Will you be driving the car over winter? Something to bear in mind would be if you are someone who keeps their fun weekend car tucked up over winter you can always SORN it, so the tax cost of the bigger engines will not be as nasty. But that's up to whether you'd be taking it off the road when the salt comes out.
N00b to owner in 5.9 seconds
- Thread starter Swampy1982
- Start date
Inkey$ Suggested “Get the 3.0 - and ideally a manual and ideally the Si as opposed to the SE as at the very least got nicer sport seats.”
Si is an engine spec available on the N52 engine when 2.5si and 3.0si. SE is a trim level which all pre facelift models are. Facelift models are available in SE and Sport and both can have the Si engines.
Si is an engine spec available on the N52 engine when 2.5si and 3.0si. SE is a trim level which all pre facelift models are. Facelift models are available in SE and Sport and both can have the Si engines.
except a 3.0si at a 4k budget would be a little ambitious, not sure Ive seen any dip that low unless a real dog. occasionally you do see a 2.5si albeit a bit leggy.. think 80k+ at the 4/4.5k ask which is decent first zed territory.. imho 4k will get you a fairly decent 3.0 pre facelift or a 2.5 facelift, either are fine motors but the facelift 2.5si sport will generally get you a few more goodies like m sport seats and steering wheel.. 2.5si 218bhp and 3.0 235 bhp (roughly, cant remember exact figures) but not a great deal in it
Worth filtering through the old classifieds on the forum OP and you will get a good feel for what your budget will get you
Worth filtering through the old classifieds on the forum OP and you will get a good feel for what your budget will get you
Swampy1982
Member
mr.tourette said:except a 3.0si at a 4k budget would be a little ambitious, not sure Ive seen any dip that low unless a real dog. occasionally you do see a 2.5si albeit a bit leggy.. think 80k+ at the 4/4.5k ask which is decent first zed territory.. imho 4k will get you a fairly decent 3.0 pre facelift or a 2.5 facelift, either are fine motors but the facelift 2.5si sport will generally get you a few more goodies like m sport seats and steering wheel.. 2.5si 218bhp and 3.0 235 bhp (roughly, cant remember exact figures) but not a great deal in it
Worth filtering through the old classifieds on the forum OP and you will get a good feel for what your budget will get you
Strangely this is the conclusion I'm reaching from classified ads, 4k is on the cusp. I'm thinking as long as I get 6 cylinders I can't go too far wrong for my use case.
Reference SORNing these, do people put these cars on battery conditioners / trickle chargers?
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/303792537347
They’re out there. Plus with Brexit/Covid etc there will be more as we head towards springtime and people want to offload what is often a non-essential expense. Take your time, put out the call when ready and somebody will be willing to sell and take your £4k.
They’re out there. Plus with Brexit/Covid etc there will be more as we head towards springtime and people want to offload what is often a non-essential expense. Take your time, put out the call when ready and somebody will be willing to sell and take your £4k.
Swampy1982
Member
inkey$ said:
I'd seen that one - looks great value considering the apparent service history, roof motor relocation etc.
Its car's like this that are frustrating when you havent got cash in hand - i'd 100% be giving them a call and chatting about the car otherwise.
I would have thought this is a great time to buy too - I was expecting prices to increase the closer we get to spring... roof goes down, price goes up...
inkey$ said:
AFAIK, the N52 engine (si spec) wasn't introduced until late 2005, early 2006. Therefore, that is not a 3.0si, but a 3.0i with the M54 engine (better IMO but I am totally biased
).I think I forgot to mention above, at some point between finding the car and paying for it you should definitely get a full history car check done. They're pretty cheap nowadays too. I have occasionally done a few history checks before travelling a long way to view a car (Scotland) and glad I did, saved me a trip!
Swampy1982
Member
TheDan said:inkey$ said:
AFAIK, the N52 engine (si spec) wasn't introduced until late 2005, early 2006. Therefore, that is not a 3.0si, but a 3.0i with the M54 engine (better IMO but I am totally biased
Thats interesting knowledge - I hadn't realised - is there a way that you can tell for sure - is it just a case of decoding the VIN?
Swampy1982 said:TheDan said:inkey$ said:
AFAIK, the N52 engine (si spec) wasn't introduced until late 2005, early 2006. Therefore, that is not a 3.0si, but a 3.0i with the M54 engine (better IMO but I am totally biased
Thats interesting knowledge - I hadn't realised - is there a way that you can tell for sure - is it just a case of decoding the VIN?
For sure it is an M54 3.0i spec since its a 2004 model. If its a 2005/2006 model and you aren't sure then yeah a VIN decoder is the safest way.
Despite that, based on the mileage and description it seems a pretty well priced example of a 3.0i.
Swampy1982
Member
Zedebee said:
Thats good to know, thanks for sharing - in the "real world" is there a significant improvement in performance?
I am almost certain I will aim for a 3.0 but if a 2.5 comes up with the right spec for everything else then i wouldn't want to rule it out.
I hear everyone when they say I might as well get the 3.0 as the running costs etc arent that different, but interested to hear from you because you have a chance to run them back to back to compare.
Another thing to note is that the pre facelift 2.5i actually had more bhp than the post facelift 2.5i. I had a post facelift 2.5i and it was excellent! The 3.0si coupe is just ‘more excellent’ ;-)
I would say - look out for a good car. If it’s been well maintained and looked after and ticks all the boxes, you’re better off with that than a scruffy 3.0 for the sake of it being a 3.0....
I would say - look out for a good car. If it’s been well maintained and looked after and ticks all the boxes, you’re better off with that than a scruffy 3.0 for the sake of it being a 3.0....
Swampy1982 said:
Yep, a few one here do it including me. I've SORN'd every winter & put on a CTek conditioner. I usually do it from November & tax it in March. This year though she's been SORN'd since the beginning of October. I've probably done less than 500 miles this year due to the Covid
.
North West Surrey
Swampy1982 said:
When I bought my 1st Coupe (N52 3.0Si engine) I had an E46 325ti (M54 2.5i) as a daily and other than the difference in size they both drove really well - the N52 engine just revs a bit higher to 7,000 rpm whereas I think it's 6,500 for the M54.
Then when I had my 2nd 3.0Si Coupe I swapped the daily for an E91 325i, so an N52 engine the same as a facelift 2.5Si but I replaced that with an E90 330i Saloon last year with a 3 litre N52.
All my 3 Series were on 6 figure mileages, but I had no major issues with any of them.
One thing to bear in mind is that the N52 engines have an electric water pump which will fail at some point, and a new one costs around £250. So if you find a car that's already had one that is a bonus or if not budget for that possibility! (I've needed 2 on my four N52s).
Not a fair comparison really because my Coupe is 4 year younger, half the miles and four times the price! However, to answer your question . . . at the top end the 265bhp 3.0Si is undoubtedly quicker than the 192bhp pre-facelift 2.5i; but in the real world the “grunt” is similar. On a country road, I wouldn’t say the bigger engine is noticeably quicker. Both are fantastically smooth straight 6 engines with a great soundtrack. My son’s roadster has the backbox deleted, so it sounds faster than it is, especially with the top down.Swampy1982 said:
For what it’s worth I’d rather have an early, well looked after 2.5i (or even a 2.2i, but not a 4-cyl 2.0), than a ropey 3.0 for the same money. I’m sure most of the forum members would agree. That said, some very reasonable looking 3.0si examples do come up from time to time.
Swampy1982
Member
So, the physical research began. I was on the way to B+Q and spotted a z4 on the forecourt of a garage.
I popped in and said i was just browsing but he offered to open her up for me to sit in.
Was a leggy 2.2 with 125k miles and non sports seats etc. But I took the offer to sit in it and it just felt right. I dont know what I was expecting but the seating position and feel was just right.
Its at this point I heeded advice from a poster from above and thanked the dealer for his time and walked away.
Easy to fall in love with these cars isn't it! When the time comes I'm going to struggle to be objective!
I popped in and said i was just browsing but he offered to open her up for me to sit in.
Was a leggy 2.2 with 125k miles and non sports seats etc. But I took the offer to sit in it and it just felt right. I dont know what I was expecting but the seating position and feel was just right.
Its at this point I heeded advice from a poster from above and thanked the dealer for his time and walked away.
Easy to fall in love with these cars isn't it! When the time comes I'm going to struggle to be objective!
Swampy1982
Member
N00b question #46
Do all z4's come with isofix in the passenger seat or is it an option?
Cash now very close to being released, as soon as its landed I will put a wanted add out, will be for a 2.5 or 3.0 manual with a good evidenced history and hopefully roof motor relocated - and I will see what's out there. Budget 4-5k
Do all z4's come with isofix in the passenger seat or is it an option?
Cash now very close to being released, as soon as its landed I will put a wanted add out, will be for a 2.5 or 3.0 manual with a good evidenced history and hopefully roof motor relocated - and I will see what's out there. Budget 4-5k
4-5k is bang on the money for a 2.5si facelift or a decent pre facelift 3.0, maybe even a leggy 3.0si at the top end of your budget so do hang tight for a good forum car.. i think they all come with isofix every car ive looked at certainly seemed to have it, I'm not 100% on that though