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04-29-2016, 09:53 PM | #1 |
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Buying my first BMW tomorrow! Z4
Hey everyone. Glad to be joining the community.
I live in the Greater Metro Atlanta areas and am looking forward to hooking up with the other Z enthusiasts in the southeast. I'll know alot more about the car once I get it home and start really tinkering but heres the scoop. Its a 2003 Z4 3.0 with the SMG in Sterling Gray. I call the color Sharkskin. 82 K miles. No accidents on record, but was fully repainted (original bmw color) Here is an OLD link to the dealership that owned it previously. It also has a working carfax link in the listing. http://www.2040-cars.com/bmw/z4/gray...4-smg-1133485/ Engine is running well, quiet. No Leaks. SMG "was" stuck in drive when starting the car, but its been fixed.(I believe thats why it sold at auction) So the seller replaced the relay and actuator, but not the pump. Seems to be working fine now. I know the pump crap out one day. But I've also heard taht they arent as expensive as they once were. Instead of 2K, they can be had for $800 or so. either way... I'm happy with the drivetrain, but its got other problems that I need some guidance on. The top has the similar problems that the others do. It doesnt go up or down. I hear and feel the motor working, so I am guessing the hydraulic line is pinched/broken. But the bigger problem is that even if I manually lower the top, I cannot Latch it in the down position. The top stays "up" about 4-6 inches. I am concerned that this may be a safety issue. It looks as though the latch is broken, but I havent seen a working one so I dont know. If anyone can send me pics of the latching mechanism on the top and the body it would be greatly appreciated. Also the interior plastics are in bad shape. lost color, broken in places- the storage console, the top latch cover, Roundels are faded, etc. Any advice on restoring the interior? I was think about pulling the parts and repainting them, but the results may not be so good. Basically I need help. And I know thats a not a great way to start out on a forum, but If you guys have any leads on Z's in junkyards, please let me know. I'm going to be scrounging for some parts. And any general info I need to know- maintenance, quirks, cool stuff... please share. Look forward to hearing from you guys! Kevin |
04-30-2016, 06:23 AM | #4 | |
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Drives: 2006 BMW Z4M Roadster
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Congrats on your Z. RealOEM.com is a good tool for pulling part numbers for interior bits. I only had a few pieces with scratches, etc, and I replaced them with new parts. With various projects, I've pretty much had most of my interior out, so if you have any questions about how an interior part comes off or goes on, feel free to shoot me a note. The 4-6" roof thing is interesting. Do you know about the shelf in the trunk? You might get really lucky, and someone just left the shelf up or partially up. There are two knobs on either side of the trunk. Grab both of those and turn them both down to lower the shelf. There is also a red finger pull that needs to be pushed back in along the top back of the trunk. If the shelf is up or partially up, the top won't go down. If that manual release is out, the top won't go down properly. I once thought my roof motor had issues. It would spin a few seconds then stop. It turned out to be something in the trunk managed to get up under the shelf and prevented it from fully closing. The manual release got me once, too. I hope it's something simple like that. Salty
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2006 BMW Z4M Interlagos Blue/Black
Aux Port|LED Interior|LED Strip Trunk|Underseat First Aid Box|Stubby Antenna|Intravee II|BMW Oil Change Kit|Top Down Side Panels|Vibra Technics Engine Mounts|Rogue Trans Mounts|Engine Mount Bolts Upgrade|RS Windblocker|Euro Front Plate|M5 Illum Shift Knob|Supersprint Powerloop Exhaust|Gruppe-M Intake|RPI Scoop|Black Grills|19x8.5 ET35 F 19x9.5 ET22 R Sportline 8s PSS| Besian Vanos|CDV Delete |
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05-06-2016, 11:13 PM | #7 |
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So I got her. Already named her too. Zelda. Fun fact - Etymology of the name hearkens back to the German name Salida, which means Joy. So on a related note, I'll probably hum the Legend of Zelda tune every time I start her up now.
(ok,with that, I met my nerd quotient for the day) After putting in some time, everything is checking out nicely. (other than the top, just like everyone else) I found out that her headlight bracket is broken (which most likely caused the HID bulb to burn out. BMW makes a repair kit, because apparently they dont know how to engineer a headlight housing in the first place. This seems to be a rampant issue among Z's 3's and X5's. I plan to remove the other working HID bulb and test it in the broken housing one to make sure its not the ballast. Has anyone tried the 15 dollar ebay HID's? I am going to get a pair, and replace at the same time. I have some work ahead of me with the interior trim pieces that are scratched/cracked/missing. Anyone worked with the 3M vinyl stuff? Looks easy enough, and I am pretty good that those kinds of things. Cosmetics and lights aside, its running like a champ. I reset the SMG "learned" shift patterns by doing the '40 MPH, neutral and pull the paddles trick", and within two 10 minute driving sessions I noticed a huge difference. The previous owner must have had no idea how to use this gearbox. Now its buttah smoove. One problem I am encountering with the SMG though is it skips a gear frequently when I downshift- usually 4 to 2. completely disregards 3rd gear. I dont know what thats about, unless the car is anticipating that I will brake much harder. Anyone got any insight? This thing really is a pleasure to drive though. I am looking forward to getting it on some back roads, and maybe even track days. So the big question is, after I get everything in tip top shape... whats my first mod!? Its a meaningless one, but I am thinking about replacing the lame SMG shift knob. What other suggestions? |
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05-06-2016, 11:17 PM | #8 |
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Also big thanks to SaltyNC-
You were right, there was an old baseball cap, and a piece of trim that was stuck back in the space where the top needed t be lowered. Once I reomved those, and made sure to get the folds on the top right, it locked down with no problems. |
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05-06-2016, 11:57 PM | #9 |
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Drives: 2007 Z4 Coupe
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Congrats on the car from a fellow ATLien. I have a post going in the Southeast regional forum for Georgians to check in.
There is also a few good facebook groups to join, Atlanta Z3/Z4 Owners (https://www.facebook.com/groups/AtlantaZ3Z4/) and ATLBIMMERS (https://www.facebook.com/groups/ATLB...target&fref=nf) are Atlanta specific and ZSCCA (https://www.facebook.com/groups/zscca/) is a general Z owners group. Beautiful color by the way. I'd say the 1st mod you might consider is M-Sport seats. They are unbelievably better than the comfort seats, but i believe they are expensive to retrofit. Other than that a cheap start is a stubby antenna. Congrats on the Z! |
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05-07-2016, 12:10 AM | #10 |
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hey, and you got a free baseball cap to boot!! thats a win win in my book!
Cant see the pics though? Cheers, glad your having a ball.
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05-07-2016, 02:20 PM | #12 |
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Hi, hope you're enjoying your car Mine is also a 2003 Z4 3.0 smg, silver . It also has had the battery, relay, actuator, and finally the smg pump replaced - all due to being stuck in neutral.
Now it runs great, love this car Can't upload pics yet, hopefully later. |
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05-09-2016, 01:57 PM | #13 |
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Here's a link to some images.
https://goo.gl/photos/oBnZ1pCyK2WRGtYd7 First order of business - Shine those headlights! |
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