Easy retrofits/upgrades for a naked Z4?

[detch]

Hi!
I recently bought a 2003 2.5l manual E85 Z4 roadster. And I'm surprised how great it is.
Small thing - the original owner specced this car with practically nothing.

So I'm looking easy retrofits/upgrades that I can do to make this car more modern and "nice to be in".

What I already did:
1. I retrofitted heating seats
2. I installed the BT adapter
3. I updated the H7 bulbs to white LEDs
4. New floor mats with proper stoppers, new leather boot for handbrake/shifter, new leather on the steering wheel
5. Added cupholders

Any other ideas?
I'm looking mostly for the inspiration for the upgrades like with the heated seats - it was only a matter of finding seats and the ashtray with the right controls. Both were dirt cheap. No cutting, no soldering. There was even a right fuse pre-installed.
I know that an easy upgrade is cruise control. But I couldn't find any reasonably cheap parts for that... and either way, anything more than 120km/h is just unpleasant.

Is there an easy way to upgrade the speakers? I'm pleasantly surprised with the number of speakers in this car. But the quality is very ... flat? Is there an easy (cheap) way to improve this? I didn't do any research on this - is the amp decent and I could just swap some JBL speakers? Or should I just overhaul the whole thing either way?

I'm not talking about typical mechanical upgrades - like the coilovers that I already ordered.
However there may be some specific to Z4 things that I might not now. For example I was surprised how the strut bar improved the steering feel.

 

[MikeyH]

Stubby ariel :evil:

 

[enuff_zed]

Stubby ariel :evil:

He said UPgrades, not DOWNgrades. :headbang:

 

[enuff_zed]

In addition to improving the spec, consider spending money on modifying the disa valve to metal internals, and replacing the seals in the vanos unit.

 

[paddy wright]

Cruise control is an easy retrofit, as is the MFSW.

 

[enuff_zed]

I know that an easy upgrade is cruise control. But I couldn't find any reasonably cheap parts for that... and either way, anything more than 120km/h is just unpleasant.

You do know that cruise control works at much lower speeds???
Moreover, if you find driving over 120km/h is unpleasant then either something is fundamentally wrong with the car or it's not your thing. :wink:

 

[detch]

You do know that cruise control works at much lower speeds???
Moreover, if you find driving over 120km/h is unpleasant then either something is fundamentally wrong with the car or it's not your thing. :wink:

That was maybe too big of a shortcut
I'm using cruise control mostly doing highway speeds, like 120+. Fifth gear, no rear muffler, and the less-than-perfect seal between the windows and the roof make this... suboptimal. 0-100 speeds are awesome in this car, but definitely this isn't a grand tourer. I have a fun daily to fill that gap in my life

Side note:
How difficult is to retrofit a light package? I only have the main dome/map light. No footwell lights, no lights in the glove box, no lights in the boot (!) or the center console.

 

[jock156]

I would assume a fuse or a lot of blown bulbs

 

[detch]

I would assume a fuse or a lot of blown bulbs

Yea I thought the same. But I don't have the plastic housings. Just the hole in the dash.

 

[enuff_zed]

I would assume a fuse or a lot of blown bulbs

Yea I thought the same. But I don't have the plastic housings. Just the whole in the dash.

A car that age should have the looms in place. Although the glovebox light would require a different glovebox, with both the aperture and a plunger switch.
Look under the footwell panels and you should have the square cut outs. Some cars seem to have two, but there's only one light fitted. No idea why. The loom should be neatly taped up behind the panel somewhere.
The storage between the seats should have a light in the top, and the bottom of the door has a lug on it which activates a microswitch.
Some models had an extra connector to fit a second light in the lower part of the storage compartment. To access these two bits of loom you will need to remove the rear console section.
The boot should have a light in the back right corner. If not, then pull the carpet back and see if the loom is there. If so then the light only clips into the carpet, so you could cut it out.
I'm sure between the folk on here we could find you enough lights, but you could also get complete LED units from eBay.

Is your main light just a single one? If so, you can get the later ones with the two map reading lights and it's a straight swap.

Oh and apologies regarding the 120km/h thing. Was forgetting it's only a 5-speed. Have the same motorway annoyance with my 2.2.

 

[Zedebee]

Is there an easy way to upgrade the speakers? I'm pleasantly surprised with the number of speakers in this car. But the quality is very ... flat? Is there an easy (cheap) way to improve this? I didn't do any research on this - is the amp decent and I could just swap some JBL speakers? Or should I just overhaul the whole thing either way?

Hi and welcome to the forum. As standard your car came with either 6 or 10 speakers, with the latter available in two variants, Hi-Fi and Top Hi-Fi with DSP. The 10 speaker systems have a separate amp in the boot, they all use the same head unit (I think).
On the basic system, the speaker grilles in the doors are blanks. You can easily upgrade to 8 speakers by inserting speakers here, they will accept the same speakers as are behind the headrest and the wiring should already be in place.
Alternative you could upgrade the speakers, there are lots of threads on here if you search.
The 10 speaker HiFi amp is much better. If you can get hold of one of these, and the extra speakers, and the wiring loom for the rear of the car, you’ll have good sound.
The same is doable for the Top HiFi but from what I have read it’s more complicated due to the power requirements for the subwoofers and DSP compatibility issues, but I have no experience here.
Good luck - the basic stereo is a bit pathetic.

 

[detch]

Oh and apologies regarding the 120km/h thing.

No worries. Right after I bought it I managed to do ~210 on my way back home. Which was pretty dumb because I later inspected the state of my tires. Wasn't great.

but you could also get complete LED units from eBay.

any hints on how to make/buy/find LED housings?

The same is doable for the Top HiFi but from what I have read it’s more complicated due to the power requirements for the subwoofers and DSP compatibility issues, but I have no experience here.

I see a "complete" set of Top Hifi for ~520 euro.
I never heard it so I can't really tell if that's a good investment or not.

 

[enuff_zed]

any hints on how to make/buy/find LED housings?

This is the better main cabin light:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/364660204418?epid=1424005350&itmmeta=01HV10B54C9KF5CVJ5TA35EXFF&hash=item54e7712382:g:8cYAAOSwTiplljGE&itmprp=enc%3AAQAJAAAA8JZYncEQhj%2BrNMtjEa11dC68C1W%2Fxis%2FY3kB8xbYAM73AEtXXPt89AZSJAYq8vAu3vxcyddKZCPt4QNJZM9ICfbLoQye1tfgJfz%2B6nraubKgVIkJTpRxXiORG0KASms%2B6ZwUOCg32XGWwtz2KuxkjOS7qsGymmrHahpOZ%2BG3Lt0kj%2FpCxuk8JCQnDHxTGilk4%2BLhFrGNItHIkVls80A2oKGu3hHiMWmv1kKmjHmf6yU%2BjnBAcazL5FgLldR%2BnZ6Ub2vgXgPOzg%2F8NH%2FuffZSeAhhm3pfDj2RNmnZKJFpCY9Wwyf4L8NXDY%2BxygyGPWgS4A%3D%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR6rSrKDYYw

I'm guessing you're not in the UK, but should be able to find something similar.

For the interior lights you could use something like these:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/314110756322?fits=Car+Make%3ABMW%7CModel%3AZ4&itmmeta=01HV10B54EMJCHYYD5EP5MN1ZK&hash=item492275c5e2:gKIAAOSwEOJlu1kp&itmprp=enc%3AAQAJAAAA8JyX4TjAmTkywlI1wvtmla0d74500WJnnenamqgORoKwljBSp%2B%2BskjedZC%2BEM1LTgVUt8xOizDuTCa%2FAF6qh10HMOSvKcxW95ysSzW56IKS%2FJO7dfCQzQZrr2GANAgkXMGWB35ioNxZBrbHIuEiGUoXF%2B%2BlAzX8JUKedQXnfy42Xp1pCs3EyPBrvPwGD4rOqI14QCoSk8NTZZjK8Y0zCT28LEmySO0T7MDdzhwjrJI604pt6U4S%2F9gmOCtrMc0jFC1orWifji%2FKDKppEGVCxwuloIasdzrDY7fl0%2Bb3fQSqspTIYLEok3Lr8mz7SpLUo6g%3D%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR67SrKDYYw

Or if you'd rather keep standard then look for these (which you could then fit LED bulbs to if required):
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/363735589585?fits=Car+Make%3ABMW%7CModel%3AZ4&itmmeta=01HV10JXMS63F6JED4YH0NSKDE&hash=item54b054a2d1%3Ag%3AC4EAAOSwy9JiESs4&itmprp=enc%3AAQAJAAAA8OMVI%2F4m3i2%2F4zPY7OUgiybKzIp6%2BT%2FZM8MhXmup1cLbYyPGiQ7kN7mQYdAA9V4rlJd2ORKisj2u0OD%2Fn4GRxQt8dkU%2BNV6GMF4lLlKozM%2BmajM4EaF0J%2Fwu5E%2FBTN614mTGWdrFvwLCTWMnB%2B175VTOn5HzAlk771hehgDTMvSkZF5y%2BhuRGSEpoTGf4B1pfwKG9BJOt15p13ivrNz3B4G%2Bz64zDouaAsDRZAOZiL23o0C6w%2F3PFNc68F7JOMWc4QxclZ2xsWbrkodyakORtrTrwR%2B5aWYrK4FkE2fKg1I3T5gp7nRPIq5t3vElj1ZsrQ%3D%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR8bay6DYYw&LH_ItemCondition=4

 

[Usel]

I bought one of these kits back in the day. Still works perfectly now and the boot is extremely well illuminated:

https://z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=89055