Winter roadster meetup in Zagreb

[zriha]

So, yesterday I took Z4 to meet a car where all started for me and roadsters, to meet my old Mazda MX-5 NB generation, 1.8is Icon model. Then we got visited by a nice Mazda MX-5 NA generation, way faster than my Z4, the Miata is turbocharged with over 200 HP and less than 1.000 kg.

First, the Z4:





My old, NB Miata:



Turbo NA Miata:

 

[brillomaster]

nice little meet! I also had an NB MX5 before the Z4... it was my first 2 seater, RWD car with any sporting intent.

much preferred the Z4 though

 

[zriha]

nice little meet! I also had an NB MX5 before the Z4... it was my first 2 seater, RWD car with any sporting intent.

much preferred the Z4 though

Thanks for the comment mate. So as an NB driver, what is your experience/opinion on Z4? I had to 2 NB Miatas and a Lotus Elise. And from my ownership of Z4 (and it is under 1 year), I would say, it is much more serious, but not so fun. I would go even further and say, that Z4 for me is much more a Grand Tourer than a roadster. I already did a great summer trip last year, from Zagreb to Tuscany and back, and I wouldn't do that with Miata or Lotus, but with Z4, my girlfriend and I had enough room for stuff, it was a nice to drive and I didn't get tired.

So I have mixed feelings about Z4, it is not what I expected, ok it is not the top of the line, it is only 2.5i but then again, Miata 1.8 with 142 HP is giving you the perfect 50:50 balance, almost 1.000 kg of weight and pure fun.

 

[brillomaster]

well, the main reason i got rid of the mx5 was because it was just too slow... 142bhp didnt cut the mustard for me! though it was a fun drive, and the gearshift is the best of any car i've driven.

my z4 was a 3.0i, so was 90bhp up on the 1.8 mx5. plus it has the straight six soundtrack. it does feel more planted than an mx5.

i'd definitely consider the z4 still a sportscar roadster, rather than a GT... i've had a Nissan 350Z, thats definitely a GT, weighing 300kgs more. though the z4 is a very grown up place to be - its surprisingly spacious, remarkably quiet in the cabin, and has more toys than the mx5 did. so definitely a more comfortable place to be for longer journeys... furthest i've been it in a day was 420 miles (675km) to Spa for a trackday, and that was fine!

 

[zriha]

I can agree, well, it is not so slow, the power to weight is ok, it's not a supercar, but it follows the roadster mantra - low weight, not so much power. Especially if we are looking at roadster fathers, like MG and Triumph models.

Z4 as I said is more serious, but you can feel that 350kg+ more weight. Maybe I just got used to light roadsters with not so much power. And I didn't know that 350Z is heavier than Z4?

When I buy a new set of wheels, I will definitely give a chance for Z4 to show himself on a track day. I have a benchmark track here in Croatia, where I drove my Miatas, Lotus and tested different cars, so I will see what he can do. It has 208 HP (as it was remapped by the previous owner).

Funny to say, but the previous owner switched to 3.0i Z4, and then to Boxster S, and he said, that it was a small difference between 2.5i and 3.0i, and he still didn't get that excitement on a track, but Boxster S really gave him that feeling, now he has that Boxster for a very long time and he is happy with it. I tried regular Boxster and I wasn't impressed.

 

[Mr Tidy]

A car meet is always a good day out, and it's interesting to read your comparison of your Z4 with the MX5s.

I suspect the "heavy" feeling you get with your Z4 isn't helped by having also had an Elise in the past! But at least it's much more practical for those longer road trips than the Elise or MX5.

I've never had a roadster of any description and when I decided to get a Z4 I only wanted a Coupe, so it didn't feel particularly heavy to me. But maybe because they only came with the 3.0Si engine with 265bhp (not counting the M) that helped!

It will be interesting to see how your Z4 gets on when you take it on track.

 

[zriha]

I couldn't agree more Mr. Tidy!

Well, I have experience with tracks, I also drove on drifting competitions and one rally. Back then, I had a Hachi-Roku, or better known as Toyota Corolla GT - Ae86 (the real one from 1986.). It weighed less than 1000 kg and it was just a pleasure to control and drive.
So, yeah, you can say, that I don't have experience with "heavier" cars. But for me, a roadster's first attribute is the weight. If we just look into some roadsters and their weight - Jaguar XKSS - 921 kg, MG MGB (I would say - father of roadsters) - 920 kg, Alfa Romeo Spider - 1040 kg etc..

What I want to say, you can't compensate weight with power. A heavy car, is a heavy car, even with 500 HP and 4 seconds 0-100 km/h and it affects the ride quality and driving feel.

I really hope that this year will be ok, and I will have an opportunity for some proper track days with Z4. Before that, some upgrades on breaks will be enough.