Welcome Felix, also original owner of a 2004 3.0i that I bought new in Feb 04. So this Feb it will turn 10 yrs old. Only have a little over 45K miles on it and always garaged. Only major problem was the sticky steering issue that BMW finally fixed. Would like to see pics.
New boy/ Old boy
- Thread starter Felix
- Start date
post up some pics when you canBing said:Welcome to the forum - a properly used Z, congratulations on finally finding us
Perhaps consider a stubby aerial - bit of a marmite subject on here though :lol: - also spacers front and rear are real easy to fit and will sit your rims out nicely in the arches. As for phone / music connectivity - with the CD changer and nav you should consider an Intravee 2 and Alpine unit. Compatible with iPhones / iPods, allows full integration with the audio system, real easy to fit, uses the cd changer connection that you can't use anyway, and allows access to lots of other things that you'd normally need to programme like side lights as DRLs, one touch 3 blink (or more) indicators, auto-lock of the doors and a bunch more. There was one for sale in the Z4 related items section at a good price. One of my favourite mods is the Gaptech one-touch / remote hood control that removes the need to hold the button down, and allows you to open / close the hood easily from the key fob. Also very easy to fit.
I'd better stop as I think I've managed to try and spend about £400 of your money in one paragraph
Thanks for the advice Bing. I've seen a lot (as a guest viewer on forums before joining here) of people recommending the Intravee 2 / Alpine unit combo (420i??). Is this still the best solution? I've seen it being recommended back c4 years ago has nothing better come along since? Is it only available second-hand, I've never seen new? I have an iPhone 4 at present but plan to upgrade to the 5s soon - is it compatible? Can you get a lightning lead for it, or do you have to resort to the ugly short converter cable? Will my Bluetooth still pick up calls to the iPhone whilst connected to the Intravee for music? Is there an alternative to the Spec Dock for astray mounting - £99 (new) seems a bit steep? Sorry about all of the questions, feel free to refer me to an existing thread, I'm sure I'm not being original!
Having Googled the Gaptech mod, it is certainly on the shopping list. Budget may mean that it is a Phase 2 item, as paint and wheels are priority 1....
Welcome! Such dedication... I had my zed for all of 3 months and then had to cut it open. such is life! Looking forward to some pics!
Felix said:
Ok, don't know all the answers but there is loads in the how-to audio section of the forum (and elsewhere) about the Intravee. Starter for 10 -
- As far as I know there is nothing better - some people use Denison, but I don't know anything about that.
- You can buy new from here - http://www.toysinyourcar.com. All the bits are quite a lot more expensive new, second hand should have no issues and cost between £160 & £180 on here, more on eBay.
- I have a 4s, but I believe the 5 is compatible, you just need to ensure you have the right adaptor for power. Not sure about the lightning cable. The site above should help, or ask on an existing thread.
- Yes Bluetooth works - little quirk though, you need to use the steering wheel button to answer calls otherwise the phone will route audio through the handset. Confused the hell out of me for a while.
- no idea about the Spec Dock ashtray mount - I use a Brodit Mount which is specifically designed for the Z4 dash, no screws. You need the mount and also the specific cradle for the type of phone/case combo that you have. See here for the mount : http://www.brodit.com/product.html?id=653655&pn=prod&brand=BMW&model=Z4&year=2006. Should cost you less than £50 for the mount and the cradle depending on what type of the latter you want. Here's a couple of pics of it installed in my car :
Bing said:
I have a specdock - searched for an alternative for some time, there wasn't anything out there. I built my own initially using a pass through cable and old ashtray, plus some plastic padding. Managed to source a cheap specdock last year and Luke got my old one.
Specdocks are great, but beware that the phone may disconnect from the connectors with some spirited driving, and need reseating.
