Barty's Green Z4 Coupé - Not another one…
- Thread starter Barty
- Start date
That interior is absolutely awful but gawwwd damn the green 
:wub:
How could the original buyer have such great taste for external colours but absolutely zero taste with interiors
:wub: How could the original buyer have such great taste for external colours but absolutely zero taste with interiors
It sounded good at the time, but that’s maybe why he/she sold it? :?Flyingfifer said:That interior is absolutely awful but gawwwd damn the green
How could the original buyer have such great taste for external colours but absolutely zero taste with interiors
Flyingfifer said:That interior is absolutely awful but gawwwd damn the green
How could the original buyer have such great taste for external colours but absolutely zero taste with interiors
In a weird way I'm grateful for their lack of taste; it means I can rip it all up without a single shred of guilt and turn it into something new. Couldn't quite do the same with the old one, as the two-tone was lovely as it was.
As for the green... The more I see it, the more I feel this has been the right choice. The depth and diversity of the green just matches the design of the Z4 beautifully, especially the coupe.
Another gratuitous pick purely to show off the colour. Ignore the weird golden antenna; it's seized to the base so a new one is on order together with a BMW sports antenna, and should arrive tomorrow.
Quick swap: new aerial base arrived at the local dealership, so after work I set about removing the hideous gold aerial (which was fused to the base) and swapped it out for an original BMW sports accessory. Not the shortest of stubby, but not a full whip either. Looks a lot better!
Also had a look at the 10-year old (yeah…) tyres. They’re 17 inch runflats with around 3.5-4mm’s left. Not that this matters much given their age… The previous owner had different wheels fitted which he moved to his new car. This set spent almost 10 in storage but will do fine as a winter option. I’ve got a set of virtually new Michelin Alpines in the right size and spec for these which were originally intended for the 118 of my GF. As we’ll be selling that in the next month or so (shorter commute, no need for a diesel), they’ll move over to the Z4 instead
As for summer, there’s a really nice set of CSL reps on order from CMWheels. Not in the regular silver option though… 8)
Also had a look at the 10-year old (yeah…) tyres. They’re 17 inch runflats with around 3.5-4mm’s left. Not that this matters much given their age… The previous owner had different wheels fitted which he moved to his new car. This set spent almost 10 in storage but will do fine as a winter option. I’ve got a set of virtually new Michelin Alpines in the right size and spec for these which were originally intended for the 118 of my GF. As we’ll be selling that in the next month or so (shorter commute, no need for a diesel), they’ll move over to the Z4 instead
As for summer, there’s a really nice set of CSL reps on order from CMWheels. Not in the regular silver option though… 8)
jamie_z4 said:
Getting back to this…
Not hyperblack in the slightest… Plan to do the strut braces (both front and above the engine) in the same colour later this winter.
I’ve also started restoring the exterior and interior, which I’ll dedicate a separate detailing-thread to with a bit more in-depth information on what we did, how we did it and the stuff we’ve used. More on that early November
Finally, a box came in from Germany, containing a bit of kit previously fitted to another Z4 3.0Si. Its owner has moved on to an M2 and sold off a few old Z-goodies. One of which is now mine: an AFe intake with the dry filter 8) To be fitted very soon!
Love those wheels against the green
Vanne said:What’s going on there? Trying to smoke out the vermin?
That green really is starting to grow on me mate, that bronze on the csl wheels? Love the combo…
Can’t wait to see what you tackle next..
Steam cleaning the carpets in the boot to get rid of a slightly persistent “old” smell. Or it may be the old people-friendly wood
Thanks for the compliment!
Loads of stuff planned, but it’s a matter of aligning certain projects so I don’t have to do certain stuff twice
Big job this weekend:
Full detail (separate thread on this later in the detailing section);
AFe intake installation (dry filter);
Replace perished window rubber;
Remove 11(!!) year old runflats for a set of winter boots;
Plenty of small stuff.
In short: a lot of work! Started last Thursday and expect to finish this Sunday. I’ll share before and afters once done, and start a separate thread on the ins and outs of what we’ve done and used during the full detail.
So that didn't go according to plan...
Rather than spending 2.5 days on restoring the Z to its former glory, we decided to push ourselves "a little" and really go for the best result possible. You might think that's what you always do, but every extra percent above 90% perfection requires an increasingly large amount of extra work.
So it didn't take 2.5 days. Instead, we've spent at least 80 hours on the car. Though probably more, if we look at all the small jobs we've done in between. The results are quite spectacular though. A short and definitely non-exhaustive list of what we've done:
- Full decontamination, including the removal of all small exterior items such as indicators, plates, kidneys, etc.
- Fit the AFe stage 2 intake and clean the engine bay. Restore and seal all plastics.
- Sand down the entire passenger door due to a very dull finish and a lot of orange peel. Working from grit 2000 to 3000, followed by a 2-step correction to restore the original shine.
- Remove and polish the wheels, replace the 11 year-old runflats for Michelin Alpin's, coat the wheels in 3 layers of sealant.
- Remove perished window trim. Fitting the new one proved to be a pain, and we've not yet managed. If anyone knows a special trick, please share. We manage the sides just fine, but we can't get the top to seat properly along the roof's edge!
- Sand down over 40 small scratches and blemishes, restore with a 2-step polish.
- 3-step polish of the entire exterior, working with a rotary during the first step to really restore the original texture. Forced excenter second stage and a soft dual action polish finish.
- 2-stage ceramic coat to protect our shiny work!
- Coating of all the windows, basically all but negating the need for wipers above 30 8)
As BMW paint is fairly "hard" compared to say Italians, it takes a fair while to really get the finish we were after. Mind, since it's one of our own cars we like the challenge and dare to push a little further than we would otherwise with a customer's car.
The results? Well, there's been nothing but rain and drizzle since last night, but we've gone out for a few photo's anyway. A full shoot will follow once the weather clears up a bit.
For now, enjoy these somewhat rainy, crappy iPhone pics!
Rather than spending 2.5 days on restoring the Z to its former glory, we decided to push ourselves "a little" and really go for the best result possible. You might think that's what you always do, but every extra percent above 90% perfection requires an increasingly large amount of extra work.
So it didn't take 2.5 days. Instead, we've spent at least 80 hours on the car. Though probably more, if we look at all the small jobs we've done in between. The results are quite spectacular though. A short and definitely non-exhaustive list of what we've done:
- Full decontamination, including the removal of all small exterior items such as indicators, plates, kidneys, etc.
- Fit the AFe stage 2 intake and clean the engine bay. Restore and seal all plastics.
- Sand down the entire passenger door due to a very dull finish and a lot of orange peel. Working from grit 2000 to 3000, followed by a 2-step correction to restore the original shine.
- Remove and polish the wheels, replace the 11 year-old runflats for Michelin Alpin's, coat the wheels in 3 layers of sealant.
- Remove perished window trim. Fitting the new one proved to be a pain, and we've not yet managed. If anyone knows a special trick, please share. We manage the sides just fine, but we can't get the top to seat properly along the roof's edge!
- Sand down over 40 small scratches and blemishes, restore with a 2-step polish.
- 3-step polish of the entire exterior, working with a rotary during the first step to really restore the original texture. Forced excenter second stage and a soft dual action polish finish.
- 2-stage ceramic coat to protect our shiny work!
- Coating of all the windows, basically all but negating the need for wipers above 30 8)
As BMW paint is fairly "hard" compared to say Italians, it takes a fair while to really get the finish we were after. Mind, since it's one of our own cars we like the challenge and dare to push a little further than we would otherwise with a customer's car.
The results? Well, there's been nothing but rain and drizzle since last night, but we've gone out for a few photo's anyway. A full shoot will follow once the weather clears up a bit.
For now, enjoy these somewhat rainy, crappy iPhone pics!
DaveD said:
Thanks! Love the filter so far. Really brings the soundtrack to life when you want it, but otherwise no difference in sound while cruising. So no drone or intrusive loudness under constant throttle. Big perk over the exhaust mods you often see! Responsiveness? Feels a little snappier on the downshifts when blipping the throttle, but no difference in power otherwise. Mind you, everything feels faster because of the noise! I’ll try to record it sometime in the near future, but sound is equally felt and heard :wink:
SofTop said:
Much appreciated, thanks!
Love the Green! Stunning Car. It's nice to see a person with the mind set and talent who is not afraid to jump in and tackle this effort. If I had
just a quarter of the talent folks on this forum have I would be grateful. But then again if we all had the same talent or jobs this world would not be what it is. Maybe someday I will have the courage to tackle some of these large jobs. But for now will continue to read post to educate myself on these cars and attempt what I can. Thanks to all who post to encourage the rest of us to jump in pick up a spanner.!!!! Good luck with the rest of your projects on the list.
just a quarter of the talent folks on this forum have I would be grateful. But then again if we all had the same talent or jobs this world would not be what it is. Maybe someday I will have the courage to tackle some of these large jobs. But for now will continue to read post to educate myself on these cars and attempt what I can. Thanks to all who post to encourage the rest of us to jump in pick up a spanner.!!!! Good luck with the rest of your projects on the list.
North West Surrey
Rotterdam
Really great looking car! Just curious what product did you use for your windscreen?Barty said:
Also, noticed you're in NL and you're a detailer with love for Z4s, what are your rates? Just got myself a 2.5 roadster in Ocarina metallic (beautiful sea green / blueish color) which I think could use a professional clean!