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      03-21-2015, 10:09 AM   #727
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Pappi76 View Post
Hi!

Do you have the mesurment of the cage parts? found a company here in Sweden and going to order... can measure myself but wy not ask first :-)

BR Fredrik
I don't have measurements, but I can send pictures. Best to have a good fabricator build it into the car, so the fit will perfect.
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      03-27-2015, 04:09 AM   #728
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Great, this thread is back up just in time to spend tax money! haha

I've been away from the forums for a while, but glad to see you found a ride. Can't wait to see the next build.
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      04-23-2015, 02:50 PM   #729
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Chris, when are we going to get updates and why you got back into a z4m
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      06-21-2015, 08:58 PM   #730
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jroc View Post
Chris, when are we going to get updates and why you got back into a z4m
Standing by for the full story.. and pics of the new ride

come on Chris, at least give us a teaser >
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      06-21-2015, 09:49 PM   #731
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 007MCoupe View Post
Great, this thread is back up just in time to spend tax money! haha

I've been away from the forums for a while, but glad to see you found a ride. Can't wait to see the next build.


Quote:
Originally Posted by Jroc View Post
Chris, when are we going to get updates and why you got back into a z4m
Soon, figuring out how to post photos through flikr now. I feel like an old man because I used to be able to post photos directly to the site and now we have to link them

Quote:
Originally Posted by Vanne View Post
Standing by for the full story.. and pics of the new ride

come on Chris, at least give us a teaser >
I will definitely share the story of why I ended up back at with the Z4M soon. Short version is it just checks all the boxes for me that other cars in my price range did not. The journey from z4m to C6 z06 to e92 M3 and back to Z4m was interesting experience.
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      06-13-2016, 02:32 PM   #732
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Well this may be a bit cathartic, but here goes

Excited to be back in a Z4 M coupe!

As the saying goes, “grass is always greener…” Well I went down this path chasing another amazing car. My best friend Joe (aka brother from another mother) started tracking and bought a C6 Z06. His terrible influence lead me to sell the IB M coupe and pick up Z06 of my own.

The Journey to Z06 ownership:
Selling the M coupe was an interesting experience. I loved building the car, but hadnÂ’t realized how truly attached I was until the day I sold it. At the time of sale, I had been working out of state and only coming home a few days at a time. The car was in the middle of multiple projects, maintenance and repair that I did not have time for. This was when I decided to make the jump to Z06 territory.
It was an exciting transaction. The car went to a fellow enthusiast. On the day the new owner was coming to pick up the M I gave the car one last detail. I found myself moving slowly as if the final detail was some sort of long good bye (lol, sappyÂ…I know). I then stacked the boxes/packaging from all modifications along the wall in my garage so the new owner could select what he would like to keep. This image always stick out in my memory because it had been the culmination of several yearsÂ’ work.

With the M coupe sold, the hunt for a C6 Z06 began!
I had been looking for a sub 30K mile 2008/2009, when I came across 2006 that peaked my interest. The car was one owner, all service records, 11K miles, Victory Red and located in Laguna Hills CA. After speaking to the owner, I sent a deposit and booked a flight. If everything lined up the plan was to drive it home that evening. It ended up being one of those cool car buying moments when the seller has under promised and over delivered. The car was showroom condition; Difficult to tell it had ever been driven. Exterior, interior and engine bay were flawless. The only indicator of use was the scratched up plastic lower valence. I was traveling with bank check and contract in toe. We signed the contract, exchanged check for car, and I began the exciting drive home! (Side note, at 5’-10” you can comfortably sleep fetal position in the back of a Z06)

Why the ZO6:
After spending several years building the M coupe, the Z06 was very attractive for a few reasons:

-Power: In stock form at 500HP, the Z06 was at a HP benchmark I wanted to meet with the M

-Torque: In stock form at 400ftlb, the power was “on-demand” in a way that I found less scary and more useful coming out of turns than I had anticipated.

-Weight: All that power and torque weighting in at 3147lbs

-Oil management: Dry sump oil system (no oil starvation during high speed turns)

-Transmission: Audible gear grabbing motorsport sounds + rear mounted for weight distribution (like another car many of us know and loveÂ… the ALMS M3.)

-Wide Track and Loads of Rubber: The car sits very stable in turns at high speed & it is easy to run 295 up front with 345 rear with no fender modification. The experience was great handling and plenty of grip to handle the power/torque

-Brakes: In stock form, the stopping power matches the car ability to move

-Electronic Gadgetry: TPMS dash read-out. This rocks! Know what the individual pressures were at each corner was something I always wished the M had. Mild to wild exhaust. Silly name, awesome concept. Electric button to make exhaust civilized or loud! Push button start, w/ no key insertion needed! Heads up display (cool idea, but ended up not really using this).

-Maintenance Cost: Just check out Rockauto.com and do some cross comparisons to our beloved M coupe. I was amazed at how inexpensive wear items were for a relatively expensive car.

For me the Z06 in stock form met all the performance benchmarks I had been chasing while building the M coupe. I still believe that if performance is all you are looking for, a low mileage C6 Z06 is one of the best values out there. Trying to meet those benchmarks in a Z4M will cost quite a bit more than buying a Z06.
Z06 ownership was a blast, but ultimately the car did not “check all the boxes” for me in terms of a complete package. Despite the many upgrades in performance and gadgetry, I still missed my M coupe. Ultimately, the Z06 ended up not being the car for me.
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      06-13-2016, 04:27 PM   #733
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Thank you for sharing ! Now that you are back in a Z4M are you planning a new mod journal for that as well ?
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      06-13-2016, 08:37 PM   #734
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Quote:
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Thank you for sharing ! Now that you are back in a Z4M are you planning a new mod journal for that as well ?
Yes sir! probably a photo journal, so a little different
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      06-13-2016, 08:39 PM   #735
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Back to M Power

Z06 in a nutshell: A legit track capable thrill ride right out of the box; simply the fastest machine I have owned. An amazing car, just not the one for me

For many motorsport enthusiast & track rats, the Z06 is a perfect fit. Here is the short list of why it wasn’t the right car for me:
1. Body fit and finish: This was a killer for me. The headlights bumper and fenders were all just a hair off. Take a close at look at a Z06 or ZR1 one and you will find that this is the norm. I zero in on detail and this drove me insane every time I walked up to the car. I went as far as taking the front end apart and re-aligning everything when I switched to black headlights. This helped, but the design is not conducive to perfect body panel alignment. What does this have to do with performance…nothing

2. Interior: Though I had plans to update the interior, the entire space needed a serious re-design. Really dated IMO and even shares steering wheel design with the Malibu. Again, not a performance issue but it took away from the overall driving experience. That said, they seem to have turned this around with the C7

3. Crashing value: Seemed to be depreciating quickly. I wasn’t 100% sure the Z06 was the car to build a business around and I was concerned I may not have the opportunity to sell without losing a bunch of $$$$$.

4. Reduced Inspiration to build: With the M coupe, I never lost the inspiration to modify, design and create. As much as I wanted it to, The Z06 just never got the creativity going. Part of this relates to design and I think part relates to rarity. For what reason, I like the design of the M coupe more than most cars. I do thing the wide body Z06 is a nice looking design, but just not the one.

5. Too Common: nuff said

6. Not an M car: The allure of the M car for me started at a young age when I could barely afford a used Acura Integra. The silver e36 M3 with cobra seats and motorsport wheels, then watching the e46 M3s’ battle the Audi S4s’ in the Lemans races in Monterey. Just a perfect balance of motorsport and refinement

7. No Zpost Community: Check mate. Sort of felt a drift without the Zpost crew. Just as inspiring as the cars themselves, the Z crowd. Like family. Really cool techy family with similar interests of course.

Next logical course of action, E92 M3. The NA High revving V8 powered M3 seemed like the stuff dreams are made. Found a 2011.5 Alpine White Competition package with 14K miles at the Local Porsche dealer and jumped on it.
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      06-16-2016, 03:39 PM   #736
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E92M Back to E86M

Last post on the journey back

The E92M experience:

Pros:
It’s an M: Great balance of refinement and motorsport

S65: loved this engine sound and performance in M mode with all the nannies turned off.

Interior: Beautiful interior space. Found myself going out to the garage just to sit in the car and enjoy the environment; The aroma of new leather, aggressive adjustable side bolsters hugging, carbon leather trim, led lighting, M stitching… a few of the things that really drew me in. A very comfortable car with a nice balance of motorsport influence.

Exterior: The alpine white with competition package is the best IMO for the E92M. A clean motorsport look that shows off all the M augmented features without going over the top.

I-drive: I freaking loved this feature. Some much great tech and control in the palm of your hands. I know there is a lot of mixed opinion on this, but loved the I-drive control.

Driving: Mellow and comfortable with M off and nannies on. Aggressive and fun with M mode on and nannies off 

Quality Family Time: Best part of owning this car. My Wife Daughter and I could all enjoy the car together. Great car on the track and a great car for driving the family to the beach! Not to many cars work well in both categories


CONS:

Drives “Big:” Though, stable, powerful and fun, the car always felt big to me. I know these are capable cars, but it felt like I was pushing/pulling a heavy vehicle around. Not the light and nimble feel I was getting from the Z4MC and the Z06

Like The Car Stock: For me this car was a perfect Jekyll/Hyde touring and track duty car. Personally, the more modified an e9XM is, the less appealing I find it. Aside from front lip, wheels & suspension, this was not a car I wanted to modify. Anything beyond that starts to take away from what I like about the competition package E92M. This was a problem because, my plan was to start a business based around modifying cars. I needed to have a car that inspired me to modify like crazy and create a decent show piece.
Overall, I really enjoyed the E92M. I tried convincing my wife that we should get rid of her Tahoe and keep the M3. She liked the idea, but in the end it was just too small for her. Cars I was excited about driving and modifying for the business included E86M, E46M, F8XM, Exige S, GTR. Of these, the E46M and the E86M left the most budget for modifying. I had a strong leaning toward the E46M due to availability of parts and computer tuning support.

In the end the car that still inspired me the most was the E86M. After several years of ownership the looks and driving characteristics of these little monsters still puts a huge smile on my face.
Picked one up locally & have been going after it ever since. I still have breakfast in the morning with the car (It’s become a tradition with Z4MC). Every time I spend time on the car, several new exciting ideas for modification/improvement flood my mind. To top it off & just as rewarding as the car itself in many ways, I am back in the ZPOST community!
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      06-16-2016, 05:34 PM   #737
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Great stuff Chris, very enjoyable read.

In the end there really is nothing that grabs one, like these little beasties.
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      06-16-2016, 05:41 PM   #738
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Glad your back. I loved your build record on your last m coupe and looking forward to you sharing stories of your new car.
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      06-17-2016, 12:39 PM   #739
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Awesome thread.
Saw your post regarding the Braille battery relocation.
When can we expect some info on that?
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      06-18-2016, 12:06 PM   #740
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Welcome back and congratulations!
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      06-18-2016, 12:14 PM   #741
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And welcome back!
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      06-18-2016, 01:08 PM   #742
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You nailed it with the pros of the E9x M3! They are amazing cars. I'm looking forward to seeing the results of your M Coupe [Part II].
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      06-29-2016, 02:02 PM   #743
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Great read, I was always curious about your journey back to a coupe.Thank you
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      07-17-2016, 08:05 PM   #744
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As the current owner of Chris's Z4MC (after one additional previous owner), I can attest to how much fun this car is.

Thst said, I am considering selling it to create my own story build of a 987.1 Cayman S.

If anyone is interested, PM me. I may post up an ad shortly, but figured if any enthusiasts are following this thread you could get a head start. This is probably the best value for the best handling car... IN THE WORLD. Jk. But it really is great.
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      08-26-2020, 02:23 AM   #745
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I know I’m like 10 years late, but after all these years, this thread is still the best thread by far!!
I love your comparisons between the coilovers and thank you you have helped me made a decision on going for the KW V3 Coilovers.
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      11-23-2020, 11:32 AM   #746
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After owning a 2003 Z4 2.5i for 13 years and selling it when I custom ordered a 991.2 cabriolet - I found myself wanting the Z4MC for track use (and to take the track abuse off my 911).

Now that I have a full year of track days under my belt in my 2006 Z4MC, I'm ready to go full track-mode with this car. I'm looking at suspension upgrade, half cage, race seats, and maybe brakes. (I've upgraded pads, but I'll probably try track-only pads before going BBK).

Nevertheless, I'm reviving this very old thread because it was extremely helpful and has given me great ideas. I love this car and I love how surprised people are when I'm able to get around some world-class circuits pretty quickly with minimal current modifications.

I'll be searching lots of old threads, but anyone with knowledge on current options feel free to DM me or reply to this revived thread.
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