Nervous Potential E86 Buyer

F

FelipeFlop

Member
 Wirral
Evening all,

My personal circumstances have changed somewhat over the past couple of years, leading to me keenly eyeing up a Z4 Coupe.

I now work primarily from home (formerly a 20 mile daily commute), and my son (who lives with his mother) has now turned 18, and the regular weekend visits (which involved approx 300 motorway miles) are now increasingly sporadic, as his priorities switch to mates, girls etc.

So my previous requirement for an economical, comfortable, and reliable (boring) motor has practically disappeared. If I’m only doing 4-5k miles per year then I want to do them in something that ‘revs my engine’, if you will.

Budget circa £15k, and hoping for a highly spec’d low mileage example.

The only thing holding me back is the thought of replacing my current ageing and increasingly unreliable boring car with an ageing and potentially unreliable beautiful and exciting car…

The risk of purchasing an expensive turkey at that budget is causing me sleepless nights, but I really can’t bear the thought of ending up with a Ford Focus or another Honda Civic.

Alternatives may be a lesser spec’d E89 I guess, but I’m not totally sold on a roadster - the missus is sure I’m having a mid-life crisis as it is.

Can you put the mind of an over-thinker at rest?

Oh and thanks for having me 👍
 
£15k is a healthy budget. I wouldn’t be worried as they are very reliable cars.

Sometimes , a used well maintained car is better than a garage queen
 
Welcome to the forum. :) On the whole very reliable cars for their age. Sure you can get bills, but from experience on here they are not money pits. Running cost are what they are for a 3ltr N/a car from the noughties. I will leave it to those with far more knowledge of coupes to fill in the details. Good hunting. :thumbsup:

Edit: you mentioned roadster in your post. The roof comes down on the roadster E85. Assume that is a simple misunderstanding of the term here. :wink:
 
buzyg said:
Edit: you mentioned roadster in your post. The roof comes down on the roadster E85. Assume that is a simple misunderstanding of the term here. :wink:
Click to expand...
Oops, I hope not - I mentioned the roadster in reference to the E89 alternative to the E86 coupe… I.e. I want a hard top, so if not the coupe then the next gen of hard top roadsters. Ideally it would be the 35is but prices at the minute are crackers so they’re not really in budget at the age and spec I’d like.

Edit: ps thanks for the welcome :)
 
Buy an e86 if you like the lines, there is really nothing else like it. Apart from a few known foibles (electric water pump, ABS pump), most of which will have been replaced/sorted by now, they are very reliable cars. For £15k you are right at the top end, or at the bottom end for a Z4MC. Don’t be tempted - great cars I’ve no doubt - but rather more to run/fix.
 
Buy the best E86 you can find. At your budget you'll be buying the best. They're cracking cars, and not too much to worry about. Enjoy!
 
Zedebee said:
Buy an e86 if you like the lines, there is really nothing else like it.
Click to expand...

Exactly this. The coupe styling (in my eyes) is still achingly beautiful. Is there anything else in the market that performs that well, while looking that good, at this budget?
 
I like the coupe (e86) but the e89 is the best of both worlds and £1k is a healthy budget for a 3.0 or possibly a 35i (not iS).

Each to their own and the e86 is still a great looking car, good luck with the search
 
FelipeFlop said:
Exactly this. The coupe styling (in my eyes) is still achingly beautiful. Is there anything else in the market that performs that well, while looking that good, at this budget?
Click to expand...
Yeah, this: (thread hi-jack alert)
It's a coupe, it's got the N54 twin turbo 6 same as the E89 35is (only better), is exclusive, is beautiful and around budget. Just saying. :D
IMG_8428.JPG
 
Pondrew said:
FelipeFlop said:
Exactly this. The coupe styling (in my eyes) is still achingly beautiful. Is there anything else in the market that performs that well, while looking that good, at this budget?
Click to expand...
Yeah, this: (thread hi-jack alert)
It's a coupe, it's got the N54 twin turbo 6 same as the E89 35is (only better), is exclusive, is beautiful and around budget. Just saying. :D
IMG_8428.JPG
Click to expand...
Is that an offer?! :wink:
 
You could get a perfectly serviceable bmw e92 335i coupe for about £10k if you really wanted the n54 engine (which is understandable, its a pretty great engine)
 
I bought my e85 BECAUSE I knew I was having a mid-life crisis and it was either the convertible or a mistress. My girlfriend understood that the bimmer was a healthier choice (cheaper too) :wink:
Only piece of advice I could add: dropping the top in an e85 is always a great feeling. And we have spoken about buying a small scanner and run it on any potential buy. They may look great on the outside but the scanner will tell you about its condition inside. A minor investment that can go a long way.
 
Yes I got mine just before my 68th birthday as I thought it is now or never. You don’t now how long you’ve got to play at this age. :rofl: :thumbsup:
 
FelipeFlop said:
Exactly this. The coupe styling (in my eyes) is still achingly beautiful. Is there anything else in the market that performs that well, while looking that good, at this budget?
Click to expand...

I don't think so but as I'm on my 3rd it's possible I'm slightly biased. :roll:

Anyway I bought my first one on 54K miles and kept it 2 years until 62K. The only non-consumalble it needed was a new water pump at 60K, which is partly why I sold it.

But instant regret set in so 2 days after it went I got my second one on 77K. I kept that 3 and a half years and sold it on 91K miles. Other than servicing it only needed a new A/C condensor but that was quite likely caused by road debris.

I only bought my current MC in December 2019 because prices were much lower at the time and I got it well within your budget, although as a result that also meant I got less than half your budget for my 3.0Si!

I wouldn't recommend buying an M even if you could find one in budget unless you have a slush fund as general running costs are in a different league - although if affordable an M is really special.

Personally I'd be concerned about buying any of the twin-turbo options mentioned as they can suffer some issues at this age, although TBF Pondrew's may be an exception.

Anyway I loved the N52 engine in my 3.0Sis so in 2018 I bought a 325i daily with an N52 on 132K and ran it for a year to 139K. Only non-consumable item was a dead water pump at 135K.

But it didn't perform as well as I had hoped, so in 2019 I replaced it with another N52 but a 330i this time which is now on 116K. That needed a new oil filter housing gasket.

Regardless of mileage all of them have had really smooth engines that love to rev so I don't think you need to be too nervous about them.

Good luck anyway. :thumbsup:
 
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