How Much is this Z4 Worth?

[MikesBMW]

My friend's dad has a 6 car garage and is looking to free up a spot. The car he's willing to sell is a 2004 Z4 3.0L. I'm not positive all the options offered that year, but here is what I can tell from having looked at it once:

2004 3.0L Z4 Convertible
Sterling Gray with black top
6spd manual
Premium package
Sport Package
100,000 miles (Ohio highway miles)

Other things to note.. He is the original owner, always serviced at BMW, always garaged, no major repairs, cosmetically in very good to excellent condition.

What's a fair value for the car? My friend said his dad would likely take $4-5K for the car, which seems like an incredible deal. He's very wealthy and looking for an easy and trusted transaction. What do you think?

[itdnwiwbp]

If it has been well maintained, without doing any research on the actual value, I'd say $4-5K seem reasonable considering some of the garbage I see listed occasionally on craigslist for significantly more.

[Steeler]

Sounds like a no brainer to me.
The M54 is pretty much bulletproof mechanically.
You may need to refresh the cooling system and possibly look at Vanos maintenance but that would likely be the extent of it.

The price is the lowest I have seen anywhere.
Post up pics if you can

[MikesBMW]

Originally Posted by dbarton62

Sounds like a no brainer to me.
The M54 is pretty much bulletproof mechanically.
You may need to refresh the cooling system and possibly look at Vanos maintenance but that would likely be the extent of it.

The price is the lowest I have seen anywhere.
Post up pics if you can

Cool. Thanks! I see "cooling refresh kits" online are around $450. How many hours worth of work is that for an indy shop? Maybe 6-8? Let me know, thanks!

[Steeler]

Water pump, rad, expansion tank and hoses are a 5-6 hour DIY. Bleeding the system can be a bit challenging.
I would suspect 4-6 hours for an Indy, no special tools required.

Edit:

I wouldn't fix unless broken though.

[w3fl3x]

Grab the last seven of the vin from your friend. Plug it into a vin decoder and that'll tell you exactly all the options that was ordered on the car.

[Sterling Roadster]

In Canada you would have to steal the car for that price. A car with that mileage, options, and history would easily fetch $10,000 USD over here. TAKE IT!!!

If you don't want it you can import it over here and make a few thousand.

[Reborn_]

Assuming it's in good shape, I would snag that right away.

[thrak410]

Ill bring 5k cash if hes serious.

[Efthreeoh]

Any BMW with 100,000 miles and a known service history being sold by the original owner is worth $5,000. So you didn't go over to the bank and withdraw $5K and go buy it yesterday?

[z4chick]

That price is EXCELLENT, especially if it was dealer serviced all these years. As a side note, look at autotrader, cargurus, and bestride. That's a lowball price for a cream puff. Tell him not to short change himself. I picked up an 06 with 144k on the clock for $6900 but it needed a coolant tank repair. and THAT was a deal because it was also dealer maintained for 8 years. So im being honest, that's a lowball.

[MikesBMW]

Thanks for all the responses. More I look into it, you're right, its a killer deal. He lives an hour and a half away and it was snowing a bit yesterday so I didn't go over there (my car and his have summer tires, which I need to replace with my winter tires, asap). Also, I'm trying to figure out my own garage situation, since I only have one spot in my apartment building garage. I definitely want to buy it though and will likely do so soon!

[MyZ4Coupe]

Seems like a great deal... let us know if you grab it!

[MikesBMW]

Turns out its a 2003 not a 2004. Does anyone know the exact differences between the two model years...? I'm reading that the 2003 had some build quality issues and that the ECU was updated in 2004. What are your thoughts?

[MikesBMW]

More bad news... turns out it's a 2.5 and not a 3.0. I don't even think I'm going to make him an offer at this point.

What about you guys, anyone want a 2.5l 2003 Z4 in great shape with 120K miles (premium, sport, convenience packages)..? I could help be the broker in the sale.

[thrak410]

Shoot at $4k its still a good deal! Thats used miata territory...

[MikesBMW]

Does anyone have experience with the 2.5L to 3.0L performance difference?

I know the engine has less horsepower, wheels/tires are narrower in the back.. 5spd instead of 6spd.

My current car is a 135i with some M parts and a tune.. Will I be extremely underwhelmed by the 2.5L NA or is the car so much lighter that it will still be exciting to drive?

[Steeler]

The 5 speed 2.5 will have a 3.46:1 rear end ratio which will make the car feel livelier than its HP/Tq numbers would indicate.
Comparing the 2.5 to the 3.0 engine power. The HP and Tq are approx. 20% lower on the 2.5. I think you would feel that difference with the same rear end ratio. With a 13% lower gear ratio they feel similar seat of the pants.

Edit.....of course if you swap in a 3.73 rear end from an SMG equipped Z4 and its a whole other story

[Reborn_]

Lol. Trim went down and miles went up. I would pass, unless you were specifically looking for a Z in the first place. Good deal but not GREAT IMO.

[Huz-Z]

I can see why your buddy's dad is wealthy. I'd politely pass on this one. There are a couple of 3.0 Z4's on the Classified section of this board, albeit at a higher price, but with lower mileage and they are actually 3.0 litre cars.