I finally bought a Z4 - Ownership thread!

[DaveP]

Swapping the seats and LCM have caused a couple of annoying issues. I now have the dreaded 'dot' next to the mileage, thank to the stupid way BMW decided that the Z4 should store this info. That needs coding out. With the seats coming from a facelift, I've got an airbag light showing, which also needs permanently coding out.

I'm going to resuscitate an old Windows laptop, install INPA and grab myself a compatible cable later this year. I may be asking some very basic questions at some point...

 

[DaveP]

... I'm swapping in:
- Nissens radiator
- OEM expansion tank
- Meyle water pump, with steel impeller
- Mahle thermostat
- OEM idler pulleys
- Febi tensioner and pulley
- New Conti belt

All done, along with Powerflex RTABs and LCABs.

Wasn't expecting the bushes to make as much difference as they have. New OEM fronts were suffering really badly since the install of the coilovers with their solid topmounts. The rears were original, and absolutely shagged. Car feels a lot more planted now.

Next up:
1. Project gauge. How do I fit an oil temp and pressure gauge without ruining the cabin?
2. Project big brake. How do I fit Clio Brembo calipers under my OEM 17s without machining them down?
3. Project steer. I need a smaller wheel, so my knees fit under it when I'm getting in and out of the car.

I might even go mad and give it a wash...

 

[DaveP]

Who could have guessed it was actually metallic silver under all that algae?





Passenger external door handle is getting annoyingly hard to pull, and I really don't want to lacerate my hands by doing the cable replacement. Just need to tell Mrs P to wait for me to open the door from inside!

Barring a steering wheel, that I'm still procrastinating over, I think Nurburgring prep is pretty much done. I made the fateful mistake of using the leather conditioner that I applied to my seats on the tired, old wheel. It's now beautifully shiny, and so smooth that bare hands slip around on it. :headbang: Might see if I can restore a little texture with some diluted APC. It probably won't be an issue for a single lap at the Ring, but when I'm wearing gloves on proper trackdays it will be lethal. Bugger.

 

[DaveP]

Well, the Ring trip was a bit of a mixed bag.

In the plus column, I got to experience my first laps of the Ring in the snow. I absolutely tip-toed around, wearing far too much camber to generate the kind of grip I needed. Sort of fun in a "how much would this cost if it all went wrong?" way.


In typical Ring fashion, the snow disappeared and the sun came out a few hours later, which meant a lovely dry track. Someone immediately went out and dumped a load of oil on track, which closed it for an hour. Thanks. The track was really busy when it reopened, and although the car was going really well it ended up being difficult to get a clear lap without needing to pull over for faster kit. The coilovers have absolutely transformed this chassis from bouncy and unpredictable to much more controlled and precise.


After a few hard laps the slight brake wobble I'd experienced earlier had turned into a violent judder, which signalled the end of my weekend's hijinks. The brake discs are the only part of the entire system that hasn't been either upgraded or refurbished (long story - I ordered the parts and they didn't arrive), and my overexhuberance had warped them. Annoying, but an easy fix.

Most disappointingly, and what might bring my time with my second Z4 to an end, was how uncomfortable the drive back was. I suffer with a tiny bit of sciatic pain on longer drives, and the lack of space in the Z4 footwell (I'm 6ft3) meant that I just couldn't move my leg enough to stretch it out. Combined with the fact that the Sport seats, while hugging nicely on track, were now digging into my hefty backside, I couldn't wait to get home and get out of the car.

I'm planning on doing a few more Ring trips this year, and I'm not sure I could face another 8hr driving day in the Z4 sadly. So I'm going to probably fix up a few bits and reluctantly put it up for sale after sinking a small fortune into it over the past year.

 

[pvr]

A Porsche 911 is the only way forward for the seating issue. The Boxster and Caymans are too small as they are two seaters whilst the 911 you can move the seat much further back. I regularly do 12+ hours in the Porsche which I could not really comfortable do in the Z.

 

[DaveP]

A Porsche 911 is the only way forward for the seating issue. The Boxster and Caymans are too small as they are two seaters whilst the 911 you can move the seat much further back. I regularly do 12+ hours in the Porsche which I could not really comfortable do in the Z.

Unfortunately I don't think my budget of £14k is going to stretch to that. Being in the middle of restoring a 400yo house and having just bought a Tesla, free cash is at a bit of a premium and I don't believe in borrowing money for fun cars.

Current favourites are:
- E46 M3 (SMG)
- E82 135i (DCT)
- 370Z

 

[j3nks79]

Buy a 14k E46 M3 and you will realise how fast a car can eat money.

 

[enuff_zed]

You could get a 3.0i Automatic Z4. That would give you a bit of leg room and the 'Jekyll & Hyde' button would ensure you got your thrills.

 

[Usel]

As a last ditch attempt before you sell your car would you like to try an e89 seat in your car.

You're only 20mins down the road from me and I can prep up a manual heated drivers seat for you to try. You can test it for a couple of weeks if you want.

 

[DaveP]

You could get a 3.0i Automatic Z4. That would give you a bit of leg room and the 'Jekyll & Hyde' button would ensure you got your thrills.

If you go back to pg1 of this thread you'll see that my previous E85 was a 3.0i auto. Fine for pootling around, but useless when you're trying to drive quickly. :driving:

 

[DaveP]

As a last ditch attempt before you sell your car would you like to try an e89 seat in your car.

You're only 20mins down the road from me and I can prep up a manual heated drivers seat for you to try. You can test it for a couple of weeks if you want.

A very kind offer, but I suspect it's not going to solve the problem of legroom and my inability to stretch properly. My knee doesn't fit between the door and steering wheel, so even with cruise on I can't move my right leg sufficiently to stretch it.

 

[DaveP]

Buy a 14k E46 M3 and you will realise how fast a car can eat money.

I think my track record with this car suggests I'm not afraid to throw money at maintenance (I'm probably in for about £3-4k in a year), but I suspect the M3 would be the most expensive of those three to run by some margin.

 

[enuff_zed]

You could get a 3.0i Automatic Z4. That would give you a bit of leg room and the 'Jekyll & Hyde' button would ensure you got your thrills.

If you go back to pg1 of this thread you'll see that my previous E85 was a 3.0i auto. Fine for pootling around, but useless when you're trying to drive quickly. :driving:

Oh yes, sorry. Had a long day.

 

[DaveP]

You could get a 3.0i Automatic Z4. That would give you a bit of leg room and the 'Jekyll & Hyde' button would ensure you got your thrills.

If you go back to pg1 of this thread you'll see that my previous E85 was a 3.0i auto. Fine for pootling around, but useless when you're trying to drive quickly. :driving:

Oh yes, sorry. Had a long day.

No worries. There's a very outside chance I might not leave Z4 ownership completely, as I'm going to test a DCT 35i before I commit to anything. But I'm generally a bit concerned that it's going to take too much work to make it enjoyable on track, and it's still going to be quite compromised.

 

[j3nks79]

Buy a 14k E46 M3 and you will realise how fast a car can eat money.

I think my track record with this car suggests I'm not afraid to throw money at maintenance (I'm probably in for about £3-4k in a year), but I suspect the M3 would be the most expensive of those three to run by some margin.

I’m not saying you not willing to spend money Dave. Just simply a warning. I’ve owned many E46 M3’s over the years and sold over 150 when I ran a specialist garage.
It was just a word of warning about the costs. You could triple what you have spent on the Z4 easily with a cheap M3.

 

[DaveP]

Buy a 14k E46 M3 and you will realise how fast a car can eat money.

I think my track record with this car suggests I'm not afraid to throw money at maintenance (I'm probably in for about £3-4k in a year), but I suspect the M3 would be the most expensive of those three to run by some margin.

I’m not saying you not willing to spend money Dave. Just simply a warning. I’ve owned many E46 M3’s over the years and sold over 150 when I ran a specialist garage.
It was just a word of warning about the costs. You could triple what you have spent on the Z4 easily with a cheap M3.

Forgive the lack of tone - my reply to you wasn't a challenge, more a statement. The 370Z is currently winning for me, but that's still only in theory as I haven't even managed to sit in one yet...

 

[DaveP]

Took the opportunity to avoid some work this morning, and popped out to test a Z4 35is and a 370Z that are for sale at dealers local to me.

I fully expected to come away sold on the 370Z, and the Z4 was there more as a 'palate cleanser'. I couldn't have been more wrong. The 370Z was an absolute ergonomic nightmare. The steering wheel didn't adjust for reach, and barely moved up and down. To get comfortable at 6ft3 required my seat to be so far away from the wheel that my arms were almost straight. A really awkward position that could get uncomfortable on long trips. That notwithstanding, even with the wheel in its highest position, my knees still didn't have much room either side.

By contrast, the Z4's cabin was like a Tardis. It's barely bigger than my E85, but I had boatloads of room. The seats were also significantly more comfortable.

I didn't get the chance to stretch the legs of either, but the 370Z sounded the better of the two as standard. However, the accelerator felt really poorly mapped, and almost a bit like a diesel where there's absolutely nothing going on in the first inch or two of travel. The Z4 rode a bit clumsily on its 19s (not my choice), but the engine felt strong, responsive and gutsy at relatively low revs.

Wasn't expecting that at all.

 

[Mr Tidy]

It sounds like maybe you'll be looking for a 35is then!

Actually you're a step ahead of me:- https://z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=146822

I'm sure some of them came with 18s as I bought a set of them from a 35is owning forum member.

 

[DaveP]

Well, I needed to collect my Discovery from the garage this morning, so I thought I'd take my Z4 out for a jolly and drop it in for new front discs on the way.

Sadly this thread may be coming to a bit of a premature end, as my "to do" list is now becoming a "to sell" list so I can get the car into tip-top shape for the buyer. Jobs are:
- New front discs
- Code out odometer dot from changing the LCM
- Code out airbag light from fitting facelift seats (don't want to bodge it with a resistor)
- Fix front outer driver's indicator bulb housing

 

[DaveP]

New front discs are on. It looks like I got my money's worth out of the old ones, as they were the worst warped discs my mechanic has ever seen!

Unfortunately, it appears that my heavy braking foot has also taken the Ferodo DS2500s down too. Were I keeping the car (more on that shortly!), I'd probably go to Winmax W5s as I've heard good things in combination with Brembo HC discs. Just to get me back on the road again, the mechanic has fitted OEM-spec pads.

I've had a very kind offer from Usel to go and test out an E89 seat in my car, to see whether it alleviates the sciatic pain I've been suffering on longer drives. Plan is to take him up on that (thank you!) and test out a seat for a couple of weeks when I get back from my annual pilgrimage to a whisky festival on Islay next week.

I plan to leave the Tesla and Discovery as often as possible, and take the Z4 on as many mundane drives as possible to see whether it solves my problem. If so, then we're back in the game, and back on track with the project. aper: