124 City Road, London
Good evening all! I am Matty.
Former lurker, recent sign-up, loong time Z4M yearner. BMW has been my favourite marque for a very, very long time and the Z4M has been top of that list for a good decade. I came as close as agreeing a price and deposit for an Interlagos Blue after what sounds like an exaggeration but is honestly true 'expectations for all cars altering' test drive... Right before COVID properly appeared and tanked the shares I was planning to use for the balance.
After many distractions - apartment renovations and then new house renovations mostly - I am now, finally, in a position to seriously look for one of these marvellous cars again. I thought I had a decent handle on options/what to look for in 2020 but back searching I am feeling a bit out of my depth with where the market is. (Truthfully I am concerned that I have the yips at the prospect of actually getting my dream car.)
I know there are many many 'Buyer Guide' threads but wanted to ask a few questions to hopefully settle my nerves again. Two main areas - from a practical perspective I plan on keeping the car until it runs no more. I have read lots about OEM vs Mods; are there any universally agreed upon changes that improve ride/handling that I could be looking for as already done or budgeting for as immediate quality of life upgrades?
Second are there any dead giveaways that are red flags in adverts for motors to avoid? This one in NI, as an example, has been up for absolutely ages:
Seems questionable that it would be up for so long and there not be something off. The advert 'details' is not great but I cannot pick up what the big red flags might be. Maybe there are not any.
I am regularly checking here, Pistonheads, AT, Motors, and Car & Classic and would be confident about ads on here but unsure for elsewhere. Watched that recent PH auction car and the commentary on here with some interest. I appreciate I will likely need to travel so looking for things I can use to redline possible beyond the usual colour/age etc.
For reference my 'Dream' dream Z4M would be a Space Grey Coupe with extended tan interior but that does not exist on our shores. So I am considering Titanium Silver. How realistically feasible would it be to swap/change for e.g. Imola red interior for Champagne/Sepang/Other (not black)?
Does anyone who was looking/is looking have any other super secret nuggets of info I have not thought of that might assist?
Very many thanks in advance. Really appreciate it.
https://nationwidesalvage.co.uk/ state they pay salvage prices not scrap prices, I got £500 for a 2010 Audi A4