jeremy Clarkson say something similar in an Aston Martin about 10 years ago?

... & it has started to come true.

- LEZ’s
- London ULEZ
- all cars entering certain zones in France must display an emission sticker
- many cars built before 2005 are banned in German cities
- no new sales of petrol or diesel cars from a certain year, where I thought date for Holland is 2025

It’s coming... no doubt about that

[ph001]

I have the N52 and S54 (albeit in the M3), to be honest up to about 5000rpm there isn’t a great deal in it performance wise but the M3 kills it after that, but the N52 is smoother and more refined. Throttle response is superb on both engines. I don’t really miss the S54 much when out in the Z, the Z feels more special to me but the M3 is quite superior dynamically.