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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spreadsheet monkey

Original Poster:

4,544 posts

226 months

Friday 28th September 2018
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Am aware there have already been a few Readers Cars threads on Z4s, but thought there was room for another, given that PH has had a few articles on Z4s recently.

I bought this car from a good friend, who bought it 14 years ago as an ex-demo. It's a 2.5 SE (I know everyone says get the 3.0) with 46k miles on the clock and in very good cosmetic condition. It drives well, but hasn't seen much servicing in the last 4-5 years apart from oil changes and tyres.





This is a second car in our household, with a newish CR-V doing the most of the heavy lifting.

First impressions of the car are great. I haven't owned a convertible since my Mk2 MX-5 in the early 2000s. The six cylinder engine sounds fantastic, and driving around on a warm autumn day with the roof down is a lot of fun. Some people are quite critical of the Z4's interior, but I like the simple minimalism of it. My wife is not normally a fan of the "fun" cars I buy (previous cars include a 2010 Mini Cooper S and a 2000 Jag XK8) but she likes this one as it reminds her of her old 2003 3-series coupe that she owned a long time ago.

Plans for the car are:
  • Give it a service (oil change, air filter, pollen filter, brake fluid)
  • Have a go at the cloudy headlight lenses with a headlight polishing kit
  • Retro-fit the in-dash cupholders
  • Maybe change the alloys, as the rear tyres will need replacing soon anyway
Happy to hear recommendations for replacement BMW alloy wheel styles that suit the E85 Z4!

helix402

7,832 posts

181 months

Friday 28th September 2018
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Style 107 wheels. Avoid MV1/2 they are heavy and often cracked/bent. Style 108 look good but will corrode.

It’s well worth clearing the roof drains and paying to have the roof motor moved.

Mr Tidy

22,065 posts

126 months

Friday 28th September 2018
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Yes, 108s are split-rims and corrode around the bolt heads which lifts the lacquer.

Another downside with MV2s is they are a PITA to clean!

Style 32s were offered on the E46 and you can get 18" ones in exactly the same sizes as the Z4 107s/108s/MV2s - and they are allegedly pretty light.

224s (which were fitted to the Z4M) or CSL replicas are also pretty popular.

I've just fitted 295s from an E89 to my E86 - same sizes as 108s and still 5 spokes, but not a split-rim so no corrosion issues and with a different offset they sit a bit further out in the arches.

Maybe think about non-runflat tyres - plenty of people seem to prefer them.

Roof motor relocation is definitely money well spent - much cheaper than a new motor!

DamnKraut

456 posts

98 months

Friday 28th September 2018
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OP, here you go:

http://felgenkatalog.auto-treff.com

Us Krauts like everything “ordentlich” - therefore select “Baureihe” from das drop down menu and click on “E85” .... and you’ll have a picture overview of all BMW OEM wheel designs for your Z4.

Now that is proper “ordentlich”. You are vellcome biglaugh

helix402

7,832 posts

181 months

Friday 28th September 2018
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DamnKraut

456 posts

98 months

Saturday 29th September 2018
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helix402 said:
Even better, thanks for sharing the link.

col1983

60 posts

118 months

Saturday 29th September 2018
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Very tidy looking car op - great buy! I’m on my second E85 Z4 now and I absolutely love them. One of the best looking roadsters ever built for me.

In terms of alloys, on pre-facelift cars like yours I’d have to go with Style 107’s. They’re just that little bit retro / unusual. 108’s are great and refurbed with a grey centre and perhaps a polished outer lip, they would set off a silver car very well. I had MV2’s on my last Z and yes they’re a PITA to clean but otherwise, a really nice wheel, particularly when refurbished in black shadow chrome (sounds awful but looks great!). Again would look great on a silver car!

Enjoy!


spreadsheet monkey

Original Poster:

4,544 posts

226 months

Monday 1st October 2018
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Thanks for all the comments and wheel suggestions! Really enjoying the car so far.

I bought a set of 17” Style 89 wheels with good Pirelli non-runflat tyres from a guy on the Z4 forum. He very helpfully delivered the wheels to me and brought his trolley jack to help me change the wheels over. They could do with a refurb, but at the price they were worth buying for the tyres alone. I might refurb them (and perhaps repaint them a slightly darker colour) in the spring.


helix402

7,832 posts

181 months

Monday 1st October 2018
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Good choice of wheels (they are E46 wheels):


spreadsheet monkey

Original Poster:

4,544 posts

226 months

Monday 1st October 2018
quotequote all
helix402 said:
Good choice of wheels (they are E46 wheels):

Yes, although I don't recall seeing many E46s with this style of wheel.

The fact that these were available locally to me and fitted with good Pirelli tyres with 5-6mm of tread was what swung the deal.

Saw your E46 Readers Cars thread - looks good!

Edited by spreadsheet monkey on Monday 1st October 15:58

helix402

7,832 posts

181 months

Monday 1st October 2018
quotequote all
The 89s were one of wheel choices on the 330i/d SE as 17s are needed to clear the brakes.

Mr Tidy

22,065 posts

126 months

Tuesday 2nd October 2018
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Those wheels look great, but must be a PITA to clean with so many spokes. laugh

That's why I bought a set of 295s for my Z4!


spreadsheet monkey

Original Poster:

4,544 posts

226 months

Tuesday 2nd October 2018
quotequote all
Mr Tidy said:
Those wheels look great, but must be a PITA to clean with so many spokes. laugh

That's why I bought a set of 295s for my Z4!

Nice coupe. Montego Blue is a great colour. Silver wasn't my first choice for my Z4, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to buy a low mileage car with a known history.

I'm not much of a detailer - I can live with grubby wheels. I'm not planning to spend every weekend on my hands and knees cleaning them with a toothbrush!

M1C

1,832 posts

110 months

Tuesday 2nd October 2018
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Keep the little wheels too!

Yes the little wheels maybe dont look as good....but IMO it's about the drive! I've driven (although not owned, to be fair) a 3.0 (on big wheels) and a 2.5 on little piddlers....and which one did i prefer?

The 2.5, easy! Yes the 3.0 was faster but the 2.5 is still a good engine and the smaller wheels gave a compliancy to the ride...it was just great to drive!

spreadsheet monkey

Original Poster:

4,544 posts

226 months

Tuesday 2nd October 2018
quotequote all
M1C said:
Keep the little wheels too!

Yes the little wheels maybe dont look as good....but IMO it's about the drive!
You’re preaching to the converted, I agree big wheels can ruin the ride.

The new wheels are only 17” wheels, so I have still have a decent bit of sidewall in the tyres (225/45/17).

Sticks.

8,705 posts

250 months

Tuesday 2nd October 2018
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That looks nice and good to hear one that's been cared for, I hope you enjoy it. The wheels you've chosen look good too imho. My 51 330d SE had them.

OEM cupholders. They're Ok, and adjust for diameter, but not deep enough for a 500 ml water bottle. It's a pity the door bins aren't a bit deeper, cabin storage is not good, as I'm sure you've found.

Does it have the mesh scree between the headrests?

I was reading about these on the Z4 Forum recently but not checked for compatibility and fitting yet https://gromaudio.co.uk/products/grom-usb3-usb-and...

Nick

Edited by Sticks. on Tuesday 2nd October 14:05

Mr Tidy

22,065 posts

126 months

Tuesday 2nd October 2018
quotequote all
spreadsheet monkey said:
I'm not much of a detailer - I can live with grubby wheels. I'm not planning to spend every weekend on my hands and knees cleaning them with a toothbrush!
I'm not either - but your new wheels definitely look better than what your car had originally. thumbup

In answer to what Sticks said I'm sure I've read on Z4forum about plenty of Z4 owners fitting a Grom to their cars.



Sticks.

8,705 posts

250 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2018
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Mr Tidy said:
In answer to what Sticks said I'm sure I've read on Z4forum about plenty of Z4 owners fitting a Grom to their cars.
Yes, that's where I saw it.

spreadsheet monkey

Original Poster:

4,544 posts

226 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2018
quotequote all
Sticks. said:
I was reading about these on the Z4 Forum recently but not checked for compatibility and fitting yet https://gromaudio.co.uk/products/grom-usb3-usb-and...
These look good. Fitting this is probably a better use of my time than the OEM cupholders.

I just need to check if my head unit is compatible. I have the standard BMW Business CD player, with a 6 CD changer. I don't want to lose the CD changer, but hopefully it can take an additional Aux input.

spreadsheet monkey

Original Poster:

4,544 posts

226 months

Monday 15th October 2018
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I’ve given the car a service (oil + filter, air filter, pollen filter). The long bonnet means there is loads of space for the little 2.5 engine. The oil that came out was pretty dark, as I don’t think the car has had an oil change for the last two years. This is what you get with very low mileage cars!



I had a go at restoring the headlights with a Holts headlight polishing kit. It worked OK, but I haven’t yet had the chance to put on the final coat of clear lacquer. You can see the difference in the headlights in the two photos. I also cleaned up the engine compartment as it was pretty grubby.



I’ve noticed the high level brake light lens is cracked - apparently this is a common fault and cheap to fix.

Otherwise the car is great. It’s an old and relatively inexpensive car but it still gets a lot of positive comments.