Might be close to picking!

Trader car will give you some comfort that if anything goes wrong, you can pressure them to fix it.

Don't listen to anyone who tells you that mileage is a major factor. One forum member saw 240k miles in his zed, before someone smashed into it and wrote it off. Condition and service history are key. The more receipts available the better. Unless its on intergalactic mileage, judge the car on its condition.

Good luck




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Jonny essex said:
danmiddle2 said:
Jonny essex said:
I would say save to get a better zed rather then get a cheaper one but i know money for sum is a prob. My zed is loved just not a daily driver thus the low miles and my 10k modding Project exceeds the value of most E85s as a car which i understand but i would spend what i need to for wot i want but then i can cos ive saved....total spend for my zed is 40k so im sure most can find 9-10k for a top notch 2nd hand Zed. :thumbsup:
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What a stupid argument... you could say the same for someone spending £9-10k... saving another few £k and get a better one, that argument doesn't end until you're buying a mint Veyron!

Also, I know this is a car forum - but some choose to spend their money on other interests instead / as well.
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Hes buying a Zed and a E85 so theres a cap and 9-10 is that cap. And i agree you may have other interests, mine is work work work work thus me spending a f***ing crazy amount on my Zed......but thats my interest. :wink:
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9-10k the cap? http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2009-BMW-Z4-BMW-Z4-3-0si-Sport-2dr-Petrol-/190831384971?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item2c6e6fd98b or http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2005-BMW-Z4-2-2i-SE-Roadster-left-hand-drive-lhd-/171057467468?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item27d3d1d04c

But then if you're spending that much, why not stretch a little and get an E89.... and so it goes on.
 
what ever you get make sue you HPI check its only £30 for 3.
I think you would be surprised how many cat Ds there are, ive I looked at many z4s with a mechanic friend. my budget was super low. he looked at one checked the oil and it was brownish which he said was possibly head gasket
 
Thanks guys.

As always these car forums are brilliant.

Well. I'm doing A LOT of miles tomorrow. So the local specialist will vary depending where I find a car that interests me.

This one I've seen in Bristol actually seems pretty good. 54 with 85K. Full non bmw service history, black z4 with AMAZING bodywork. Bit over priced at 7k. especially as it doesnt have many gadgets.

Anyone have any good tips? I've seen the thread on here about buying one & have printed it off to use as a check list.

Am I right that the rear bushes and roof motors are the most likely things to break? Also, never having had a soft top before. When there are small ''nicks'' and ebrasions on the roof. Is this generally an issue? Not deeps cuts or anything mind.
 
AlanJ's buyers guide is good, take a print off with you.

Don't accept a roof with any cuts/tears - a new roof skin isn't cheap. If the roof motor hasn't been replaced already (I would ask for receipts), then you make sure you prepare yourself in case it does fail. My car had just had the roof motor replaced a few months before buying, which was a comfort.

The rear springs are the other thing that are likely to break (one of mine snapped last week!). Quite a few forum members upgrade to lowering springs if they snap, as lowering springs usually come with a longer warranty - BMW springs have 2 yr warranty, vs 5 yrs + from most other spring manufacturers.

Good luck :thumbsup:
 
Take your time, check absolutely everything on the car whatever doesn't work use this as a basis for lowering the cost down I know it's obvious but some people dont check everything I've managed to drop price by a fair bit this way
 
So literally don't accept ANY rips or tears on the roof? To be honest a rip or tear is quite extreme for what it actually was. It's hard to explain, but I'm sure a couple of you have roofs like it. It's almost like the very, very, very top layer has taken a slight nick to it.

How much were the motors again? general roof repair was mega bucks? 700-1k? I assume this would be covered by a garage warranty though.

What I'd do if i bought from a garage is make them sign some paperwork with the common Z4 issues on and if they would fix it under warranty. I.e roof motor.
 
I would go for the lowest millage possible (if there are enough proofs that the millage is not clocked) and make sure to do an HPI test. I almost bought an SLK a few weeks before buying the Zed and although the condition looked superb , the millage was ~20k and the price was good it turned out to be a Category D. It was a car imported in Cyprus from the UK as second hand an luckily the UK number plates were still on and the HPI test revealed everything. Something to bear in mind that I learned last year at the vehicle propulsion technology course for my mechanical engineering degree is that engine life is affected by the number of starts it has made more than by the millage it has done. So a high millage car that did more highway driving will have an engine that is in better condition than an equivalently millage engine that did in town driving - small journeys and had to be started more times. You can find this info at: John L. Lumley, 'Engines: An Introduction', Cambridge University Press, 1999 for those interested in engines. High millage will affect all the components and parts of the vehicle though.
Good luck with your search :thumbsup:
 
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