So which model of E89 is the best one to buy?

In my opinion it has to be a 35i manual, with mtec kit… it’s as close to a m version that they did…
The sound, the tunability, the rarity, proper drivers car that you have to respect.
 
Can only speak from experience..
I had a 35i & 35is...both were exceptionally reliable
Only real problem i had in 9 years of ownership was roof wires breaking but thats the same on all models..
 
Zedebee said:
Interestingly, no mention of cost/value.
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I wouldn't worry, cos it nonsense anyway.
One 'self-proclaimed' expert's opinion, based on owning just two E89s and an unhealthy amount of 'googling'. :)

But of course Peter doesn't post opinions, he says them as definitive facts. Which they ain't. They are just opinions.

I would ask @Gwest44 if I wanted a realistic opinion on this; he has bought and sold pretty much EVERY Z4 (pre G29) ever built.
 
kinger said:
Can only speak from experience..
I had a 35i & 35is...both were exceptionally reliable
Only real problem i had in 9 years of ownership was roof wires breaking but thats the same on all models..
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Out of interest how many miles did it do in your ownership pls?
 
B21 said:
Out of interest how many miles did it do in your ownership pls?
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I know you weren't asking me, but i did over £30k miles across 4 years in mine and maintenance costs were very low considering 350+ bhp.

Water pump and cam cover gasket - doesn't matter which BMW you buy, you're not escaping those demons.

Total ownership cost (maintenance, servicing, repairs, depreciation) was little more than £200 per month.

B21 said:
I'd be interested in your formula for that one please?
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Again, not asking me, but it would be fairly simple to work out a formula for a ratio of estimated purchase & maintenance costs to handling and performance. As a starting point to build from:

Value = ((handling score + performance score)×1000)/(purchase cost + (annual maintenance cost x 5))

Run some tests and tweak the multipliers if necessary to give sensible numbers. Might make more sense to estimate depreciation cost rather than total purchase price, and remove the annual maintenance cost multiplier.

Of course, for that to mean anything you'd have to devise some objective formulas based on objective numbers for all the costs and handling/performance scores 😉
 
tiglon said:
I know you weren't asking me, but i did over £30k miles across 4 years in mine and maintenance costs were very low considering 350+ bhp.

Water pump and cam cover gasket - doesn't matter which BMW you buy, you're not escaping those demons.

Total ownership cost (maintenance, servicing, repairs, depreciation) was little more than £200 per month.


Again, not asking me, but it would be fairly simple to work out a formula for a ratio of estimated purchase & maintenance costs to handling and performance. As a starting point to build from:

Value = ((handling score + performance score)×1000)/(purchase cost + (annual maintenance cost x 5))

Run some tests and tweak the multipliers if necessary to give sensible numbers. Might make more sense to estimate depreciation cost rather than total purchase price, and remove the annual maintenance cost multiplier.

Of course, for that to mean anything you'd have to devise some objective formulas based on objective numbers for all the costs and handling/performance scores 😉
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Thanks for the data and the suggestion on a formula..

Of course define handling …even performance is tricky…🤔
 
B21 said:
I'd be interested in your formula for that one please?
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I don't have a formula. The question was not “which model of E89 is the best one?”, but “which model of E89 is the best one to buy?”. Surely cost or value is a consideration, but no-one has mentioned it.
 
Zedebee said:
I don't have a formula. The question was not “which model of E89 is the best one?”, but “which model of E89 is the best one to buy?”. Surely cost or value is a consideration, but no-one has mentioned it.
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What’s best value?

Depends what your priorities

Fully loaded

Full bmwsh

Fitted with new decent tyres and discs n pads

Low mileage

Etc etc
 
matsmith749 said:
It's all a bit of fun :) Lighten up.

Besides, everyone knows the best model e89 to buy is an e85 z4m!
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Thank you for your sense of perspective

I agree an E85m is a great car

Spent many weeks over the last 9 years in the company of many

From the original post the idea was a ranking


So for example

Do people generally agree that a 23i is a more reliable and cheaper to maintain over a 35is looked at over many years, many miles and many cars?
 
B21 said:
Out of interest how many miles did it do in your ownership pls?
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I used them both as daily drivers...probably around 6,000 miles per year over so over 9 years...approx 50,000 ish
I had a couple of wheel cracks on both cars,, again something thats not model specific..
What i did do, was use them everyday and serviced them myself regularly, cars sat in garages waiting for nice weather to be used dry out...and it does them no favours.
I learned that with my Boxsters, the garage queens were getting so many main rear main seal problems....the cars being used daily didn't.
I currently run an f-type and the cars that get wet and sit are the ones experiencing rusted injector problems...the cars being used daily aren't
Mike
 
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Definitely depends on your priorities.
For me it was Valencia Orange, manual box and as few add-ons as possible. No idrive, no PDC, in fact none of the fancy stuff at all. (Though after I got home I discovered it had a heated steering wheel, which I tried once and haven't tested since in 9 years of ownership.)
I wanted the 4-pot funnily enough, as I always intended a remap.
Unlike a lot of people, I didn't buy it with a view to making as much as possible when I sold it again. It was intended to be a keeper, hence having less gadgets to date or go wrong too.
So I guess I'm exactly the kind of person that Peter ISN'T aiming at. :rofl:
 
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enuff_zed said:
Definitely depends on your priorities.
For me it was Valencia Orange, manual box and as few add-ons as possible. No idrive, no PDC, in fact none of the fancy stuff at all. (Though after I got home I discovered it had a heated steering wheel, which I tried once and haven't tested since in 9 years of ownership.)
I wanted the 4-pot funnily enough, as I always intended a remap.
Unlike a lot of people, I didn't buy it with a view to making as much as possible when I sold it again. It was intended to be a keeper, hence having less gadgets to date or go wrong too.
So I guess I'm exactly the kind of person that Peter ISN'T aiming at. :rofl:
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A well informed decision is a great decision..do what you want to do…it’s the guys that buy something then repent I find ‘amusing’…
 
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