Tom, I wouldn't take anything that Evo guide has to say as fact. There are so many errors in there that it's obvious it wasn't properly researched. I know you know this but run flat tyres and electric steering, very poor journalism. I've never heard of any of the other common faults either bar the breaking springs and the mileage figure for them breaking seems to have been picked out of the air.
Ok, so I've bought a Z4MC, now what?..... Mods?
- Thread starter M@r]{
- Start date
ga41 said:
IMG_4689 by tom_scott88, on Flickr
This is the only one I've got, doesn't really give much away
Yep, there's no doubt there's a weakness in the springs but other than that I quite like the way the car drives and sits with them on. If mine went I think I'd stick with OEM to be honest. Anyway I'm at 41k miles and the originals are still going strong. Now that I've said that they'll no doubt snap in the near future. :x
Tom I much prefer your standard wheels to those CSLs.
M@r said:{"]Right, I'm determined this car isn't going to be a constant drain on my finances by spending money constantly modifying it in one way or another. And lets face it, they are pretty special out of the box. My only criticism is its a little quite. In my mind I have a few must haves, so I'm planning on addressing these 'must haves' quite soon and then just enjoy it
So starting off with a bog standard Z4MC in black, red interior with Sat Nav, what should I / would you do?
Depends what you want and how much budget you have. My top 4 mods if I were you:
1) CSL rims
2) Lower it. Dubsesd has H&R coilovers on his car (I think). It looks amazing. Lower = looks better
3) Induction kit - not for power gains, for noise :evil:
4) Stereo upgrade, I love my tunes
Adamski said:Depends what you want and how much budget you have. My top 4 mods if I were you:
1) CSL rims
2) Lower it. Dubsesd has H&R coilovers on his car (I think). It looks amazing. Lower = looks better
3) Induction kit - not for power gains, for noise :evil:
4) Stereo upgrade, I love my tunes
1) and 2) definitely. Although the CSLs may have to wait a little while. Induction kit? Any you recommend? (and not the £2500 CSL jobby
) And what would you do to upgrade the stereo? The other thing I really want is the aero skirts
Oh, and black BMW badges....
And maybe a satin black grill....
and an exhaust, need more noise....
and while I'm at it what are these cars like de-catted?..... :roll:
FFS I wasn't supposed to get like this with this car, I have too much to spend on the Drift car getting it ready for the comps this year
You will be living in a cardboard box to pay for all these mods :lol:
Don't know about induction kits for the ///M. Gruppe M is the expensive one. I think AFE might do one for the ///M. I'm sure someone will know. Main thing is the heatshield. You won't gain any power from the kit, but on the same token you wont want to loose power from heat soak
Don't know about induction kits for the ///M. Gruppe M is the expensive one. I think AFE might do one for the ///M. I'm sure someone will know. Main thing is the heatshield. You won't gain any power from the kit, but on the same token you wont want to loose power from heat soak
-Your first sentence made me smile-you are a member of this forum mate!M@r said:{"]Right, I'm determined this car isn't going to be a constant drain on my finances by spending money constantly modifying it in one way or another. And lets face it, they are pretty special out of the box. My only criticism is its a little quite. In my mind I have a few must haves, so I'm planning on addressing these 'must haves' quite soon and then just enjoy it
So starting off with a bog standard Z4MC in black, red interior with Sat Nav, what should I / would you do?
M@r said:
I was thinking of doing this but decided against it in the end. According to people i've asked they will give a noticeable gain but only at the top 3/4 of the rev range and will lose out on torque at lower revs... A mate who had an E46 M3 decatted it and mentioned this as well.
I think it would, but maybe go a wee bit lighter.2dogs said:Love the gunmetal
blue :scratchhead:
tomscott said:
Coilovers and camber plates would be my suspension upgrades of choice. These with a big brake kit would certainly improve the track performance. Everything else is mainly about aesthetics rather than performance.
For now, I've found DOT 4.1 fluid and EBC yellow stuff pads have transformed the brakes (not that the OEM pads were bad), and I plan to ask an alignment centre to dial in as much negative camber as possible with the OEM set up.
The clutch delay value doesn't specifically improve the notchiness of 1st to 2nd change, which is a recognosed "characteristic" of the gearbox. It's a choke in the clutch hydraulics that moderates the speed at which the clutch engages when the pedal is released. This lessens the severity of clutch engagement making driving easier for those not habitually driving manuals (mainly the US market). The single benefit that I've noticed after CDV removal is that with swift gear changes where rapid clutch disengagement then reengagement are necessary are much smoother (eg full attack upshifts, or when rapidly serially double declutching from high speed to enter a low speed corner). The clutch immediately responds to pedal movement in both directions, instead of just pedal depression (where foot power easily overcomes the choke effect). I doubt the difference is noticable in day to day driving, but it most definitely sharpens things up on the track.
Depending on where you habitually drive, I would recommend the RPI skid plates to protect your fangs. I posted ad nauseam on the greatness of these the other day (search for bumper protection or look at my recent posts). These were amongst the most value for money mod I've made.
As for intakes, I'd quite like this: http://www.ca-int.co.uk/variants-Y2FyX21ha2U9Ym13JmNhcl90eXBlPXo0bSZwYXJlbnRfaWQ9MjgyMw==.html
but I have heard rumours of MAF problems and erratic idle. That said, no one here seems to have had problems. It seems like a cheaper way of increasing induction noise than the Gruppe M, if £340 can be called cheap! If only I could find one second hand...
Lastly, my recently acquired Remus back boxes sound absolutley fantastic, adding bass without drowning out the inherent raspy engine noise or being unduly loud. Also they only exhibit mild drone on the motorway, and this is at at 100mph, so it's easy to run at different RPM to avoid this. I get the impression the RPI race system drones at legal motorway cruising speeds.
Lastly, the day I can find an insurance company that will cover me with one will be the day I fit a supercharger...
http://www.mstyle.co.uk/acatalog/BMW_Z_Z4_Z4M_E85.html
Youl find everything you need here, including all the induction options, maps, suspension and brake upgrades styling etc
The thing with coil overs are they are pretty much overkill for 90% of people and are about £1300 (unless you go cheap) before fitting so depends what you want. If you want a more aggressive stance just go for some lowering springs.
Most of my upgrades are visual because im 23 and the insurance on my M is fierce enough without the performance upgrades the insurance companies were a pain in the ass with the visual mods let alone performance.. I feel like the car is quick enough anyway without the upgrades and as described many a time on here you need deep deep pockets to pull minor performance differences. Maybe in time or when a lottery win comes my way
With your remus back boxes BMWZ4MC are you seeing a fair drop in MPG too? I know yours is just a fun/weekend/track car so you dont use it as a daily, just so the OP knows
The skid plates are well worth the buy, saved my front bumper from high speed bumps a few times.
Youl find everything you need here, including all the induction options, maps, suspension and brake upgrades styling etc
The thing with coil overs are they are pretty much overkill for 90% of people and are about £1300 (unless you go cheap) before fitting so depends what you want. If you want a more aggressive stance just go for some lowering springs.
Most of my upgrades are visual because im 23 and the insurance on my M is fierce enough without the performance upgrades the insurance companies were a pain in the ass with the visual mods let alone performance.. I feel like the car is quick enough anyway without the upgrades and as described many a time on here you need deep deep pockets to pull minor performance differences. Maybe in time or when a lottery win comes my way
With your remus back boxes BMWZ4MC are you seeing a fair drop in MPG too? I know yours is just a fun/weekend/track car so you dont use it as a daily, just so the OP knows
The skid plates are well worth the buy, saved my front bumper from high speed bumps a few times.
2dogs said:Love the gunmetal
blue :scratchhead:
It could look good! But I think the OEM silver colour looks better on brighter cars, and darker shades for darker cars. Going to have my CSLs done in shadow chrome... so they look my current ones but with more shine.
My OEMs look great when clean... but in the light they look very matt check out the pic with the CSLs and the OEMs compared to the car park shot. Unless they are spotlessly clean they do not shine at all which I find really annoying and dulls the car. Doesnt look as good in the flesh :thumbsdown: As many people have said in other threads they just look dirty all the time.
Liverpool
Both my rear OEM springs broke at 28,000, one of the rear Eibach springs only lasted 3 months, so was probably a bad batch or something. No more spring issues since.
Maybe you are keeping the base where the spring sits clean.
I've never had the oxy sensor issue on mine either which is strange, some guys on here have had it 3 or more times.
Maybe you are keeping the base where the spring sits clean.
I've never had the oxy sensor issue on mine either which is strange, some guys on here have had it 3 or more times.