2004 Z4 2.5 - Finally scratching the six cylinder BMW itch!

2004 Z4 2.5 - Finally scratching the six cylinder BMW itch!

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Sticks.

8,707 posts

250 months

Monday 15th October 2018
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The engine looks a lot better now.

When I replaced the third brake light I think I found the main dealer to be as cheap, or almost, as anywhere else. £85 iirc. The nuts holding them in place are sprung, and they crack when they're over tightened. I tightened mine finger tight then a little and they've been fine.

I'd suggest spraying lots of WD40 around the bonnet catch. It can behave like the cable's stretched otherwise and potentially not open.

Yes, they're still a striking car - I still like the look of them. Flame Surfacing I think it was called - so that from any angle it wouldn't look flat, but almost liquid. And as you no doubt know, Z4 sculpted into the nearside wing and door.

spreadsheet monkey

Original Poster:

4,544 posts

226 months

Monday 15th October 2018
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Sticks. said:
I'd suggest spraying lots of WD40 around the bonnet catch. It can behave like the cable's stretched otherwise and potentially not open.
Thanks for the tip. Had noticed the bonnet release cable was a bit stiff.

Sticks. said:
Yes, they're still a striking car - I still like the look of them. Flame Surfacing I think it was called - so that from any angle it wouldn't look flat, but almost liquid. And as you no doubt know, Z4 sculpted into the nearside wing and door.
Didn't know about the Z sculpted into the wing and door. There was a good Chris Harris article a while back, conceding that the flame surfaced cars have aged well.

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

Sticks.

8,707 posts

250 months

Monday 15th October 2018
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Interesting article, I'll have a look, thanks. I still like the Bangle 5 Series too.

spreadsheet monkey

Original Poster:

4,544 posts

226 months

Thursday 7th March 2019
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Update after six months - the car has ploughed through the winter with no leaks or other misbehaviour.

I have replaced the cracked third brake light (which is a common weak point) and the front brake pads (which I think were the originals from 2004) and also gave the car a thorough clean and polish, and treated the hood with BMW branded waterproofer.

In an ideal world I’d have a more interesting colour and a 3.0 instead of a 2.5, but I couldn’t pass up the chance to buy a car from a friend with a known history and low mileage.

The seats in my SE model are a bit flat, and the car is a bit noisy on the motorway - it’s no grand tourer. But it’s a lot of fun to drive, the engine sounds great, and the styling is ageing well.

Here’s a photo of my Z4 alongside my dad’s Z3.


Sticks.

8,707 posts

250 months

Thursday 7th March 2019
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Glad you're enjoying it. Haven't had mine out in a while. Long enough to get another warning light though.

Did you get around to fitting the Grom? if so, was it easy and worthwhile?


spreadsheet monkey

Original Poster:

4,544 posts

226 months

Wednesday 20th March 2019
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Sticks. said:
Did you get around to fitting the Grom? if so, was it easy and worthwhile?
No I didn’t. I don’t envisage using the car for long trips, so I can’t justify the expense/effort of fitting an aux socket or Bluetooth. Happy just to go old school and get my music the radio/CD...

Sycamore

1,726 posts

117 months

Wednesday 20th March 2019
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spreadsheet monkey said:
Sticks. said:
Did you get around to fitting the Grom? if so, was it easy and worthwhile?
No I didn’t. I don’t envisage using the car for long trips, so I can’t justify the expense/effort of fitting an aux socket or Bluetooth. Happy just to go old school and get my music the radio/CD...
Aux is cheap and easy to install. Fruity car cables on ebay sell a plug and play one for ~£15. Plugs straight into the back of the stereo (At least my Business stereo it did). Took all of 3 minutes.

Most people install it into the blank panel beneath the dials (not my photo):

spreadsheet monkey

Original Poster:

4,544 posts

226 months

Wednesday 11th December 2019
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Update on the car - a couple of months ago, l got the Style 89 alloys refurbished by Wheel Doctor based in Horley, and replaced the rear tyres at the same time. They did a good job, and I’m pleased with the results.





In anticipation of winter, I also removed the washer reservoir and cleaned out all the gunk. This is an easy job on the Z4 because there’s so much room under the bonnet, but I’ve had to pay dealers to do the same job for me on my 3-series BMWs in the past because I couldn’t be arsed with removing wheels and pulling off wheel arch liners.



Otherwise, there’s not much to report. The car still runs well, and is fun to drive on a winter morning with the roof down and the seat heaters cranked up.

Even though it’s only a second car in our household, we could still do with a four seater, to make weekend child-shuttling easier. I’ll probably wait until next spring and then change it for something a bit more practical (130i coupe/cabrio maybe).

a11y_m

1,861 posts

221 months

Wednesday 11th December 2019
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Lots of memories reading start-to-finish - thanks for sharing. I miss my Z4 badly. Owned for almost 5 years, only sold because of the arrival of babies. Great times with the z4-forum with many friends I'm still in touch with now:



(mine was the silver one on 18" 202's and yellow/black two-tone Individual interior...)

spreadsheet monkey

Original Poster:

4,544 posts

226 months

Thursday 25th June 2020
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Sold the car earlier this week to a young guy, an aerospace engineering grad. He seemed very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the car and i hope he enjoys it and does more miles in it than I did!

The car was very reliable in the time I had it, with no special allowances made for it being a 16 year old convertible. It lived outside on my drive, it never got damp or leaky during the winter, and always started first time even after being left unused for a week or two during the recent lockdown months.

These E85 Z4s are great value at the moment, and a cheap way into the "good old days" of driver-focused six cylinder BMWs.