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I'm guessing you're looking at high mileage Z4's because you want a cool/fun car that falls into a certain price range. I wouldn't recommend buying a car without being fiscally prepared to own it, meaning you have thousands of dollars available if you need it to do the necessary repairs. That being said, the 2006+ non-M is pretty bulletproof. The likelihood of something major failing (engine or transmission) is slim before 200-250k miles, but the odds of something moderately expensive failing is high (clutch, alternator, shocks). Don't buy the car if you're living paycheck to paycheck, but you may get away with no major repairs for quite a while. There's nothing that's guaranteed to fail at those miles.
You will save a lot of money if you have the time and skill set to perform your own basic maintenance. If you're savvy, you can find most of the parts you need at junk yards. I would have at least a $3k slush fund dedicated to the car. If you're going to rely on a dealer or independent mechanic, you'll want to up that fund to $5-7k.
FYI when I first bought a Z4 8 years ago, I didn't set aside enough to repair it if something major failed. I was fortunate that nothing went wrong. Fast forward to the present, and I've spent $7-8k on maintenance over the past three months (4 flats, alternator, supercharger rebuild, battery, recoding, rod bearings, motor mounts, fuel pump and filter).
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