MY bmw z4, still worth it ?

[helalo]

hey everyone
i bought a 2003 bmw z4 convertible 2.5i for 13,000$ about a year ago.its steptronic with sport package. the car has 94,000 , when i first got it it was at 81,000 i think. its my first car.
over time, the car costed me a lot of money to maintain. looking over this year this is what i did to the car :
-new battery..not the cheap ones.
-4 new performance tires
- new brakes
-a fix to a leak in my radiator.
- a fix to a rim crack ( tiny crack) by fusing the metal instead of buying a whole new brand rim. it caused damage to a 4 days old new tire, so i bought another tire.
-excessive white smoke coming out of my car exhaust when i change the shop changes my oil and VERY rarely and randomly when i start the car ( little white smoke comes out then goes away) but a huge amount of white smoke when they change my oil.

what left damaged on the car :
trunk tail light is damaged badly on both left and right ends..the trunk light not the car taillights.
i think the belts needs to be replaced ( i get random vibrations when car is idel )
front lower end bumper is damaged ( this is my mistake ) - the bottom of the front bumper is damaged and a small piece of paint came out and the plastic hanging out like its a tumor on the car.
2 back rims have weird damage on the edges. as if someone was drifting with no tires on , just the rims.

i spent about 3-4.5 thousand dollar on the car in maintaince. it ate my money and im really dissapointed. the car that i choose was a bad one it seems, and it was my first car so lesson learned.
question is, do u guys think i should repair everything and rebuild the damaged parts and keep the car keeping in mind its condition...94,000 miles. is it still worth it ? if not...i might as well just sell it for a burning loss-price for me and buy a 330ci 02-05 or a volkswagon GTI 06-08. im honestly scared of the car now, i look at it outside my house window and i would hate to let it go but s**t.....so many problems

p.s : it might help making up an asnwer if anyone knows whats the deal with the white smoke when oil is changed and the random vibration when idel. expensive to fix ? if so, its gonna affect my decision if i should keep the car or sell it.

 

[Adamski]

Hi - welcome to the forum

Sorry to hear that your first post is to report problems.

I would suspect from your post that the car has not been well maintained by the previous owner. Generally, if well maintained, a Z4 should prove to be a reliable car.

If you've gone this far fixing the car, I personally wouldn't sell it. You may end up buying another car with even more problems to fix. Better the devil you know.

Would be nice if you could introduce yourself with some pictures in the newbies section


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[helalo]

Hi - welcome to the forum

Sorry to hear that your first post is to report problems.

I would suspect from your post that the car has not been well maintained by the previous owner. Generally, if well maintained, a Z4 should prove to be a reliable car.

If you've gone this far fixing the car, I personally wouldn't sell it. You may end up buying another car with even more problems to fix. Better the devil you know.

Would be nice if you could introduce yourself with some pictures in the newbies section


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

i will do that.
ill upload pictures of my car on here..........if i decide to keep it i might as well start a project to enchant the car.

 

[Liam-O]

With an expensive car comes great responsibility. It will never be cheap to fix it, but once all is fine, it will put a smile on your face and you will know you made the right choice.

 

[helalo]

With an expensive car comes great responsibility. It will never be cheap to fix it, but once all is fine, it will put a smile on your face and you will know you made the right choice.

at this point, is my car still worth going through the trouble of repair payments and all that considering its age and mileage ? or should i just move on to a 330ci or GTI..

 

[bcworkz]

Tires, battery, brakes are all wear and tear items. Sorry you had to pay for all recently, but replacement is inevitable, don't let these set you against your car.

The vibration is unlikely belts, maybe a misfire, so plugs or coil packs or injectors.

Is the white smoke really white and sort of disappears, or is it bluish white that drifts and disperses? This is the biggest concern. If you're not consuming oil or coolant though, you may get by with ignoring it for now.

The other issues are mostly cosmetic and do not affect drive-ability, repair when you have spare cash.

You know the 330 is sort of the same car with different body? What body style do you really want of the three?

 

[Bing]

Hi - welcome to the forum

Sorry to hear that your first post is to report problems.

I would suspect from your post that the car has not been well maintained by the previous owner. Generally, if well maintained, a Z4 should prove to be a reliable car.

If you've gone this far fixing the car, I personally wouldn't sell it. You may end up buying another car with even more problems to fix. Better the devil you know.

Would be nice if you could introduce yourself with some pictures in the newbies section


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Agree with Adamski - you've invested so much, if I were you I'd want to enjoy the investment now it's almost fixed - don't throw your money away by selling it. Tail lights and wheels can be fixed - eBay for cosmetic parts... If nothing else, finishing off making it into the car you wanted to buy will teach you even more, and eventually you'll be able to stand back, hands on hips, and say "I did that"

There are things I missed when I bought my car - a couple of schoolboy errors as it was the first car I had actually bought too. Still some to fix, but I take great peasure in what I have done already, and can't wait to get it perfect. keep driving it, and use this place to feel the love

Also as Adamski says, pics in the newbies section required ASAP !

 

[tomscott]

Ye everything that you describe apart from the smoke and body work is just wear and tear... What do you expect with a 10 year old car with that milage!? At the milage parts need changing... doesn't matter what vehicle you have. But does sound like its had a hard life.. but that was your decision when you bought it, just make sure next time you are in the market to buy a car get it checked or look for tell tale signs. Maybe buy one with a warranty then you wouldn't have had to spend a dime when things go wrong.

Sorry to hear about the bad luck a leaky radiator and a cracked rim, they are unfortunate and unpredictable repairs.

It sounds like it needs a good service, take it to a BMW garage or an independent. When was the last time it was serviced? Have its service intervals been done at the correct milage? That could be the reason, it does sound like spark plugs. These cars are bulletproof but only when they are serviced correctly and at specific milage.

A 330ci would be a backward step tbh unless you need 4 seats and a GTI good car but not in the same league.

In terms of body work just be careful with it! Look after it and it will look after you.

 

[bigshurv]

Most of the expenditure has been for wear and tear items,not failures.Sounds like the rims need a refurb,and the car a good service. A new set of plugs (if the ones fitted are old) will make it run like a dream. When mine had its inspection2, it was like a new car afterwards,so much smoother.Stixk with it,sounds like a good car that you purchased at the point at which it needed some maintenance.Prob why it was put up for sale.

 

[helalo]

i guess, im rethinking again if i should sell it or not since i put a lot of money on it. i`d hate to not finish what i started on the car but then again, i get comments and advises from people around "just get a 330ci manual and get it over with" and in a way i would be "yea i guess so" :| and secretly im wishing my car was a hardtop instead of a convertible since i drive it with the roof closed most of the time, i dont like the top when its closed

p.s : does anyone have a good website for aftermarket products for bmw`s ? carbon goods, rims , spoilers , etc etc...as long as their service is in USA