Howdy! Future owner checking in.

[dxh]

There’s an excellent looking car just been listed at £10,750

Ben very kindly contacted me about that car by PM before listing it and I said I wasn’t interested because of the Nav. Seeing how much he’s done to it has given me pause for thought, currently researching options for replacing the Nav with something more modern as I’d rather have something useful there if I had to have it.

 

[dxh]

Somethng like this might fit the bill

Hadn’t even seen that one!

 

[True-Blue]

There’s an excellent looking car just been listed at £10,750

Ben very kindly contacted me about that car by PM before listing it and I said I wasn’t interested because of the Nav. Seeing how much he’s done to it has given me pause for thought, currently researching options for replacing the Nav with something more modern as I’d rather have something useful there if I had to have it.

The Nav is useless if it’s working or not, but the flip up screen does serve a useful purpose with the professional hifi that’s fitted, and you can put the screen down it doesn’t have to be up all the time. Wouldn’t let the fact that it’s got sat nav put you off. I don’t know Ben and I don’t know the car, but I’d rather have a 90k car with this colour scheme and spec than a 70k car without MSport seats, MFSW etc.

 

[Mr Tidy]

Ben very kindly contacted me about that car by PM before listing it and I said I wasn’t interested because of the Nav. Seeing how much he’s done to it has given me pause for thought, currently researching options for replacing the Nav with something more modern as I’d rather have something useful there if I had to have it.

My latest Coupe has the Sat-Nav and it is so antiquated in operation it is totally pointless these days! But at least you can leave the screen closed even with the radio on.

And you do get a couple of extra features on the OBC, plus a digital graphic equaliser with the upgraded stereo for some 80/90s Amstrad-style nostalgia. :lol:

My E87 1 Series had a storage compartment where the Sat-Nav would have been that was handy for sunglasses or similar. I think something similar has been fitted to Z4s.

 

[Z450]

I agree with the above, I certainly would not look past a Coupe if it had the Navigation, I agree they are so old an out dated ( you could argue retro cool ) but if you like the rest of the car, it must be worth a look!

Good luck with your search, and happy New Year All

 

[True-Blue]

There’s another the same colour at 86,500 miles just popped up on Facebook with an ask of £8500 in Lincoln, don’t know anything about the car or owner but worth contacting I’d have thought? Clearly needs some work, based on MOT advisories, so might not be the bargain it first appears.

https://m.facebook.com/groups/151961165317416/permalink/1281872445659610/?m_entstream_source=contextual_profile_feed&anchor_composer=false

 

[Z450]

There’s another the same colour at 86,500 miles just popped up on Facebook with an ask of £8500 in Lincoln, don’t know anything about the car or owner but worth contacting I’d have thought? Clearly needs some work, based on MOT advisories, so might not be the bargain it first appears.

https://m.facebook.com/groups/151961165317416/permalink/1281872445659610/?m_entstream_source=contextual_profile_feed&anchor_composer=false

That one does look good, I agree it could need some money spending unless the advisories have been rectified from the last MOT

 

[dxh]

I've kind of settled on waiting a bit to see if a good Montego Blue car comes for sale. This https://www.parkers.co.uk/bmw/z4/coupe/30si-sport-2d/for-sale/usedcfs-909004560815866/ does intrigue me, it must have had some care taken to get to that mileage in the first place.

I went to see this https://www.zacharylukecarslimited.co.uk/details/used-car-in-northampton/bmw/z4/3.0/557827/ on Thursday, primarily as I'd not actually seen one in the metal nor sat in one before and wanted to get a physical feel for if the car would actually work. It's a nice car and Zach has spent some money having the ABS pump replaced alongside some other bits.

Somebody else on here mentioned that they'd been to view a car and found Zach agreeable to deal with and I would second that. There was no pressure applied, we had a good chat about the car and Z4s in general and he even offered to cast a virtual eye over a car if I found one for sale somewhere else. I'm obviously no expert but I'd feel comfortable buying the right car from him.

 

[Big Bad Boris]

I know nothing of the car or the dealership, but this Montego Blue appeared in my Car Gurus alerts this very morning.

https://www.cargurus.co.uk/Cars/inventorylisting/viewDetailsFilterViewInventoryListing.action?entitySelectingHelper.selectedEntity=c28262&entitySelectingHelper.selectedEntity2=c25793&distance=100&zip=CM75NS&maxPrice=13000&newSince=1641686400000&utm_term=2022-01-09&utm_campaign=1-1&utm_medium=email&utm_source=dealfinderSubscription&utm_content=listingPriceChangesViewDetailsCTA#listing=147745694

 

[Mr Tidy]

I've kind of settled on waiting a bit to see if a good Montego Blue car comes for sale.

That makes sense, the UK did get 263 Manual Coupes in Montego Blue so while that includes SEs there are quite a few around. Personally I wouldn't rule out an SE if it had the M-Sport seat option as the only other major difference is the suspension, and on a car over a decade old that will have either had a refresh or be needing one.

Quite random that you missed my first Coupe by a couple of weeks as exactly 2 years ago I was selling my 2nd one which was Montego Blue with Pearl Grey leather!

It's worth waiting for something specific - I just never had the patience! Good luck anyway.

 

[dxh]

I know nothing of the car or the dealership, but this Montego Blue appeared in my Car Gurus alerts this very morning.

That one has been around a while but it’s an auto. I think the price has dropped, maybe why you were alerted. Nice looking car though.

It's worth waiting for something specific - I just never had the patience! Good luck anyway

I’m not entirely convinced I have the patience I dont intend to wait around forever, mind you.

 

[Mr Tidy]

I’m not entirely convinced I have the patience I dont intend to wait around forever, mind you.

I can relate to that! I really didn't want black but when I saw the advert for my first one I decided maybe Ruby Black would be OK - and now and again on sunny days it didn't look black. :lol:

 

[dxh]

I can relate to that! I really didn't want black but when I saw the advert for my first one I decided maybe Ruby Black would be OK - and now and again on sunny days it didn't look black

I quite like the idea of the Ruby Black but I guess with our weather you don’t see the ruby much!!

 

[Mr Tidy]

No you don't although it looks fantastic when you do!

Carbon Black is much the same except it looks blue instead of purple.

 

[dxh]

This looks interesting, punchy price though! Described as Mauritian Blue, not heard of that before.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-Z4-...2349624.m46890.l49286&mkrid=710-127635-2958-0

 

[Mr Tidy]

This looks interesting, punchy price though! Described as Mauritian Blue, not heard of that before.

No, that's Montego Blue like my 2nd one.



And it isn't a Grey interior - mine had Pearl Grey.



It's actually Silverstone Bi-Colour leather, which is probably rarer as it was a £535 option back in the day!

Ignore what the seller says about the Si being more powerful - all UK Coupes had the same Si engine whether they were SE or Sport models. The main differences on the Sport models were the sought-after M-Sport seats, thicker rimmed M-Sport steering wheel, M-Sport suspension (15mm lower and stiffer), black headlining and 18" wheels. But all of those were options on the SE so some do have one or more.

It's just my opinion but I reckon that is about £3K over-priced, even at current crazy prices!

 

[ponchi101]

Been lurking here for a while but thought it was time to introduce myself.

I’m thinking of getting into a Z4 Coupe so been reading everything I can find here to get some idea of specs, prices, foibles etc.

I’ve never actually bought a used car before so I’m hoping not to get my fingers burnt. My budget is around £14k and it’s going to be a second car but I’d still like to not be spending loads of cash getting things fixed. Upgrades and mods are a different thing!!

Curious what the forum wisdom thinks I should be looking at with my budget, needs to be a Sport, needs to be a manual.

Only thing to add: we have been talking about diagnostic tools (do a search for CREATOR C310). I would recommend to buy one, if you are adamant on buying a Z, and use it to scan any possible purchase. Investment will be around £100, but it could save you a lot in case you find a car that is not really up to specs.
Plus, you get to keep it and service your car.
Good luck with your buy

 

[dxh]

This looks interesting

I’ve been talking to the seller of this car and had an inspection carried out today. I’ve not had the full report yet but the inspector called me to say he couldn’t carry out the test drive as the engine was misfiring and his diagnostic scanner came up with misfire on one of the cylinders.

The seller has said there was no misfire when he drove it but he has had a garage replace the spark plug on the affected cylinder as a precaution.

The inspector also advised the below:

• The drivers side front shock absorber is weeping

• There is surface corrosion to suspension components

• There is surface corrosion to the sills

• There is surface corrosion to the exhaust system

• The drivers side front tyre is unevenly worn on inside edge

I don’t really have any frame of reference as to how serious these issues are though I imagine some might be par for the course on a vehicle of this age. Any thoughts?

 

[Mr Tidy]

The misfire is probably just as likely to be a failed coil-pack as a spark plug, but I don't think they are too expensive - less than £100 IIRC.

The rest of it sounds like what you'd probably expect on any car over 10 years old, but I'm surprised he mentions surface corrosion on the exhaust as BMW fitted stainless from new. :?

I wonder if the tyre wear is related to the leaking shock absorber? Or maybe there is also a worn bush or two. To be honest at that age it might be worth having a suspension refresh. Bilstein B12 kit that includes Eibach springs seems very popular and costs about £1K.

Then maybe a 4-wheel alignment to get it driving at it's best.

 

[Pondrew]

The inspector also advised the below:
The drivers side front shock absorber is weeping
There is surface corrosion to suspension components
There is surface corrosion to the sills
There is surface corrosion to the exhaust system
The drivers side front tyre is unevenly worn on inside edge

I don’t really have any frame of reference as to how serious these issues are though I imagine some might be par for the course on a vehicle of this age. Any thoughts?

I had an RAC inspection done on a car a few months ago and it mentioned absolutely everything, some more serious than others.
If you have the chance, speak to the inspector directly on the phone, they tend to be less 'corporate' and should give you an honest assessment of what the car is really like. I asked the inspector straight out if he would buy the car; he said no so I didn't buy it.
The shock weeping and tyre wear could be related. Surface corrosion isn't necessarily a problem, again a telephone call should explain in more detail.
However, the misfire could be a problem and was a cause for the inspection not to be carried out fully. Your money, your choice.