New Z4M owner, pointers appreciated

[ncrossy1980]

Hey guys, it's a privilege to be the owner of a 2006 Z4M Roadster, I collect it this coming Friday. I've previously owed a Z4 2.0SE which was awesome, but this is where I've always wanted to be and now that I had the cash to buy one outright, yolo and all that

What I would really appreciate is some helpful pointers towards websites or companies who provide parts & components for the Z4M, I'm in the UK, Newcastle Upon Tyne.

What I mean is, the model I've chosen isn't 'perfect', mechanically it's sweet as a nut, 64k miles, it had it's 1200 mile service and subsequently FSH, but for example the interior is somewhat "worn" and I'm a perfectionist. I want to slowly restore it back to something close to pristine. For example the steering wheel controls have been used by someone who obviously had a thumb ring, so the plastic is worn down to the white base material, the center console between the gear stick and handbrake is heavily chipped and scratched, also the carpets might have seen better days, asides from sourcing from a breakers yard are there any good sites who offer refurbished/replacement parts such as this and others? Preferably I'd like to keep it all as standard as possible, I saw this as an investment purchase rather than a toy to spruce up and ruin, it'll be a second car to me as I also own a F30 320d Sport which will be my daily runner :driving:

Thanks in advance, and it's a genuine honour to own one of these magnificent machines

Edit to my first post, I still haven't collected it yet but this is the bad boy here. I've just flicked over the forum rules and this is apparently a requirement 8)

 

[DPG]

Congratulations on your new purchase.

Wouldn't happen to be the Interlagos Blue one advertised at EH?

 

[Beedub]

Hi ncrossy!! nice to have a new member here!! we seem to be getting busy again in this //M section..

don't worry, luckily all the pieces you've mentioned are relatively inexpensive and you'll have you car looking as good as new, for new oem pieces i tend to go to bmwmini parts... they are great. how about some pics.

 

[AlanJ]

Hi and welcome to the Forum

 

[Mad Professor]

If as you say it's going to be an investment purchase then the likelihood is that you're going to be rathher disappointed especially if you start tipping money into the car ,ie you won't see that back .
After all it's just another modern car which is going to depreciate albeit quite slowly now . There are some deluded folk on here who believe the car already classic status and that it will appreciate in value ,which is simply nonsense in the short to medium term .
It is however an lovely car to own and and an exciting to car to drive and so I can appreciate why you're feeling rather chuffed .
Nonetheless I hope you enjoy the car and above all be safe .

 

[a340driver]

Hi ncrossy

All I would say is drive it whenever you can. Mine has the same wear and tear as yours. Since I've owned it (2 years) there hasn't been any appreciable change it the condition as I'm pretty careful. Mines gone from 32k to 48k I think. They're pretty robust.

I still plan on a front end respray for the paint chips and a re-trim for the steering wheel but like you I'll have to get the button surrounds sorted out. The leather on the seats comes up beautifully if you use a few products on it.

The engine is great, very reliable and don't worry about using the full rev range. That's what it was designed to do and for me it's the defining aspect of the car.

When I bought the car I was determined to keep it it perfect but the driving experience has kept that from happening. Now it's going to do another summer and get tarted up next winter........maybe.

Welcome to the Z4M and ........enjoy!

 

[Darren Slone]

Hi and welcome along

Get some pics up ASAP ! :driving:

 

[RickRob]

Hi and welcome!

You will find lots of advice on here on how to "invest" a lot more money. It wouldn't surprise me in the least if a member had the specific items you want, in pristine condition, still in the box in their garage - it's that kind of place!

Make sure you collect it before it gets dark and take a camera with you, as pics will be required before 7:00pm

Enjoy :driving:

 

[srhutch]

Hi and welcome. Carpet is standard across the Z4 range do should be cheap enough to change. New spoke for the steering wheel are £120 from memory. Clean off the rubber with neat IPA though and respray in Matt black they will be close enough.

 

[ncrossy1980]

Hey guys, thanks for the replies, I figured I would have had an email to say someone had replied to the post but nothing came through!
@dpg Yeh it's the one at EH in Sunderland, the blue one, please don't tell me you've taken a look at it and there was something severely wrong with it! Actually, I've only laid down the deposit so technically I can still walk away, so do tell if there's something that you know of!
And although I'm relatively inexperienced within the Z4 community, I happen to disagree with the guy above who said they won't become classics and collectables. Who would have predicted a pristine Escort RS Turbo which was common as muck back in the 90s would now fetch between 10-20k for a one in good condition. Who knows. The Z3M coupe is now soaring in value if you have a mint one. But I'm not in a position to argue with anyone about that, I'll just keep it in tip top shape and see how it goes
Just a quick edit, I wasn't expecting to turn a profit Mike Brewer Wheeler Dealer style in the short term. But I'm fairly confident that these will become rare and desirable, obviously nowhere near the level of more prestige brands but as long as it doesn't depreciate into the ground like an old Mondeo, I'll be happy.
Oh and again to the guy who mentioned he'd spotted the car at Evans Halshaw, I've instructed them to acid dip refurbish all 4 wheels as they were quite badly corroded, the leather interior is going to be buffed, the air con needed gassing and the exterior mirrors have an intermittent fault. A few other stone chips and scuffs here and there but nothing that one can really kick off about on a 9 year old car!

 

[paulgs1000]

If as you say it's going to be an investment purchase then the likelihood is that you're going to be rathher disappointed especially if you start tipping money into the car ,ie you won't see that back .
After all it's just another modern car which is going to depreciate albeit quite slowly now . There are some deluded folk on here who believe the car already classic status and that it will appreciate in value ,which is simply nonsense in the short to medium term .
It is however an lovely car to own and and an exciting to car to drive and so I can appreciate why you're feeling rather chuffed .
Nonetheless I hope you enjoy the car and above all be safe .

Well :? I would have thought if any Z4 was to become a classic it has to be the Z4M? Similarly, if you want to have minimum loss then the ///M is the version to invest in.
They are getting to the stage where they will at least hold their money as there is no replacement - E89 don't think it will have the same following - this is the end of a line. . . .

In the long run I can see the ///M version being recognised as a classic - get one while you can. . . . .

:driving:

 

[Mad Professor]

Ok in the long run yes maybe it will become a collectors classic but we're talking about keeping it say for another 10-15 years . Being realistic how many people are going to hang on to their M for that long ,I'd say about 1-2 per cent .
So I stick by what I said that for the present its a modern desirable roadster which is approaching the plateau of its deprecation curve ,depending on a number of factors like condition ,mileage etc . Then you have to factor in ongoing costs like road tax ,insurance ,maintenance ,fuel ,and then if you do hard math ,it's obviously not an investment per se . If you buy a pristine example now and put it in a Cacoon ,assuming you have the space ,and then come back in 2030 when you've got grey hair, several chins , and arthritis , then I guess it may be worth a tidy sum ,but probably not as much as if you tied up your 12 k in a mutual fund ISA or even in property ,art etc . So enjoy the car for what it is and realise it's an expemsive toy to enjoy ,but an investment it certainly is not .
I'm not meaning to be rude or disrespectful to you or any other proud M owners ,just trying to put a bit of pragmatism into the argument .

 

[Mad Professor]

BTW I omitted to say that your new roadster looks a lovely car at a sensible price .You must be rather excited about getting it back home . Be safe and drive carefully .

 

[ncrossy1980]

BTW I omitted to say that your new roadster looks a lovely car at a sensible price .You must be rather excited about getting it back home . Be safe and drive carefully .

Yea and thanks, I totally understand the point of view you're coming from. Although I was just flicking through the thread for the "M Watch" and nobody mentioned this one, so I'm slightly concerned I might have jumped in too hastily. I have a feeling it might be a low spec ///M as people have mentioned extended leather, parking sensors, cruise control, if I'm honest I didn't even think to check if the car had the likes of cruise control when I was test driving it. But where do you stop, I had set myself I budget, I couldn't justify paying out near £17k cash for a low mileage coupe with 30k miles which is also ~9 years old as most others are showing up as. The £17k price bracket can get you something subjectively just as good (if you're not a hardcore BMW fan), almost as fast, and a lot newer (Focus RS for example). So I think £11.5k for a ///M even with what might be a low spec is still a good buy I reckon, 64k miles is still very low miles for the age, and I'm tempted to fork out for a full warranty as I imagine core components on a car like this can be sky high. I'm open to being told otherwise though!

 

[mr wilks]

Don't flap OP , the longer time goes by the less value will be placed in the extras you may or may not have , mileage will be your friend along with the price you paid :wink: drive it , maintain it & above all cherish it & the car will hold its own
As for a "investment" :? i think not but it is a nice place to have your cash when you do need it back

 

[ncrossy1980]

Don't flap OP , the longer time goes by the less value will be placed in the extras you may or may not have , mileage will be your friend along with the price you paid :wink: drive it , maintain it & above all cherish it & the car will hold its own
As for a "investment" :? i think not but it is a nice place to have your cash when you do need it back

Yea that was kinda what I meant, I probably didn't articulate it correctly.
I've noticed that BMW have a "dot" which appears on the dash if the mileage has been tampered with, does anyone have a link to what this looks like on the Z4M or if in fact the Z4M has this function?

 

[Mad Professor]

BTW I omitted to say that your new roadster looks a lovely car at a sensible price .You must be rather excited about getting it back home . Be safe and drive carefully .

Yea and thanks, I totally understand the point of view you're coming from. Although I was just flicking through the thread for the "M Watch" and nobody mentioned this one, so I'm slightly concerned I might have jumped in too hastily. I have a feeling it might be a low spec ///M as people have mentioned extended leather, parking sensors, cruise control, if I'm honest I didn't even think to check if the car had the likes of cruise control when I was test driving it. But where do you stop, I had set myself I budget, I couldn't justify paying out near £17k cash for a low mileage coupe with 30k miles which is also ~9 years old as most others are showing up as. The £17k price bracket can get you something subjectively just as good (if you're not a hardcore BMW fan), almost as fast, and a lot newer (Focus RS for example). So I think £11.5k for a ///M even with what might be a low spec is still a good buy I reckon, 64k miles is still very low miles for the age, and I'm tempted to fork out for a full warranty as I imagine core components on a car like this can be sky high. I'm open to being told otherwise though!

Forget the spec or the interior as you can always attend to that kind of trivia later if you want ,what reLly matters are the mechanicals and sercice history , and at the end of the day when you get in the M it gives you that tingle factor ,and when you get out of it whether you're still grinning ,and if you can't get it out of your head .
If this isn't going to be your daily runner ,then ask your self are you really going to use cruise on a fun car for occasional blats , and same applies to parking sensors ,heated seats ,posh ICE ,extended leather ,outdated sat nav , and other irrelevant extras IMHO .Ok so they are nice to have but they don't really add that much value .
So I agree that it's a lot of car for 11,5k especially when you compare it what else is out there for that kind of money in a sexy too of the range beast of a roadster . You will by law get a three month warranty anyway so if if anything goes wrong you've got come back ,and you're buying from a reputable dealer , so don't worrry .

 

[Mad Professor]

The other thing you could do for peace of mind is maybe to ring the previous owner .I did this ( bit cheeky I know ) but luckily like me he was an enthusiast and proud owner who was totally OCD about his car ,and when he told me in minute detail what had been done in his ownership ,I knew that it was the one for me . I had done my homework so I had a checklist of the usual suspects that I was looking for, which you can find on this forum in a sticky . And like I said its coming from a reputable dealer which is good news in terms of any come back . They will have HPId the car and it will have been through their workshop ,so ask for a detailed report on exactly what was found when they inspected the car .

 

[ncrossy1980]

The other thing you could do for peace of mind is maybe to ring the previous owner .I did this ( bit cheeky I know ) but luckily like me he was an enthusiast and proud owner who was totally OCD about his car ,and when he told me in minute detail what had been done in his ownership ,I knew that it was the one for me . I had done my homework so I had a checklist of the usual suspects that I was looking for, which you can find on this forum in a sticky . And like I said its coming from a reputable dealer which is good news in terms of any come back . They will have HPId the car and it will have been through their workshop ,so ask for a detailed report on exactly what was found when they inspected the car .

Wow, how did you go about getting the details and number for the previous owner? I can't imagine the dealer would have handed that info over, data protection madness and all that?

 

[ncrossy1980]

The other thing you could do for peace of mind is maybe to ring the previous owner .I did this ( bit cheeky I know ) but luckily like me he was an enthusiast and proud owner who was totally OCD about his car ,and when he told me in minute detail what had been done in his ownership ,I knew that it was the one for me . I had done my homework so I had a checklist of the usual suspects that I was looking for, which you can find on this forum in a sticky . And like I said its coming from a reputable dealer which is good news in terms of any come back . They will have HPId the car and it will have been through their workshop ,so ask for a detailed report on exactly what was found when they inspected the car .

Oh and the Evans Halshaw branch are offering a 2 year warranty for £899, considering the likes of Warranty Wise just quoted nearly £2k, I think that's a bargain. I'd need to check the small print though.