E86 coupe or E89??

R

Ralf Schumacher

New member
Morning all, happy Friday!

I am new to the forum, new to Z4’s and indeed new to sportscars altogether!
I would love a Z4 as my second car, and am currently trying to decide between a 3.0 E86 Coupe, or a 3.0 E89

Love the 6-cyl engine, 100% sold on that, I love The 86 coupe look with bonus boot size. However I am puzzled as to why these have had many owners. Obviously the coupes were made between 2006 and 08 so i am expecting 4 or 5 owners- yet some cars ive seen have had 6 or 7 owners ( an average of 2 years per ownership)- yet very low milage 50k;

Have some owners not fallen in love with the car?
Have little niggly issues worn them down forcing them to sell it? (Running costs, reliability, firm suspension?)
Is that individual car suspicious/flawed?
A weekend car that hasnt been used?

I’ve test driven an e86 coupe auto 2007 with 56,000 miles and love the firm suspension, im led to believe the reliability is good until 100k miles, with bits like rear suspension springs and window motors being the weakest link.


What would make you sell your Z4 theoretically- no matter how small the issue?
Should I be test driving an E89 as well to compare? The looks, tech, smoothness and auto hard top do make it an attractive alternative...

Many thanks
Ralf Schumacher :driving:
 
Hi Ralf,
Welcome to the forum.
I was going to suggest asking if anyone near you had a 6-pot E89 you could try, but I guess your name may put them off. :lol:
 
Don't be put off by a high owner e86. As previously stated they are commonly used as a second car for weekend fun etc. And therefore can possibly be moved on relatively quickly. When a person buys a high end and rare vehicle like the e86 , as a new owner they will be extremely proud and excited about ownership and in turn should lavish it with care and respect . You could argue that if the car is then kept by the same owner for many years he or she may eventually get lazy or complacent regarding the up keep and the vehicle may start to fall into disrepair. This is self evident from many of the MOT histories that I've seen. On the other hand , if the vehicle has changed hands many times , it has had many excited and proud owners that have not got to the point where they have (maybe) started to take ownership for granted. The result being that the car is always being kept in tip top shape. I am the 10th owner of my coupe, and it is in very good shape. It has an extremely clean MOT history with very few failures or even advisories over its lifetime ,and it also has a full service history.

Just a thought. :driving:
 
Used to drive a Lotus and previous owners invariably were more than you have fingers. Early life people like a new car after 3 years and that sets a precedent in some ways. Sometimes you find a car which the owners have a change in circumstances and 2 seater toys always seem to be priority for changes, such as mortgage/ moving and growing families. Luckily I am the 4th owner on mine with one being 9 years !
At the end of the day, the details of the car are more important , such as bodywork ( expensive to rectify) and service history. Enjoying my E86 for the last 8 months of ownership and was a more practical car to use than the Westfield I built and drove beforehand.
Best to have a look at an E89 and test drive it and see what clicks best for you.
 
I test drove a very nice E86. Then I drove an E89 and I was immediately pleased with the added room and increased level of comfort, yet it still attacked the corners & straights. I thought to myself, how civilized. Love the hardtop too. In a word the E89 is lovely.
 
They seem to change owners quite often, probably because they are often a 2nd car and changes in circumstances like parenthood, house moves, etc. mean it is no longer practical/viable to keep them.

My 30.Si E86 has done 91K miles and has had 5 previous owners, plus me and is up for sale at present BTW! :lol:

Link here just in case: https://z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=41&t=119180

What would make you sell it you ask - well I have bought an M coupe! And that has had 7 previous owners. :roll:
 
I’m the 8th owner of my 09 E89 35i. One of the previous owners only did 20 miles in their 2 years of ownership and still had it serviced twice. The mikes must have just been driving to the dealer! Crazy!!!
As previously said, they are often a second or even third car so many don’t get a lot of use and are expensive garage queens. Life moves on and the car gets moved on with it.
Mine is now living a much happier life as a daily driver doing 50 miles per day :driving:
 
Welcome to the forum. How's your brother doing?

E86 is a mainly a weekend toy, so some do get lots of owners, as people buy them then decide they want a new toy, that can mean they buy them and get all the work done. :thumbsup: or they buy them run them for 5p a week thrash em at the week end and move on. Personally I still prefer less owners my self, but there are valid arguments both ways. :)

The E89 is a more grown up car that BMW built to try and appeal to a larger audience. It lost some of the sportiness of the earlier model and gained toys and comfort. The roof goes down which is a plus in my book. The boot is not big, which is a minus.

You just need to try them both and while you are at it try and E85, then buy that. :driving: :thumbsup:
 
Keep toying with an e89. I love the e86 engine. I hate how newer cars all seem to have turbos these days.

I’ve owned mine 5 years. Miles keep creeping up but I do 150 a week in it.

It is practical. E89 boot puts me off. Shame they didn’t make a coupe e89
 
Ilogik said:
Keep toying with an e89. I love the e86 engine. I hate how newer cars all seem to have turbos these days.

I’ve owned mine 5 years. Miles keep creeping up but I do 150 a week in it.

It is practical. E89 boot puts me off. Shame they didn’t make a coupe e89
Click to expand...

Plenty of room in the e89 boot for a week away for two :thumbsup:
Rob
 
Mr Tidy said:
They seem to change owners quite often, probably because they are often a 2nd car and changes in circumstances like parenthood, house moves, etc. mean it is no longer practical/viable to keep them.

My 30.Si E86 has done 91K miles and has had 5 previous owners, plus me and is up for sale at present BTW! :lol:

Link here just in case: https://z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=41&t=119180

What would make you sell it you ask - well I have bought an M coupe! And that has had 7 previous owners. :roll:
Click to expand...


Exactly this - my old 3.0si bad a few owners before me, I owned it 5 years and did 50k in it (bought at 50k sold at just over 100k) - it was a fabulous thing. Only reason I sold mine was to do what Mr Tidy did - to get an M :)

All personal taste but the e86 is more of a drivers car than the e89. The E86 certainly won't be as refined or as new or as versatile, but it's got a better chassis and is a little lighter I believe. A convertible has just never done it for me, and with the looks of the Coupe it was an absolute no brainer decision, but each to their own - I'd highly recommend test driving a few of each model before making your decision!
 
You will get a sense of connection with an E86 / 85 that you will never get with an E89. The earlier cars are more dynamic by a good margin which makes them a better drivers car. They can be a little too uncompromising for some though, esp when lowered on aftermarket springs (because the bmw ones break every time you go over a catseye) on 19” wheels, so perhaps owners do tire of them after a while if used as their daily. The E89 is perhaps much easier to live with if you are not seeking the raw go kart thrills of the E86.
 
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