MC abroad

[CliveN]

Well the zed is out in Spain and it is my first real run as driving in the uk is mainly a chore nowadays. Despite having a GM5 module issue while at the ferry terminal (it wouldn’t remote lock) it seems otherwise to be behaving itself. The roads have been a mix of dual carriageways and A/B road equivalents. As anyone will know who has been through central Spain the roads are pretty much traffic free and it’s hard to keep the speed below 80 mph for most of the time. The temptation to nail it when you can see 5kms of dead straight road (Spain is made up of plains type roads and then hilly twisties) is always there but so is the presence of the Guardia Civile. Indeed today I was pulled over twice near Ciudad Rodrigo but let go immediately - they were obviously looking for somebody.

So what’s the ZM like as an intercontinental cruiser?Pretty good actually. It’s no harder than my MSport E89 and it handles so much better. The brakes are stronger and the pull from the motor is substantially more than the 3.0i in the E89. I know people say that a 3.0si is nearly as good as an M but on the basis of my experience with my E89 (which uses the same motor) the difference is substantial. Let’s say - in the e89 I knock it down to 4th and rev it to 6000 to get it past a line of cars/lorries etc. In the ZM it’s down to fourth and I rarely use more than 4000 rpm. Using more just means more likelihood of a jail term.

It looks epic as well as I can see interlagos blue in the sunshine for once. It really is a great looking GT. and it’s tiny too which is always a benefit.

I was concerned that not having the sad sat nav would be a hindrance but no. Using the aux port means I had sounds from my iPhone and directions coming from Google Maps through the cars speakers. Nearly as good as a modern car and just about enough.

And it’s doing about 27mpg which isn’t too bad. What are your views on ZMs on the long haul?

 

[mmm-five]

I used to use mine to visit a friend in Barcelona, and have taken it on track at Circuit de Catalunya (which I didn’t really get to grips with on my one and only trackday there).

All time average was 26.5mpg over 150,000 miles of commuting, goons, trackdays and Ring-trips. Best ever was 32mpg for the 275 miles from Dover BP to Adenauer Aral on one tank, just as the fuel warning light came on…which was part of a Liverpool > Cornwall > Dover > Nurburgring (and return) trip.

Worst was 8mpg at Cadwell.

 

[Mr Tidy]

I never did more than 500 miles on a trip in either of my 3.0Sis, and while my MC hasn't been abroad I did 2,000 miles in a week when I went on one of B21s NC500 trips a couple of years ago as I was starting off from Surrey!

I didn't find the handling that much different but the ride in a standard M would be better because the tyres are one profile higher and they aren't run-flats. Sadly my MC isn't standard as it has H & R coil-overs which are pretty firm. The steering has more feel and the brakes are better than the Si. For overtaking on an A road I generally used third which would mean the rev limiter wouldn't be reached until over 90 in the Si, or three figures in the M but the M got there much quicker and the sound track was so much better.

As I've got a full size front wheel in the boot as a spare it's squishy bags only for packing but it works fine for a week with no passenger. Mine has the OE Sat Nav but I've only used it twice, once out of curiosity when I bought the car and the other time out of desperation when diversion signs just disappeared.

My Garmin or phone are just so much easier to use. Coming home from the National in Kendal in 2023 in the rain and with reduced speed limits in quite a few places it easily averaged over 30mpg, but my overall average since I bought it in 2019 is just over 27mpg.

But it is fine for longer trips - I'm off to Scotland again in a week or so.

 

[RedUn]

Great thread. Done many euro trips in mine, go again this Friday, I love it as a tour car 8)

 

[Ed Doe]

I'm heading to the ring in mine next Friday with some pals 8) Can't bloody wait!! I'll be driving from Ashbourne to Foklestone (~4.5h drive), then from Calais to Adenau (~5h).

Mine is far from standard, and can get a bit tiring on a long drive; tyre noise and NVH being the main issues from the track tyres, mostly solid/rose-jointed bushes & chassis-mounted shifter. The Tilletts are actually really comfy once you're in them, despite how they look :lol: I'll be sticking my noise-cancelling earbuds in and listening to podcasts on the way down.

If nothing else, I'm pleased to discover from this thread that my mpg is broadly similar to others!

I'm convinced the E46 M3 ecu reads MPG differently (pronounced SIGNIFICANTLY more optimistically!) than the Z4M - my mate was saying he's seeing mid 30's from his E46, and I've never really seen more than 27mpg from my Z4, unless on a long gentle motorway run and resetting the trip once the engine is warm! the 4.1 FD has definitely had an impact on mpg numbers, but yeah good to know I'm generally in the same ballpark as others

 

[mmm-five]

I'm convinced the E46 M3 ecu reads MPG differently (pronounced SIGNIFICANTLY more optimistically!) than the Z4M - my mate was saying he's seeing mid 30's from his E46, and I've never really seen more than 27mpg from my Z4, unless on a long gentle motorway run and resetting the trip once the engine is warm! the 4.1 FD has definitely had an impact on mpg numbers, but yeah good to know I'm generally in the same ballpark as others

I know you can tweak the MPG calculation if it's a bit off, but I don't rely on on-board calculations of fuel economy as I've never seen a completely accurate one in any of my BMWs...so calculate mpg at every fill-up (or via fuel logs on Fuelly when I was claiming expenses). But the 335dX is within 0.5MPG of what it's claiming.

...and I agree on aftermarket bucket seats being more comfortable on long trips than the poorly-cushioned, lateral-support-lacking, slippy OE seats (which are terrible on track).

We're off for a week in June for the N24, but the 335D will be going as it's pointless taking 3 track cars (from Liverpool, Oxford & Cornwall) when we're not actually going on track...and it will do the Cornwall to Folkestone to Adenau run on a single tank of diseasel.

 

[Ed Doe]

I know you can tweak the MPG calculation if it's a bit off, but I don't rely on on-board calculations of fuel economy as I've never seen a completely accurate one in any of my BMWs...so calculate mpg at every fill-up (or via fuel logs on Fuelly when I was claiming expenses). But the 335dX is within 0.5MPG of what it's claiming.

...and I agree on aftermarket bucket seats being more comfortable on long trips than the poorly-cushioned, lateral-support-lacking, slippy OE seats (which are terrible on track).

We're off for a week in June for the N24, but the 335D will be going as it's pointless taking 3 track cars (from Liverpool, Oxford & Cornwall) when we're not actually going on track...and it will do the Cornwall to Folkestone to Adenau run on a single tank of diseasel.

Yeah I'm not looking for total accuracy tbh (mpg isn't why any of us bought these cars eh!) but just to know I'm in the same ballpark as others was more my point

Definitely agree, although I never found the OE seats awful for daily purposes... just insanely unsupportive by comparison to a set of buckets when on track!

Enjoy the N24, I'm jealous, always wanted to go but never been! A mate of mine is due to get married soon and I've a funny feeling the N24 trip may be stag do - any tips? :lol: I'd almost certainly be taking my 320d touring too - as you say literally no sense in taking the track car to not go on track! :lol:

 

[plenty]

Done 18k miles in my ///M in just over three years, the vast bulk of which have been in Europe including two trips to Spain and two to Italy with another Italy trip coming up next month.

This car works better in Europe where the far superior road surfaces and flatter topography allow the E85/6 layout to shine. I'm literally typing this from a motorway services on the way back to London from visiting Scotland. The poorer UK roads and the undulating landscapes in areas such as the Yorkshire Dales and the Scottish Borders aren't the natural habitat for this car, with its limited visibility over crests and not enough ground clearance or suspension travel to carry proper momentum.

In the UK I prefer driving a hot hatch, but on the continent my Z4M comes into its own.

 

[mmm-five]

Enjoy the N24, I'm jealous, always wanted to go but never been! A mate of mine is due to get married soon and I've a funny feeling the N24 trip may be stag do - any tips? :lol: I'd almost certainly be taking my 320d touring too - as you say literally no sense in taking the track car to not go on track! :lol:

Well, if you want to get a hotel within walking distance of the track, then either book early or be prepared to pay a LOT.

We didn't book until a few weeks ago, and the same hotel we paid £800 for 2 rooms for 5 nights last year (booking direct as soon as we knew the N24 dates), is coming up at £3400 for the same 2 rooms :headbang:

But if you're going on a stag, a whole house/apartment rental will be more appropriate, and usually more available. Maybe camping is the preferred choice, but again pre-booking is required as it gets busy...




This year we've been forced (due to cost) to stay 30 miles away...but it does mean we get a boutique hotel in a small town for a good price. It also means we get to get away from the techno music if we want a rest...but does mean less drinking.

We normally travel on the Wednesday from Cornwall, and have a lazy day on Thursday watching some practice/quali/drifting, same on Friday, before the main even Sat/Sun. I think it was 2 years ago that we walked the whole course (longer than the track due to not being able to get through some sections without diverting a long way).

There is a shuttle bus that goes around different viewing areas...but it can be really busy and you might end up just walking anyway. On the 24h weekend (Thursday to Sunday) there is a free shuttle bus service for all ticket holders. It runs to the main points on the Nordschleife and the Family & Friends Camping and shuttles to start/finish. Please expect waiting times due to traffic. The exact routes will be published on www.24h-rennen.de/en/home/.

eBikes are available, but may be in high demand during that period.

 

[beanie]

Been running mine back and forth to Italy for 12 years now and it’s always a pleasure whether you’re cruising at a good lick or giving it death on a mountain pass.

MPG tends to be around 28-30 depending on how leaden my feet are at the time. Best I saw was 36 but I’d had a slow coast down from the alps behind a truck and was curious to see just how economical it could be. I won’t be doing it again!

I wholeheartedly agree with what plenty said regarding the car working better on the continent. It’s not so much the road surface (there are plenty of crap roads once off the various motorways) but the twisting undulations of our roads that really upsets things. It seems to be a uniquely UK B-road thing that I rarely find once over the water.

The worst thing about driving abroad is returning home to our overcrowded and over controlled roads.

 

[Ed Doe]

Detailed Info

Thanks very much for that, much appreciated! I'll keep that info handy for when the time comes.

Out of interest have you done Le Mans before? If so how do the two events compare? Is one better than the other? In my head the N24 would be the wilder event as it's comparatively less well known and therefore


Also a thousand apologies OP for taking the chat off on a tangent - it's sortof related if you squint :lol:

 

[mmm-five]

Detailed Info

Thanks very much for that, much appreciated! I'll keep that info handy for when the time comes.

Out of interest have you done Le Mans before? If so how do the two events compare? Is one better than the other? In my head the N24 would be the wilder event as it's comparatively less well known and therefore


Also a thousand apologies OP for taking the chat off on a tangent - it's sortof related if you squint :lol:

Never done Le Mans as it's always seemed to me to be full of stinky French & English people showing off - N24 is much more basic/civilised

 

[CliveN]

Topics always go off piste - you know that! Anyway, we have reached our destination in southern Spain and the warmth is welcome. The 800 miles or so were generally superb and less arduous and stressful than I feared. It’s actually quite liveable with even with the low gearing and poor change between first and second. I found that it loved the smooth surfaced twisty tarmac but that it felt unsettled on roads that had ridged due to heat and truck movements. As other posters have said, not all European roads are great. Spanish can go from brilliant to terrible - usually at a regional boundary. I have been known to stay in the outside lane (but not inhibiting anyone) on the autovias (especially between Palencia and Reinosa) as the trucks have made the inside lane undriveable in a sports car. As regulars might know, sometimes dual carriageways have to used in certain instances otherwise you simply won’t get anywhere any time quickly. The roads simply don’t go in a straight line! Great for a driving day but not if you are needing to get somewhere. For the record the N502 is my favoured road down - from Avila to Cordoba. Three small towns only pretty much in 250 miles. The downside is less opportunity for coffee.

I didn’t find the inside of the car any sort of hardship. I had air con which worked, a stereo and normal controls and buttons and knobs in the usual places. The seats were good too for seven hours behind the wheel but I wasn’t travelling at track speeds.

I found the eventuri too loud so that will be going on here when I get back assuming I can remove it without disturbing the MAF - I see that a bit of the original box has been inserted into the eventuri. Please let me know if you are a guru.

Lots of space for two big squashy bags, a car supplies big bag, and replenishment comestibles (tea; Lea and Perrins etc). And all with the load cover in place.

And there are a lot more flies this year.