About to buy a 2006 3.0si roadstar

L

londonbmwguy

Member
 London
Hello all

Coming from an E46 M3 and have been looking at purchasing an Z4 3.0si for a while. The Z4M doesn't quite do it for me and the manual box and £500 tax put me off. I did contemplate the coupe however this seems to be a good deal and in nice condition. Plus, if I'm having 2 seats I might as well have the option to take the top off! It's a 2006 with automatic gearbox. I'd imagine it to be quite slower than the SMG in the M3 but I'm looking for more of a relaxed drive if I'm honest and more sensible bills when things go wrong/

Any weak areas on these to check? Should be going to have a look about 3pm tomorrow so appreciate any quick replies as if it's good I'll drive it home! What are the desirable options? The one I'm looking at is an SE and not a sport, a bummer as I love the sports seats but I think I prefer the SE suspension (especially on central London roads!).

Any advice would be appreciated. This one has the 265bhp engine with silver top.

Kind regards

Bill
 
Welcome Bill

Listen out for a tappy engine when cold. If it's quite loud then goes when the car is warm it's likely to be the HVA's.

Also rear springs are a known issue. You probably won't be able to tell from a seat drive though.

Finally check the roof a few times to make sure the motor is ok.

Pretty reliable fun cars so if it's been looked after you shouldn't have much trouble.

Desirable options? For me that would be Heated Seats, Nav, Cruise and Parking Sensors.
 
Cheers bud! Very helpful. Let's hope it checks out tomorrow.

I'll get some pics up if I buy it :) Can't believe cruise is an option on these :o

Kind regards

Bill
 
AlanJ's buyers' guide is handy. Print off a copy and use it as a notepad when you look at the car. :)

Agree with DPG's post on the list of things that should be a specific concern for the Z4 E85 (although the HVA issue only affects post-2006, "facelift" models, like this 3.0si you're looking at).

DPG said:
Listen out for a tappy engine when cold. If it's quite loud then goes when the car is warm it's likely to be the HVA's.

Also rear springs are a known issue. You probably won't be able to tell from a seat drive though.

Finally check the roof a few times to make sure the motor is ok.
Click to expand...

They are really hard issues to gauge until you've seen a few examples! :?

If the roof doesn't close or retract smoothly in under 10 seconds (button press to roof latched in place) then you are probably looking at an expensive motor replacement/refurb in the next year. The motors start to die when they get submerged due to blocked drains. Similarly with the springs - any clunking under compression, uneven wheel arch gaps or strange handling characteristics could point to a breakage, although these often go undetected until MOT time.

The HVA (hydraulic valve lifter) noise is characteristic of Z4s with the N52 engine and there is some debate as to whether it's actually a problem worth worrying about or not. I don't think there are any documented cases of engine failure relating to it - someone will hopefully correct me if I'm wrong - but it can sound very unnerving and you should be wary if the engine has a metallic tapping noise that does not disappear after a test drive (say 15 mins+ of spirited driving, to pluck a figure out of my ar$e!).

Don't let any of this put you off though. They are awesome cars and are very reliable in the grand scheme of things. Good luck with your search! :D
 
Have you bought the 3.0si? Don't confuse the tapping from the fuel injectors as the HVA noise. When you lift the bonnet you will hear what sounds like the noise from the keyboard of my laptop - that kind of noise is ok.

The auto with the si engine is said to be a good combination.

Let us know how you get on?

:driving: :thumbsup:
 
paulgs1000 said:
Have you bought the 3.0si? Don't confuse the tapping from the fuel injectors as the HVA noise. When you lift the bonnet you will hear what sounds like the noise from the keyboard of my laptop - that kind of noise is ok.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's a good point. The injector noise is a very fast patter. The HVA "tapping" is a slower, knocking sound - about the same speed as the rhythm guitar in Johnny B. Goode.

[youtube]ZFo8-JqzSCM[/youtube]

11tx4l4.jpg


:thumbsup:
 
Morning gents. Thanks for the advice, didn't expect such a quick response - loving this forum already!

The car is about 2 hours from me so will be leaving about 1pm. Good to hear the si plus auto box is a good combo. Unfortunately quite a lot of my driving is in traffic so manual was out the question.

I did have an SLK 55 after the M3 but the build quality was poor and the roof would rattle 99% of the time! Very annoying so it went back to the dealer. Always liked bmw from the inside and loved the format of the Z4. Very nearly bought a Z3 2.8 a few years back but ended up with a 328i sport. Let's hope this is my chance to own a Z car at the age of 25!

I'll update this tonight with my findings and whether the car came home with me.

Kind regards

Bill
 
Regarding the HVA's, I would not touch a zed if the tapping does not stop within a few seconds. There is no way on this earth that damage is not caused by this issues. You cannot smack two bits of metal together and not expect damage.
 
Evening all! Right, so I bought the car. It's practically brand new but with 3,500 on the clock I wouldn't expect any less. The engine is super smooth and the gearbox is seamless. No noises at all. Hardtop fits snug but slight windnoise on drivers side - thoughts? It's had 1 owner from brand new!

Anyways it even had 4 stamps at BMW which I checked. In terms of options it comes with electric heated memory seats, sat nav, cruise, extended leather all over the doors, DSP sound system, folding wing mirrors, steering controls, hard top, car cover from BMW, wind diffuser etc etc. It really is stunning. Finished in Phoenix Yellow which I adore :D

Here are two photos to keep you going - one thing I do hate are the tyres, I think they are RF's - any experience with these? They tramline quite badly...

IMAG0427_zpsspgvtj0y.jpg
IMAG0429_zpsg0eummsy.jpg

Opinions welcome - looking forward to becoming a long term member on here!

Cheers,

Bill
 
Nice. Has it got extended leather too ? Looks like it from the doors.
 
Congratulations Bill

Great car and spec :thumbsup:

Next job change those Bridgestone runflats.

I've got Pirelli RFT's and they are night and day better than the Bridgestone.

If you go non runflat then remember to buy a mobility kit.
 
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