New to the ZPOST! - Update

[jeebus87]

With the exception of yours being a manual and mine being a slush-box, we have the same car! I'm never getting rid of mine, hope you hang onto yours as well!

[Efthreeoh]

I thought I might update my ZPOST colleagues on my Z4 3.0si Coupe experience so far after 1-month ownership and 3,000 miles under my belt. So just qualify some stuff, I’ve been a BMW 3-series owner since 1988, first with a 1989 E30 325i (retired after 18 years of service), 1997 Z3 1.9 M44 (wife’s current car), my current 274K-mile E90 325i, and now the ’08 Z4. All except the Z4 were bought new. I like BMWs for the excellent-driving rear-drive chassis layout and the in-line 6 engines w/ a manual transmission; it’s not a Roundel thing with me. I got the Z4 as a daily driver replacement for my gracefully aging E90. With the drivetrain between the two being almost identical, it was an ideal situation from a maintenance/repair and parts logistics standpoint.

So about the Z4. What an excellent automobile! I just love this thing. It’s as comfortable as I could want for a daily driver, it makes great noises, and the suspension is spot-on – firm but still compliant. The fuel mileage has been on par with my E90, something I wanted to achieve since I didn’t want to increase my monthly fuel costs. I’ve done a few 200-mile-plus commute days in it already and got home less tired than an equivalent trip in my sport-package E90. I really find the M-sport seats in the Z4 more comfortable than the sport seats in the E90, which was something concernedly I thought was going to be the opposite. The exhaust note is superb; some I’ve read that others find it droning, but I find it soothing. The ambient cabin noise level is a bit higher than I expected making listening to music a bit challenging. And with my phone, the ring volume through the speakers is much lower than the voice volume level when someone answers a call. Maybe the sound tube adds to the noise level and maybe I’ll take it out come spring and see if it makes a difference. Tire noise is also quite present. I’ve found on windy days that cold air passes through the window seals, which I find one of those amusing BMW traits. But it’s a sports car, so I get it, and love it as a matter of fact. A true sports car should fee alive every mile you drive it, and the Z4 certainly doesn’t disappoint.

About the purchase experience. So this was my first used-BMW purchase, which scared me a bit. I really hate buying used cars (especially BMWs), since I feel the car is being sold by the owner for some hidden reason. I bought the car though CarMax. It had just under 24,000 miles on it and through the detailed pictures car CarMax had it looked almost new. The car was in Ohio. I had it shipped to Virginia to CarMax of Charlottesville. The bad thing about CarMax is they don’t negotiate on price. They believe they are so thorough with inspection of their cars by their “experts” and with the 5-day return policy and 3-day limited warranty, that the purchase should be worry-free. Well not so much. When I got the Z4 home I found a dent in the right front fender above the head light and the headlight was pushed in. CarMax fixed it with no hassle using paintless dent repair, the repair wasn’t perfect, but better than replacing the fender and having a paint mismatch afterwards. Also on my maiden voyage home, I noticed a noise in the transmission, which is the throwout bearing. It’s the 3-series classic rattling throwout bearing noise that goes away when you disengage the clutch when in neutral. CarMax can’t seem to hear it, and whatever they do hear “it’s normal”. I took the Z4 to BMW of Sterling (Virginia) and sure enough they verified the noise as the throwout bearing and pilot bearing (there’s a longer story to BMW of Sterling I’ll not delve into...). I took the Z4 back to CarMax with this assessment, and amazingly, after evaluation fromm BMW of Charlottesville, they can’t hear the throwout bearing noise either; but they did find a noisy drive belt idler noise! I could make an issue of the throwout bearing, but at this point I’ve spent more time on arguing the issue than just fixing it myself. So come Spring, when I can have the doors of the doors open without the heat blasting, and with the car is on the lift, I’ll pull the trans and replace the bearing (and clutch while I’m in there). So I feel I paid a bit too much for the Z4, but maybe not since finding a Coupe with such low mileage after 6 or so years and in the color I wanted, was lucky, so I can come to grips with it.

Oh, and the cup holder just broke yesterday… LOL.

[SDCoupe]

Originally Posted by Incompatible

Remember where you read that?

Z4C non-M list, production numbers http://www.zpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=913341

[Rick F.]

Efthreeoh,

That's a beautiful Z4 coupe--congratulations!

I still miss my 2006 Z4 roadster, but I was always a little tall for the car. It was the best-handling car I've owned since my Porsche 944. And the 3.0i was way faster in a straight line than the 944.

Enjoy!

Rick

[whatcubed]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

So I feel I paid a bit too much for the Z4, but maybe not since finding a Coupe with such low mileage after 6 or so years and in the color I wanted, was lucky, so I can come to grips with it.

Oh, and the cup holder just broke yesterday… LOL.

Congratulations on the new car, glad that you're enjoying it. These are such nice cars to drive!

I bought my previous e46 from Carmax, and I shopped for my M Coupe at Carmax as well. Like you said, they don't negotiate on price, and they price their cars near the top of the market as well. The several cars I looked at were as advertised though.

Again, congrats!

[bgeorge0049]

Congrats on the car purchase! Looks great.

[pungo]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

Also on my maiden voyage home, I noticed a noise in the transmission, which is the throwout bearing. It’s the 3-series classic rattling throwout bearing noise that goes away when you disengage the clutch when in neutral. CarMax can’t seem to hear it, and whatever they do hear “it’s normal”. I took the Z4 to BMW of Sterling (Virginia) and sure enough they verified the noise as the throwout bearing and pilot bearing (there’s a longer story to BMW of Sterling I’ll not delve into...). I took the Z4 back to CarMax with this assessment, and amazingly, after evaluation fromm BMW of Charlottesville, they can’t hear the throwout bearing noise either; but they did find a noisy drive belt idler noise! I could make an issue of the throwout bearing, but at this point I’ve spent more time on arguing the issue than just fixing it myself. So come Spring, when I can have the doors of the doors open without the heat blasting, and with the car is on the lift, I’ll pull the trans and replace the bearing (and clutch while I’m in there).

I had a 2007 Z4 coupe that made a rattling noise in neutral when my foot was off the clutch pedal. Push the clutch pedal in and the noise went away. Is this the behavior you are experiencing? Is so, I don't think it would be the throwout bear and or pilot bearing. Both those bearings aren't even used (spinning) when then clutch pedal is not pushed in. In neutral, without your foot on the clutch, all the gears in the transmission are spinning, which is what it sounds like to me. The dealer told me it was normal and some cars are louder than other. I listened to 2 other Z4 cars they had on the lot and they both made the same rattling sound, one very faint, the other a little less than mine. I've read it's the dual mass flywheel springs that make that sound, I don't know. My 2007 Z4MC is very quiet. If these symptoms are not the same ones you're experiencing, then disregard this post, maybe someone else will find it useful.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by pungo

I had a 2007 Z4 coupe that made a rattling noise in neutral when my foot was off the clutch pedal. Push the clutch pedal in and the noise went away. Is this the behavior you are experiencing? Is so, I don't think it would be the throwout bear and or pilot bearing. Both those bearings aren't even used (spinning) when then clutch pedal is not pushed in. In neutral, without your foot on the clutch, all the gears in the transmission are spinning, which is what it sounds like to me. The dealer told me it was normal and some cars are louder than other. I listened to 2 other Z4 cars they had on the lot and they both made the same rattling sound, one very faint, the other a little less than mine. I've read it's the dual mass flywheel springs that make that sound, I don't know. My 2007 Z4MC is very quiet. If these symptoms are not the same ones you're experiencing, then disregard this post, maybe someone else will find it useful.

Thanks for the info. The E30 and Z3 both had this same issue but at very high mileage (Z3 140,000 and the E30 at 180,000) a new throwout bearing and clutch of course, solved the issue. I believe the issue with the throwout bearing is it rattles when it is not under load.

[pungo]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

Thanks for the info. The E30 and Z3 both had this same issue but at very high mileage (Z3 140,000 and the E30 at 180,000) a new throwout bearing and clutch of course, solved the issue. I believe the issue with the throwout bearing is it rattles when it is not under load.

I believe the noise could go away with a new clutch, but the throwout bearing isn't even spinning without a foot on the pedal so I don't know why it would be rattling. My car and the 2 other cars at the dealer all had the rattle, years 06,07 & 08 all with less than 15k miles on them so I wouldn't think they all had bad throwout bearings, but I could be wrong

[chickdr]

My M will rattle if I have it in neutral and the clutch out when I shut it off. If the clutch is in - silent. The dealer said it is normal for the car.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by Rick F.

Efthreeoh,

That's a beautiful Z4 coupe--congratulations!

I still miss my 2006 Z4 roadster, but I was always a little tall for the car. It was the best-handling car I've owned since my Porsche 944. And the 3.0i was way faster in a straight line than the 944.

Enjoy!

Rick

Thanks. Come spring I'll map out your Virginia tour and take the Z4 for the trip. I appreciate the offer for the .gif files, but I'm a bit of a map hound and like to map trips out by hand. Can't imagine how I ever got across country several times on both motorbikes and BMWs without using a Garmin