Pitfalls?
- Thread starter Fenrir
- Start date
North West Surrey
Hi and welcome to the forum OP. 
Great choice by the way - I'm now on my second, as they are a bit addictive!
There is plenty of good information on here if you search the forums, but hopefully you already know the Coupe only came with the 3.0Si N52 engine (or the 3.2 litre M engine, but that is a Z4M). So at least that makes choosing which one a bit easier!
The N52 is a great engine, and if properly looked after seems to be capable of high mileages (someone on here was selling one a while ago with over 200K miles on it). They don't have a dipstick so don't bother looking for one! You check it by pressing a button. They have an electric water pump which seems to fail anywhere around the age of 8 to 10 years, which all of them are now! The pump in my first one went at 9 years and 60K miles. Euro Car Parts quoted £340 just for the pump but I've got nowhere to do DIY jobs so I had my local BMW Indy change it and he used an OEM BMW pump which was £500 plus fitting!
So if you look at a car that has already had one that is a bonus IMHO! The only other mechanical issues I can think of are ABS pumps and Electric Power Steering Pumps, but I believe they can be repaired fortunately, as new ones aren't cheap! But I think issues with those are pretty rare compared to the water pump.
Like most BMWs of the era they are also prone to back springs breaking, but they aren't dear!
But don't be put off - they are great looking cars that drive so well they always put a smile on your face!
Check it has good service history and has been looked after - plus buying privately you get to meet the owner which can help you form an opinion! Check service history - it needs condition based servicing so usually every 16,000 miles and no more than 2 years, whichever comes first. The mileage left until a service flashes up briefly on the dash when you start it up. But a lot of members on here do an interim oil and filter change.
They all came with Bridgestone RunFlat Tyres, but most on here think a swap to non-RunFlats helps with ride and handling. Especially as they are prone to tramlining - most reckon ditching runflats, changing any worn bushes and a 4 wheel alignment will fix that. Worht checking all tyres are the same - I looked at one with 2 runflats and 2 non-runflats which wasn't ideal!
They came in SE or Sport spec. Sport has M-Sport suspension (stiffer and 10mm lower) but more importantly M-Sport seats which are just so much better!
Colour choice is limited, especially if you don't care for silvers or blacks!
And standard spec is pretty basic! They didn't come with rear parking sensors, cup-holders, cruise control or a Multi-Function Steering Wheel; heated seats, Xenon headlights and higher spec stereos are also desirable options, so you need to decide what is essential and what you could live without as most Coupes don't have all the options!
Lastly my advice would be to be prepared to travel! Based on figures another Forum member got less than 2,500 Coupes came to the UK.
Good luck finding one you like, and when you get it don't forget we like photos on here!
Because of that, and maybe by way of inspiration here is my current one:-
Great choice by the way - I'm now on my second, as they are a bit addictive!
There is plenty of good information on here if you search the forums, but hopefully you already know the Coupe only came with the 3.0Si N52 engine (or the 3.2 litre M engine, but that is a Z4M). So at least that makes choosing which one a bit easier!
The N52 is a great engine, and if properly looked after seems to be capable of high mileages (someone on here was selling one a while ago with over 200K miles on it). They don't have a dipstick so don't bother looking for one! You check it by pressing a button. They have an electric water pump which seems to fail anywhere around the age of 8 to 10 years, which all of them are now! The pump in my first one went at 9 years and 60K miles. Euro Car Parts quoted £340 just for the pump but I've got nowhere to do DIY jobs so I had my local BMW Indy change it and he used an OEM BMW pump which was £500 plus fitting!
So if you look at a car that has already had one that is a bonus IMHO! The only other mechanical issues I can think of are ABS pumps and Electric Power Steering Pumps, but I believe they can be repaired fortunately, as new ones aren't cheap! But I think issues with those are pretty rare compared to the water pump.
Like most BMWs of the era they are also prone to back springs breaking, but they aren't dear!
But don't be put off - they are great looking cars that drive so well they always put a smile on your face!
Check it has good service history and has been looked after - plus buying privately you get to meet the owner which can help you form an opinion! Check service history - it needs condition based servicing so usually every 16,000 miles and no more than 2 years, whichever comes first. The mileage left until a service flashes up briefly on the dash when you start it up. But a lot of members on here do an interim oil and filter change.
They all came with Bridgestone RunFlat Tyres, but most on here think a swap to non-RunFlats helps with ride and handling. Especially as they are prone to tramlining - most reckon ditching runflats, changing any worn bushes and a 4 wheel alignment will fix that. Worht checking all tyres are the same - I looked at one with 2 runflats and 2 non-runflats which wasn't ideal!
They came in SE or Sport spec. Sport has M-Sport suspension (stiffer and 10mm lower) but more importantly M-Sport seats which are just so much better!
Colour choice is limited, especially if you don't care for silvers or blacks!
And standard spec is pretty basic! They didn't come with rear parking sensors, cup-holders, cruise control or a Multi-Function Steering Wheel; heated seats, Xenon headlights and higher spec stereos are also desirable options, so you need to decide what is essential and what you could live without as most Coupes don't have all the options!
Lastly my advice would be to be prepared to travel! Based on figures another Forum member got less than 2,500 Coupes came to the UK.
Good luck finding one you like, and when you get it don't forget we like photos on here!
Because of that, and maybe by way of inspiration here is my current one:-
Attachments
Thanks guys! That was exactly the sort of info I was after! I'm in the process of buying an 07 coupé sport with 87k on the clock! Having driven it in the rain, I was shocked at how badly it tramlined!!! On further inspection, I found that the runflat tyres had about half the pressure recommended! I will be tring it again before parting with any cash! But it appears this may also be due to the tyres themselves? So this leaves me with two questions: what are reasonable set of tyres to fit without breaking the Bank? And do you get any warning signs before the waterpump goes, or should I just change it anyway? Thanks in advance Fenrir!
OP, don't get too put off by the tramlining - if you get some bushes done, don't run worn tyres, keep tyre pressures up, use the outer lanes of roads, have an alignment and/or any combination of those you should be OK! :lol: (Oops, forgot to say ditch the RFTs, but I haven't tried that yet) :roll:
On the water-pump front, there doesn't seem to be any warning apart from the temperature gauge! (Which many BMWs of that era didn't have).
On the water-pump front, there doesn't seem to be any warning apart from the temperature gauge! (Which many BMWs of that era didn't have).
Just bought my roadster couple of months ago. I too did some research. The main thing that I heard about ( with the roadster) and that I'm dealing with as we speak is the convertible top motor. VERY terrible engineering disaster! The motor and tranny are pretty rock solid if they have been kept maintenanced.
I bought mine (2006 model) with a little less than 100,000 miles (I live in the US). I knew the guy who owned it before me. He bought a 2010 hard top convertible and sold this one. It was fairly well kept, not a garage queen but kept up.
The first thing I did was ditch the run flats and had an alignment and got an emergency kit put together. I changed the tranny filter and fluid, new plugs, oil change, and fuel injection service.
They are a joy to drive! They handle well and are quite roomy once you get in. My wife and I joke that you don't get in them "you put them on"!
I hope you find something that suits you!
Best Regards
Sam
I bought mine (2006 model) with a little less than 100,000 miles (I live in the US). I knew the guy who owned it before me. He bought a 2010 hard top convertible and sold this one. It was fairly well kept, not a garage queen but kept up.
The first thing I did was ditch the run flats and had an alignment and got an emergency kit put together. I changed the tranny filter and fluid, new plugs, oil change, and fuel injection service.
They are a joy to drive! They handle well and are quite roomy once you get in. My wife and I joke that you don't get in them "you put them on"!
I hope you find something that suits you!
Best Regards
Sam
Sorry coupedan, I try to avoid places like Farnborough at all costs and only go there in my E46 if I can't avoid the place!
And BTW my Z4 is Montego Blue with 108s but Pearl Grey - no poncey Cream here!
Ah fair enough... unfortunately I work in the place so can't avoid it
Might be mine, it's on mv3s, lowered, midnight blue... Lovely amazing cream interior, none of this boring grey business 
Well! We got one! To be fair, it's going to be the wifes toy, thoroughly enjoyed driving it although I have to say, I think my figure is better suited to my Harley or my T5! It is very dirty! Spent the last 2 evenings giving it a thorough valeting, including cut back and 3 lots of wax! Once the crap was all removed, it's actually a very straight tidy car! Once I'm finally finished I'll post some pics! Don't get too excited tho, it's Black with red seats, no cream or grey for us, I'd never keep it clean! Lol ! Thanks again for your input, it was very helpful! I'll be in touch again when I finish all my cleaning and pre flight checks!!!
Fenrir said:
Congratulations OP.
If I was thinking of black or silver Z4 a red interior would be what I'd want, so it sounds good to me!
Don't spend so long cleaning it that you don't put any miles on it though. :lol:
But don't forget about photos either!
(Didn't take my Z4 there either). :lol: