Exactly. My fiesta st has 200bhp and that weighs 1080kg's :lol: it would quite easily beat a lesser engined Z4. Hell, it would most likely keep up with my 3.0i most of the way also. The 3.0 obviously sounds and feels far better though. Very torquey low down and past 4k rpm it howls, really nice tone to it.
3.0 roadster wanted - but should I look at smaller engines?
- Thread starter retired and cruising
- Start date
ben g said:
with out trying to annoy half the forum my girlfriend laughs when she sees a 2.0/2.5 and says whats the point. Haha
ben g said:
tbh mine has done nothing but blow my mind since day one...due to the low weight as you say its performance is beyond a joke, with some minor tuning most z4s would be easy fodder, they are now, let alone with a remap, also the ST is cleaning up in 99% of the group shoot outs i read , yesterday read new top gear and it killed all of them in its classed, it progressed into the mega hatch category ( 33k+ category) and beat most of them again, they rated better than most of the serious hyper hatches too. These reviews that are constantly banded about have lent to excellent re-sale values but sadly a very much stolen vehicle :-(
on the original question, op go for the 3l its such a peach of a engine !
Rorybeanbutler said:with out trying to annoy half the forum my girlfriend laughs when she sees a 2.0/2.5 and says whats the point. Haha
There is no point in a driver's car which is why the Coupe comes with 265bhp minimum. Lower power is fine for boulevard cruising in a soft top.
Steve84N said:Rorybeanbutler said:with out trying to annoy half the forum my girlfriend laughs when she sees a 2.0/2.5 and says whats the point. Haha
There is no point in a driver's car which is why the Coupe comes with 265bhp minimum. Lower power is fine for boulevard cruising in a soft top.
Z4 is too hard in any configuration to be a boulevard cruiser. Thats why clarkson hated it said its to stiff. Get an mx5 if you just want to potter about. Or Join the exclusive and rare coupe club
I had a Mk1 MX5 for a short time before someone crashed into me and wrote it off. It was supercharged and had an LSD so was plenty 'man' enough for fun to be had. Useless as standard but modified they are ace, chassis strengthening helps a lot too. Followed it with a DC2 Integra Type-R which was good fun. 3.0i BMWs ever since.
Steve84N said:
Integra is cool but jesus an mx5.
Rorybeanbutler said:retired and cruising said:Thanks for all the responses so far. I've never come across such a helpful forum. It must be something about the Z4 that brings out the best in people.
The M is out of the question because I don't want to spend more than £6.5k. I fully appreciate the advice regarding trying them all but even that is proving difficult without travelling a long way from Dorset. There is a newer 3.0 at a dealer very near me which has been mentioned on the forum with hardtop and in an unusual dark metallic green colour, but it's nearly double my budget and I don't feel comfortable about taking a test drive when I have no intention of buying. I wouldn't do it to a private seller either.
A couple more questions arise from the comments so far. Is the faceliift version much different than the earlier version? I'm not bothered by the revised lights and the slightly better protected (?) roof motor, but is there more to it than that? Also, is it just an urban myth that prices fall once summer is over? I'm worried that very few will be up for sale shortly because sellers will wait until next spring.
Many thanks for your help.
The engines are different in the facelift. The 3.0l is 265bhp in the facelift and 220bhp pre facelift i believe.
The pre facelift 3.0 has 231 BHP and it's also lighter 1290kg the facelift 1470kg
The facelift n52 is lighter than the pre facelift m54. Not by much, maybe 15-20kg or so.
The 1470kg number you most likely read in relation to an e89, which is much heavier.
Ontopic: get the most powerful engine you can afford.
If you want an auto, go for a facelift. The facelift 6 speed auto is more modern and better geared than the prefacelift 5 speed auto.
The 1470kg number you most likely read in relation to an e89, which is much heavier.
That was all based on cars fitted with runflat tyres. And they are... rubbish...Rorybeanbutler said:
Ontopic: get the most powerful engine you can afford.
If you want an auto, go for a facelift. The facelift 6 speed auto is more modern and better geared than the prefacelift 5 speed auto.
Towards the end of last year I started looking for a Z4 roadster to buy and set my heart on a pre-facelift 3.0i. I prefer the styling of the early Z4 and it just HAD to have the M54 3.0i 6-cylinder engine. I wanted an early '03-06 car in good condition with low mileage and as much equipment/extras as possible and the cheaper the better as I planned to fit new wheels/tyres, de-ginger it etc. Could I find a car that fulfilled all these criteria?....no chance! Eventually in mid-January I went all the way to Milton Keynes (I live near Wigan !) to look at a 2003 Sterling Grey SE roadster with 53,500 miles, 2 lady owners, fsh, hardtop, heated seats and SMG gearbox (6-speed !). The only drawback was that it was a 2.5i and not a 3 litre. However as soon as I saw the car I was blown away by its condition as it was absolutely immaculate. I have driven BMWs with SMG gearboxes before and I really like them and so following a short test drive I just had to have it ! Shortly after my wife and I drove the car away for the princely sum of £3900....an absolute bargain ! And so 8 months later I have no regrets at all. The 2.5i (192bhp) engine with the 6-speed SMG in the roadster body is very satisfying to drive. It is so smooth, so torquey and quite fast enough.....for me ! I seriously doubt that a similarly equipped 3.0i can be driven point to point across country any faster.
However as you have previously owned TVRs then a 3.0i with its 231bhp and therefore greater power to weight ratio may 'feel' more satisfying to you.
It's definitely a case of 'horses for courses' and I would certainly say its got to be a 6-cylinder and to try before you buy.
However as you have previously owned TVRs then a 3.0i with its 231bhp and therefore greater power to weight ratio may 'feel' more satisfying to you.
It's definitely a case of 'horses for courses' and I would certainly say its got to be a 6-cylinder and to try before you buy.
3.0si!!!
If you can find one within budget then the 265hp 3.0si would be my choice, I have owned the 2.0l and although great fun I always felt it was under powered. The mpg isn't much different, I drive quiet fast and the 2.0 was averaging around 32 mpg the 3.0si around 28 mpg. As others have pointed out on a long steady run you can easily achieve 38 mpg + with the 3.0si.
retired and cruising said:Thanks for all the responses so far. I've never come across such a helpful forum. It must be something about the Z4 that brings out the best in people.
The M is out of the question because I don't want to spend more than £6.5k. I fully appreciate the advice regarding trying them all but even that is proving difficult without travelling a long way from Dorset. There is a newer 3.0 at a dealer very near me which has been mentioned on the forum with hardtop and in an unusual dark metallic green colour, but it's nearly double my budget and I don't feel comfortable about taking a test drive when I have no intention of buying. I wouldn't do it to a private seller either.
A couple more questions arise from the comments so far. Is the faceliift version much different than the earlier version? I'm not bothered by the revised lights and the slightly better protected (?) roof motor, but is there more to it than that? Also, is it just an urban myth that prices fall once summer is over? I'm worried that very few will be up for sale shortly because sellers will wait until next spring.
Many thanks for your help.
Hi, the facelift cars have a totally different engine-they use the n52 engine as opposed to the m54 engine of the earlier cars, it's lighter & more powerful (265hp compared to 230) it was the lightest production 6cyl engine produced due to magnesium castings.
Not as strong as the m54 when it comes to bolt on super chargers etc but in standard form there are no issues.
Regards
south yorkshire
I posted in this thread earlier but it's not come through.I have had my 2.2 since 2007 and will be keeping it forever. It has been a great car and I ran it as a daily driver for 6 years before making my Sun and fun car. When I bought mine the z4 was a relatively new car and as such the price between mine and a 3.0 was large as was insurance as I was only 25 at the time. Now the difference is negligible so the 3.0 seems the no brainier. However I would say that although it's not the fastest my 2.2 never really feels like it is lacking as it handles so well. My advice would be to go for a 6 cyl engine of any variety and buy on condition, history and spec rather than narrowing your search to just a 3.0. The 2.2 and 2.5 were great engines (2.2 was not dropped for a 2.0 as there was always a 2.0 option) any z will make you a happy happy driver. Welcome and good look with the search.
I test drove two E85s (2.5 & 3.0) before I bought an E86 Coupe. The difference in performance is massive in my opinion. The 2.5 felt underwhelming compared to the 3.0. Similar fuel economy and insurance so the bigger engine was an easy decision for me.
Both very good cars but if performance is what you're after then go for the 3.0.
Good luck.
Both very good cars but if performance is what you're after then go for the 3.0.
Good luck.
paddy wright said:
I have had my 2.2 since 2007 and will be keeping it forever. It has been a great car and I ran it as a daily driver for 6 years before making my Sun and fun car. When I bought mine the z4 was a relatively new car and as such the price between mine and a 3.0 was large as was insurance as I was only 25 at the time. Now the difference is negligible so the 3.0 seems the no brainier. However I would say that although it's not the fastest my 2.2 never really feels like it is lacking as it handles so well. My advice would be to go for a 6 cyl engine of any variety and buy on condition, history and spec rather than narrowing your search to just a 3.0. The 2.2 and 2.5 were great engines (2.2 was not dropped for a 2.0 as there was always a 2.0 option) any z will make you a happy happy driver. Welcome and good look with the search.
Just to correct you on the 2.0 / 2.2 engine, where you say it was not dropped for the 2.0
The 2.2 was available only from 2003 to 2005. It was dropped in 2005 for the 2.0, which ran until 2008 There would of course be a few months phase in/out period.
I have some more detail somewhere but in essence the move was to allow a new entry level 4 cylinder and remove the overlap of 3 x 6 cyl engines. in the range.
The 2.5 and 3.0 have been available from launch, albeit change to the new N52 engine design at facelift (2006)
cj10jeeper said:paddy wright said:
I have had my 2.2 since 2007 and will be keeping it forever. It has been a great car and I ran it as a daily driver for 6 years before making my Sun and fun car. When I bought mine the z4 was a relatively new car and as such the price between mine and a 3.0 was large as was insurance as I was only 25 at the time. Now the difference is negligible so the 3.0 seems the no brainier. However I would say that although it's not the fastest my 2.2 never really feels like it is lacking as it handles so well. My advice would be to go for a 6 cyl engine of any variety and buy on condition, history and spec rather than narrowing your search to just a 3.0. The 2.2 and 2.5 were great engines (2.2 was not dropped for a 2.0 as there was always a 2.0 option) any z will make you a happy happy driver. Welcome and good look with the search.
Just to correct you on the 2.0 / 2.2 engine, where you say it was not dropped for the 2.0
The 2.2 was available only from 2003 to 2005. It was dropped in 2005 for the 2.0, which ran until 2008 There would of course be a few months phase in/out period.
I have some more detail somewhere but in essence the move was to allow a new entry level 4 cylinder and remove the overlap of 3 x 6 cyl engines. in the range.
The 2.5 and 3.0 have been available from launch, albeit change to the new N52 engine design at facelift (2006)
I stand corrected Phil!