Newbie looking for a Z4 who needs help with cost

[aknight]

Hi all,

I am a new to the forum. I've always loved the Z4 and now I feel I am in the right place to get one.

Can anyone give me a rough idea about how much I should be paying roughly. I don't mind paying a little extra for what I want but I don't want to spend way more than I have to out of naïvety.

I am looking for a 2.0i sports post facelift model with less than 60,000 miles and heated leather sports seats. Anything else is a bonus I guess unless there is anything you would strongly recommend? Preferable colours of blue, grey or black (in that order).

Here are two I am thinking about:
Blue 2.0i on Autotrader

Black one on ebay

I have read Alanj's buying check list and Andy's FAQs and one of the main things that seems important is having a full service history, which both of these have.

Do they seem sensible for their mileage, spec, age etc?

Thanks, I look forward to joining the community!

Andy

 

[paulgs1000]

Hi aknight,

There are lots of 2 litres about and many on the official BMW dealership website.

Take a look at the possibilities there and see if you can pick one up for the same money with a years OUC (Official Used Car) warranty. I would want that at the price you are looking at paying.

Of the two - it is difficult to judge without visiting and having a test drive - personally I would look at them both. The black Zed is better presented but you need to do a bit more digging about it's previous. At this price point any work done on the Zed (such as recent major servicing, new tyres and new brakes) can add to a good deal. If you've read the buying guide then you know the weak points.

Because there are so many 2 litres of this age and price point about I would be holding out for the colour and spec I preferred.

Be patient and the right Zed will appear - remember - lots about.

For info - I bought my 2008 3.0si Sport with 53000 miles as a BMW OUC for £10500 with my 2006 2 litre trade in, in Jan this year with new front discs and front and rear pads, new fog lights as well. At the time there were many, many 2 litres for sale through BMW so you might be able to do a deal. . .

Good luck!

PS - I loved my 2 litre - highly under rated Zed and great fun on back roads and for urban use plus of course better mpg. Really smooth engine that will give surprising performance when wound up and used to it's full potential.

:driving:

 

[minefields]

Just as a guide I paid just under 8000 for my 07 plate with 42k miles and full service history, with all 4 alloys being refurbed and 6 month tax. This was from a VW dealer so came with warranty. This was about 7 months ago.

And Blue is by far the best colour

 

[k.leeming]

I have a 54 plate 2.0i SE Sport and I paid £6350 with heated leather seats, 39k miles. Mine is the original model though. Hope this helps.

Kane

 

[Geezah]

Here's mine on my signature, had 58,000 on the clock, 2 owners ,lots of bells and whistles, excellent condition bought from a trader at £6,850 last November, but needed new tyres say £500 fitted, new rear coils a couple of bushes and front pads. Gotta have the heated sports seats! Space Grey, the ONLY colour to have!

 

[aknight]

Thanks for the replies.

I am getting the impression that the two I am looking at aren't that brilliant a deal for ~£9k then and neither have amazing spec.

I thought the blue zed was a good one possibly due to it having full BMW service history and coming with 2 years full BMW warranty.

Are there any extras that anyone would strongly recommend, having not owned a roadster before I may be missing something fundamental... :?

I don't understand where all of you guys are getting your cars from though! I can't find anything similar to that anywhere! I'm using autotrader, ebay, pistonheads and other smaller sites online but to no avail!

Thanks
Andy

 

[Bing]

For me, must-have extras would be :

Wind deflector - factory fitted clip in one between the roll bars. Makes a huge difference to wind buffeting
Heated electric seats - because the roof is meant to be down irrespective of temperature
Auto dipping rear view & wing mirrors - the Z is low, blinding from behind is common
Sports multi-function steering wheel - with the black spokes. Chunkier than standard, feels ace

Beyond those, sat nav because it's not bad, especially with updated maps, and you can add iPod integration using something called an Intravee that is then controlled through the nav. Also cruise control because I drive on motorways a reasonable amount, auto wipers and lights as I'm lazy. Personally I don't need the upgraded sound system - not worth a lot in the roadster IMO, given it's noisier than the coupe - and many lust after xenons. I'd like some, but I've not died in 40k miles and 2 and a half years

You could buy mine - high miles, but well maintained, has most of the toys, an extra litre, and it's a good deal cheaper than either of those

 

[aknight]

Ahh yeah the wind deflector and sports multi-function steering wheel was on my must haves too just didn't think to mention it!

Are auto dipping rear view and wing mirrors different to electric mirrors? As in if it says in the advert electric mirrors is that likely to be auto dipping and electric movement or just the movement?

From the sounds of what people have said I could get potentially get what I am looking for (2006+, <60k miles, 2.0i, sport trim, blue/grey/black) for around £8k or less maybe but with say the blue one, if that turned out to be pretty sweet when I view it and it has a 2 year BMW warranty would that really warrant the extra £1,000 or am I just chucking money down the drain in term of resale? I imagine I will keep it about 2 years and hopefully move onto a 3.0i.

@Bing thank you very much for the offer of your car but from looking at it I feel I wouldn't do it justice to be honest! Its a gorgeous example but at the moment I want more of a cruiser. GLWTS though!

 

[Bing]

An auto is perfect for cruising, though I think I know what you mean :wink: Thank you, and no worries.

Electric folding mirrors were an option - come with a button to fold them up and down. Auto dipping means the all the mirrors all dim when you have a vehicle with very bright headlights behind you - like manually flicking the lever on older style rear view mirrors ? It was also an option - not sure that the two options came together as part of a package though.

 

[Finisterre]

I think you can get too hung up on price. Both of those seem okay but you never know until you have owned something for a while if it was good or mediocre value. Personally having bought a 2.0 with low miles and relatively new for a similar price three years ago I would worry a bit less about mileage and a little more about paint condition.

Whichever you end up with, enjoy the shopping and get rid of the runflats straight away.

 

[Finisterre]

Hmm, and watch out for corroded brake pipes. We have just been landed with replacing the rear pipes and it seems to involve removing the petrol tank!

Or BMW are lying to us again.

 

[Chuck210862]

Hi there i to have just bought a z4 on a 2003, for £4999.with a 2.5 engine as I thought the 2.0 engines where a bit under power,but it depends on what your after,but don't do what i did make sure your have a tyre compressor and the tyre repair liquid as these are not cheap to buy as some z4s don't have spare wheels,and also check rear springs to make sure they are not broken,common fault on z4s,and the other thing that i have noticed on mine is that the front headlights are not the brightest I've seen.good look and i am loving this car and i am sure you will to.regards rich in coalville ,leicester.