£1000 o Modify the Z!!! What would you choose?

[AP4984]

My limits £1000 or maybe £1500 tops! The best part of $3000 dollars for all you Western members on here!

I just have no idea what to do with the cash. It isn't enought to upgrade to a 3.0 so I'm going to have to think carefully about what I do with the cash as I'm under no illusion it will stretch far.

I know many of you agree with many mods you've completed but I may not get an opportunity to keep improving the vehicle after this amount is spent so I'm going to have to spend it wisely as they'll prob be no adding in the next 12 months due to other investments!

My thinking is an Eibach kit (as its not a lowered sport model), an exhaust upgrade, new front bumper or whole body kit, ipod kit for the 2000 miles i do a month, an engine tune to 211 bhp, a set of 19"'s and the list goes on. With so many of you having made great improvements I guesses you'd be best to judge on what you'd choose first if you were in the same situation.

I'd love to know what you all recommend.

Cheers

AJ

 

[Wondermike]

I would get an exhaust backbox, the Eibach kit, the ipod kit, and get your wheels refurbed in dark grey or black

 

[AP4984]

Milltek back box £450 plus fitting, Eibach kit around £250 fitted, ipod I wouldn't know where to start - say £200 leaving £100 - £600 for rims.

Good suggestions

 

[AP4984]

Would you still recommend the exhaust backbox for someone that can spend some days on the motorway for 8-9 hours? Deos the noise get to much after long journeys?

If anyone in the South East / London knows a reputable company to complete ipod installs that'd be a great help. From experience I've come to accept that some things are better left to someone else - :?

 

[cj10jeeper]

£1000 to £1500 won't really get much done on a Zed.
I'd ask a series of questions before making any suggestions:

What do you want to achieve? cosmetic (front end, wheel refurbs. etc.) performance (suspension) long distance driver comfort or reduction!! (exhaust and iPod) they are to some extent contrary.

Will you do the work yourself or pay someone? Picking up a front end on Ebay (£100), getting it resprayed (£150) lights (£180) does it all for say £450. Supplied and fitted by a shop that's your budget gone.

 

[AP4984]

I'm split at the moment but I'm swaying towards cosmetic as what you said is right, it won't go far. Certainly not enough for making cosmetic and performance upgrades together.

I have no experience what so ever with doing things like this myself so for example switching the front end and the lights is something that goes over and beyond my head. A pity as I'd splash the cash now if there was a way of doing that for under £600-£650 but the likelyhood is the labour will amount to more than that.

Does the supsension really alter the comfort of a long drive that much then? My thinking was motorways aren't bad roads surface wise so I'd be fine.

 

[gannet]

I'm split at the moment but I'm swaying towards cosmetic as what you said is right, it won't go far. Certainly not enough for making cosmetic and performance upgrades together.

I have no experience what so ever with doing things like this myself so for example switching the front end and the lights is something that goes over and beyond my head. A pity as I'd splash the cash now if there was a way of doing that for under £600-£650 but the likelyhood is the labour will amount to more than that.

Does the supsension really alter the comfort of a long drive that much then? My thinking was motorways aren't bad roads surface wise so I'd be fine.

Not all motorways are super smooth - M42 concrete section just before the M40 & M5 a case in point - I find my car really doesn't like that surface and I wouldn't want anything harder. Just my opinion of course

 

[GerryM]

Custom Quad exhaust pipes? (with a lovely rear CF diffusor)

 

[pvr]

Allow half of your budget for the insurance premiums hikes ...

 

[AP4984]

Custom Quad exhaust pipes? (with a lovely rear CF diffusor)

A good idea but it wouldn't look right with the standard front and the whole kit is around £1800.

 

[spokey]

Strut Brace, Chip, Eibach kit, iPod kit. Back box if you really must.

 

[cj10jeeper]

I'm split at the moment but I'm swaying towards cosmetic as what you said is right, it won't go far. Certainly not enough for making cosmetic and performance upgrades together.

That's for sure

I have no experience what so ever with doing things like this myself so for example switching the front end and the lights is something that goes over and beyond my head. A pity as I'd splash the cash now if there was a way of doing that for under £600-£650 but the likelyhood is the labour will amount to more than that.

Off the top of my head a paid for complete front end change inc lights could run to £3k alone

Say £750 for each Xenon headlight on top of a supply, fit and spray front end plus fog lights say £1500.

Does the supsension really alter the comfort of a long drive that much then? My thinking was motorways aren't bad roads surface wise so I'd be fine.

IMHO any suspension change degrades the comfort. Most are done to lower, stiffen or alter some of the key geometry angles, with the hope being to increase usually cornering performance with some or a lot of sacrifice to ride quality. Manufacturers spend £mm's getting it right only for amateurs to bolt a few bits on. People who know what they are doing can get great results but as part of an expensive overall strategy. Changing from runflats will probably (based on others reports) give good returns in performance and improved ride

 

[Street]

I'd be thinking about the resale value and opportunities now..

2000 miles a month (whilst fun) will hit your residual as it is.
Upgrading suspension, back boxes etc puts it into an even more niche market possibly making it a little harder to sell.

Most cosmetic mods however can be reversed..
You can style the car to your taste, reverse it to maximise the chance of selling your car, and sell on your mods to other Z owners and recoupe some of your initial outlay. (Or transplant them onto your next Z.. the 3.0 litre one!)

 

[bigshurv]

Street, you are far too sensible. Are you sure you've got a Zed?. I'd go stereo upgrade ( only got the std jobbie), performance chip and exhaust. Lovely.

 

[kal]

can i fit eibach pro system plus kit on my Z ?!
i looked around but couldn't found any place that sell them for Z4 !!
i'm planing on installing an ESS super, one guy told me to install a stroker kit, do i need that or it's ok to install just the super ?!

what is a stroker kit or what does it do ?!
he told me to install it so that my engine won't break if i install the super.
i have 3.0i 2003.

 

[Memo]

Stroker kit for M54 engine? Never heard of it? Please give more details. I haven't even seen forged bottom ends for new bimmers.

Since english is my second language I will use a direct copy paste from Wikipedia forthe definition of stroker.

"A Stroker kit is an aftermarket assembly that increases the displacement of a reciprocating engine by increasing the travel of the piston (that is, the piston moves further up and/or down in the cylinder). This is done by using a different crankshaft where the crank pin is moved further away from the center of the axis of rotation of the crankshaft. While this increases displacement and torque it can potentially lower the limit to which the motor can rev safely compared to the stock configuration."