Newbie looking for a 3.0 E85 - now found

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wonkydonkey

Senior member
 Somerset
Evening forum folks :D I've joined the forum as I'm currently looking for my first Z4 Roadster, having ruled out the 350Z, S2000 and Boxster as "second car" options. I've been to see a few cars now but the search continues. Hoping to get my hands on a 3.0 manual for under £6,000 if possible. See you all around!
 
Sensible budget. You should find a decent 3.0 with a little patience. Mind this sunshine will add a few quid to your bill. 8) Welcome on board. :thumbsup:
 
Hi and welcome to the forum.

You shouldn't have a problem finding a good 3.0 manual within your budget.

But bear in mind there was a facelift in early 2006 and you might struggle to find a facelift model, unless you don't mind it being a bit leggy.

The most significant difference was the change of engines.

Pre-facelifts are designated 3.0i and use the M54 engine with 231 bhp.

Facelifts are designated 3.0Si and use the N52 engine with 265 bhp.

I think the later engine suits the Z4 better - it revs higher and produces more power! But it has a couple of irritating foibles - there is no dipstick, you check engine oil level via a sensor by pressing a button on the dash. And it has an electric water pump, so when it fails it tends to just stop and wherever you buy a replacement it will be the wrong side of £200.

There are usually a few cars for sale on here, and they're more likely to have had an enthusiast owner so it's not a bad place to start.

Anyway good luck finding the right one for you. :thumbsup: And when you have don't forget we like photos!

ETA I just read your post on "bbrys" thread - you could always consider a facelift 2.5Si. It's got the newer N52 engine just in 2.5 litre form and 218 bhp so not much behind the older 3.0i - just make sure you avoid the facelift 2.5i as it's got 177 bhp IIRC!
 
buzyg said:
Sensible budget. You should find a decent 3.0 with a little patience. Mind this sunshine will add a few quid to your bill. 8) Welcome on board. :thumbsup:
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You're not kidding about the sunshine tax! Curses! Thanks for the welcome :thumbsup:
 
Mr Tidy said:
Helpful info etc
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Thanks for that. I've driven the 3.0i and 3.0si now and do prefer the facelifted car overall, but in truth would be happy with either. At my budget it's a general juggling act between age, mileage, spec and condition. Good history is a must, but when it comes to those other four attributes I can't have them all!
 
wonkydonkey said:
Good history is a must, but when it comes to those other four attributes I can't have them all!
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Yeah, that's always the problem!

FWIW the N52 engine in the facelift doesn't seem to have problems with high mileages, so I wouldn't worry too much about 100K+ so long as it has good service history.

My Coupe has the 3.0Si N52 engine, is on 85K and doesn't seem at all lacking in performance!

I changed my daily in March for an E91 (3 Series Touring) 325i which has the same N52 engine as the facelift 2.5Si Z4, and it's on 133K now and still pulls really well. Mind you it has only had 3 former keepers, and over 15 visits to main agents - plus it was in really clean condition which made me think it had been well looked after!

Since I've had that car I'm starting to think spec, condition and history are going to be the main factors in any future searches!

And as yours will be a 2nd car mileage should be less of a problem.

You could always wait a few weeks to avoid the sunshine tax - we're surely never going to get 2 consecutive Bank Holidays without some rain! :lol:
 
Mr Tidy said:
You could always wait a few weeks to avoid the sunshine tax - we're surely never going to get 2 consecutive Bank Holidays without some rain! :lol:
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Haha definitely a worthwhile point to make!

Do the M54s tend to get a bit grumpy over 100,000 miles then? The power hike on the facelift 2.5 and 3.0 engines is really impressive. You can certainly tell a lot about a car by its cosmetic condition. It goes beyond skin deep :)
 
Not necessarily - I sold my E46 325ti with the same engine as the M54 pre-facelift 2.5i at 103K miles and it was still going strong.
 
I have a facelift 2.5si sport and there really is nothing between it and the pre facelift 3.0. In fact, the car has a more free revving nature and encourages you to push on more. Post facelift 3.0
manuals are harder to find, but a 2.5 si sport has the slightly lowered sports suspension and really nice seats! Mine has 84k on the clock and looking at the annual mileage has only done 15k in the last 4 years. It's needed a few hundred miles of spirited driving to loosen it back up but it's back on song now and a pleasure to drive.

I wouldn't dismiss a later 2.5si if you can find a good one!
 
noiseboy72 said:
I have a facelift 2.5si sport and there really is nothing between it and the pre facelift 3.0.
I wouldn't dismiss a later 2.5si if you can find a good one!
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Thanks for the insight :thumbsup: I would definitely consider a good 2.5si but have only found them with the cheaper seats so far. Sounds like you're enjoying yours!
 
Well I collected my 2003 3.0i E85 today. Perfect day for a drop top, though it was slightly marred by my discovery of the dreaded sticky steering. It wasn't apparent on the test drive but wow, what an unpleasant experience :? Cue a load of time researching/lubing/drilling to see if I can fix it.

Not the best start to my ownership experience, but here is the car. It has 107,000 miles on it and a few marks around the bodywork but I've bought it more for the "go" than the "show". Guess I'll be spending some time in the problems forums for a while!

IMG_20180507_175328_315.jpg
 
Me too, nice colour
 

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wonkydonkey said:
Well I collected my 2003 3.0i E85 today. Perfect day for a drop top, though it was slightly marred by my discovery of the dreaded sticky steering. It wasn't apparent on the test drive but wow, what an unpleasant experience Cue a load of time researching/lubing/drilling to see if I can fix it.

Not the best start to my ownership experience, but here is the car. It has 107,000 miles on it and a few marks around the bodywork but I've bought it more for the "go" than the "show". Guess I'll be spending some time in the problems forums for a while!
Click to expand...

So the good was slightly tempered by the bad - I hope you can get the steering sorted.

Lovely photo by the way. :thumbsup:
 
Mr Tidy said:
So the good was slightly tempered by the bad - I hope you can get the steering sorted.

Lovely photo by the way. :thumbsup:
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I'm afraid it was, but I've just found the superb thread in the E85/86 Problems forum that has given me hope (eccentric adjustor on the column). Can't wait to get stuck in.

Thanks - the Wiltshire countryside was on fine form on my drive home 8)

Thanks to the rest of you for the welcomes, too. These BMW folks aren't as bad as people say :thumbsup:
 
wonkydonkey said:
Mr Tidy said:
So the good was slightly tempered by the bad - I hope you can get the steering sorted.

Lovely photo by the way. :thumbsup:
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I'm afraid it was, but I've just found the superb thread in the E86/86 Problems forum that has given me hope (eccentric adjustor on the column). Can't wait to get stuck in.

Thanks - the Wiltshire countryside was on fine form on my drive home 8)

Thanks to the rest of you for the welcomes, too. These BMW folks aren't as bad as people say :thumbsup:
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Can you link me to the thread please? i had a good drive over the weekend and the steering seems to feel sticky also. I have a 2004 E85 - whill the E86/89 thread be applicable?

Cheers
 
cmaza said:
Can you link me to the thread please? i had a good drive over the weekend and the steering seems to feel sticky also. I have a 2004 E85 - whill the E86/89 thread be applicable?
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Yep, please click below. I had a typo in my post above. It should've read E85/86, not E86/86, so the thread will apply to your car. Be sure to reply to the thread with your findings :) I hope it works for us!
https://z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=100725
 
Thanks buddy, let me know how you get along...

wonkydonkey said:
cmaza said:
Can you link me to the thread please? i had a good drive over the weekend and the steering seems to feel sticky also. I have a 2004 E85 - whill the E86/89 thread be applicable?
Click to expand...
Yep, please click below. I had a typo in my post above. It should've read E85/86, not E86/86, so the thread will apply to your car. Be sure to reply to the thread with your findings :) I hope it works for us!
https://z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=100725
Click to expand...
 
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