Best time to buy?

[Ninarvana]

Scouring the likes of Autotrader etc on a daily basis and whilst yes it is a rare car and I'm looking for a low mileage black example MC, they are certainly few and far between if in fact non existent so my question is, due to it being a fast, rear wheel drive car, would you suggest that coming out of winter as opposed to heading into it is more likely to see a better surge of cars for sale? That suits me better if more likely but just wondered if I'm likely to have more luck then even though it's not a convertible.

-N.

 

[Stuart Truman]

All I can suggest is keep looking, they come up occasionally but there aren't huge numbers of them. I don't think they are as seasonal a sale item as a roadster.

 

[Stuart Truman]

You need to be sending a PM to Spud right now!

http://www.z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=53586

 

[Ninarvana]

You need to be sending a PM to Spud right now!

http://www.z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=53586

Thank you for the link however I'm looking for one that's done under the 25k ballpark

 

[Spud]

These cars are 5-7 years old in the main - not many have done under 25k!

Admittedly mine isn't what you're looking for, but it's going to the trade at 4pm tomorrow

 

[Talksthetorque]

The best time to buy with such a limited mileage is when one turns up. They will be few and far between. Are you still set on a light interior? if so your wait may be even longer.

 

[Merrsh1]

I'd realign your expectations or prepare to pay a premium. The only 2 I can see under 25k miles are both £18k+

unless you plan to keep it for a long time then I'd buy on condition - not mileage.

Mine is under 25k and I think there are one or two on here, like others have said that's very low mileage on a 5 year old car. There is a black one on the pistonheads m power forum that has 8k on it but I don't think it's for sale. Ask on there if anyone is thinking of selling but as I said brace for a wallet bashing if mileage is your main requirement.

As Stuart said they are so rare the seasons ain't a factor.

Good luck.

 

[StevenH72]

Mine, is a 2007 MC in carbon black and has just ticked over to 26.5k mileage....that's pretty damn low, not sure you'll find many around with less than 25k.

I also wanted low mileage, but i'd set your targets at <40k, that's still less approx 6k per year.

If you're after such a low mileage car what is your budget?

 

[StevenH72]

Just realised that I didnt answer the question in OP. I was looking (casually) for around 18 months before buying. In my experience there wasn't necesarily a time of year when car became available more readily.

The cars tend to get sold due to house moves or new family additions (baby) and as such don't tend to follow calendar trends.

That said, I'd imagine that leading up to xmas and entering summer will be slightly busier times.

 

[Hadies]

Sorry to tread on your thread toes ninarvana but is this the case with the normal coupes?
I'm in the market for a Z4C and I'm wondering whether the prices will drop over the winter.

 

[StevenH72]

Sorry to tread on your thread toes ninarvana but is this the case with the normal coupes?
I'm in the market for a Z4C and I'm wondering whether the prices will drop over the winter.

They might drop slightly, but I've never noticed any discernible seasonal price changes. If you see the right car at the right price get it

 

[Hadies]

Bonus. Means I don't have to wait now. Thanks Steven. The search continues!

 

[Stuart Truman]

I know of a tip top low mileage Coupe (non M) that is for sale. It belongs to a friend and once he's got all the details over I'll post it on here.

Sapphire black, very low mileage, most of the desirable toys. The owner bought what might have been the last M3 off the production line before the new ones start.

 

[Ninarvana]

The MR I just test drove only had 14000 miles on the clock (shame it wasnt an MC) so they certainly do exist, it's just a case of finding one... Time scale doesn't bother me at this point and I am planning to keep the car for as long as possible so depending on the premium (not Hexagon prices however) yes if the car is right then that's what it shall be. I'm no longer bothered about interior as I would eventually like to do a custom retrim, I was disappointed with the champagne in person and felt the black looked better.

-N

 

[Zeld4]

Why are you limiting your self so much with colour and mileage?? If you really want a Z4MC then you would need a number of colours that you are interested in surely?And if you are searching autotrader and have the search settings to colour black and under 25k miles then no wonder nothing is coming up in your search! It's a rare cars you know.

Z4MC's are the bargain performance car of the moment, and you aren't going to save much on a black Z4MC with 25k on the clock just because it is February.

I would say the best time to buy is when you find a great car with good service history and a good warranty.

If your main criteria is that it's black and has a very low mileage then I think you will come a cropper because you won't be subjective about the quality of the car. There will never be a surge in black MC's because there simply was not enough built.

Are you buying this car as an investment to lock in a garage for 30 years or to use?

 

[Ninarvana]

Why are you limiting your self so much with colour and mileage?? If you really want a Z4MC then you would need a number of colours that you are interested in surely?And if you are searching autotrader and have the search settings to colour black and under 25k miles then no wonder nothing is coming up in your search! It's a rare cars you know.

Z4MC's are the bargain performance car of the moment, and you aren't going to save much on a black Z4MC with 25k on the clock just because it is February.

I would say the best time to buy is when you find a great car with good service history and a good warranty.

If your main criteria is that it's black and has a very low mileage then I think you will come a cropper because you won't be subjective about the quality of the car. There will never be a surge in black MC's because there simply was not enough built.

Are you buying this car as an investment to lock in a garage for 30 years or to use?

I don't see why I should have a wide net of colours on my list... For a start the M wasn't produced in a bucket full of colours anyway and I happen to prefer black so why not?

I do resent your criticism slightly, my top priority is condition and service history, cars are a passion of mine and I research thoroughly what I'm looking for in order to make an informed decision.

I certainly plan on driving the car as I do my own however it's a car I'd like to still be owning in 10 years time all being well so I want a clean, well maintained low mileage car. My current car only has 35k on the clock and I bought it with 23 on it and its a 2008 so I don't wish to purchase a car that has done more miles than my own. It would be different if I owned a Golf but I happen to own a very nice car and am very particular as to what I'll be moving on to. My searches are always nation wide and I don't search colour specific either.

I purely wished to hear opinions from people who have completed their search on finding their M gem and if they therefore noticed a seasonal change in numbers.

 

[Merrsh1]

If you're keeping for a long time then I understand you wanting a low mileage car, I did.

I would say dont rule out other colours though. I originally had my heart set on carbon black and then a sepang coupe came up. In the flesh you may surprise yourself and switch choices like I did.

Good luck with your search.

 

[Ewazix]

How many E86 MC were made? The M registry page says 1072 made in RHD Euro spec, a previous forum post suggested 500 odd UK registered when it was posted in 2007. Either way small numbers, how many were black? how many will be sub 25k miles? How many of those will come up for sale in the next 6 - 12 months?

Your car does exist but I reckon you will need to jump on it when it comes up, good luck

 

[StevenH72]

Here's a chart of UK Z4's.

588 ///M coupés.

226 Black (120 sapphire, 54 Ruby (red metallic flecks) and 52 Carbon (blue metallic flecks)).

Purely a guesstimate, but looking at cars on here and ones that come up for sale on PH/ Autotrader I'd guess around 5% will have less than 25k miles.

Leaving approximately 11-12 cars in your criteria (notwithstanding the presence of a good service history/ general condition).

They are around, could just mean a bit of a wait until you find it.

I understand the setting of tight criteria. I plan on keeping mine for 5-10 years and wanted either Carbon Black, Midnight Blue or Monaco Blue. I was tempted by a few Imola Red and Titanium Silver examples, but would always have been a compromise for me.

 

[Ste]

Chances are unless you find an absolute gem weekender garage queen, if you find one that's done so few miles it'll have been neglected/left parked up in a garage somewhere for parts to seize and rust.

These engines are bullet proof if well looked after, much better to have a well run and fully serviced and loved one with a few on the clock IMO.