Any BMW Z4 M Coupe owners here?

[[OcUK]Gibbo]

HI there


Any owners or guys who have driven the Z4 M Coupe here?

What are your oppinions on the car and even better would you rate it as a better drivers car over the current/outgoing M3? Obviously the CSL is in another league but how does it compare to the M3, not the new one due out next year.

[cheburator]

[OcUK]Gibbo said:

HI there


Any owners or guys who have driven the Z4 M Coupe here?

What are your oppinions on the car and even better would you rate it as a better drivers car over the current/outgoing M3? Obviously the CSL is in another league but how does it compare to the M3, not the new one due out next year.

Hmm,

I would say that it is the most driver orientated car BMW has made for mass consumption since the E30 M3. The CSL does not fall into the mass consumption category, thus I excluded it from the above sweeping statement. Upgrade the shocks, dial in a bit more camber at the front, switch DSC off, fit 19" CSL wheels with decent rubber and go CSL hunting... Simple as that...

Mine is still stock... I did over 50 laps of the Ring at Easter and the only things quicker than it were a few locals with CSLs (Bluhm Systeme), the usual suspects with the GT3s and a mentalist in a 964RS, which has been totalled since.

I am fitting Porsche 993 brake calipers all round and have bought a second set of M3 wheels to fit R-compound rubber on. Hoping to see very low 8s for BTG once the mods are finished...

Go on, test drive one... You know you want to!

[carl_w]

Driven? Yes.
Owned? Not for another six weeks

[Rich_Alpina]

cheburator said:

I am fitting Porsche 993 brake calipers all round and have bought a second set of M3 wheels to fit R-compound rubber on. Hoping to see very low 8s for BTG once the mods are finished...

Go on, test drive one... You know you want to!

Cheburator... nice to hear you got the Z4MC. I pick up mine in 6weeks as well and planning on hitting the ring with a few mates straight away. What mods if any have you done? I was thinking of an ECU remap, cat & exhuast (Tubi) i think. Apparently this should give at least another 20 -30 hp!! See link re BHP/Ton http://www.zed-cars.eu/discussion/Topic12897-15-1.... interesting ha!!!!

Carl - I currently drive a Z4 Alpina (for sale) but the MC is a beast in its own right, as the link shows above, spend about £2.5k and our in CSL power to weight territory. When i test drove the MC, i personally thought the brakes were quite strong, so not sure if they need changing - suspension compared to my uprated KW's on the Alpina was about the same. I thought my KWs made a huge diff, so on the Z4MC the difference should be take the car to a whole different level.....

In terms of power, it felt quicker than my car which is just as quick as my mates M3. If your in two minds, this should convince you about comparison to m3..... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1BPhrnevm_I

You guys should come along to the ring next month if you can - Alex it would be nice to meet up again since Abeveille in Jan... didn't know that the Zed effect left such a lasting impact on you LoL.

What does BTG mean??

Edited by Rich_Alpina on Thursday 7th June 19:48

[jezzaaa]

[OcUK]Gibbo said:

HI there


Any owners or guys who have driven the Z4 M Coupe here?

What are your oppinions on the car and even better would you rate it as a better drivers car over the current/outgoing M3? Obviously the CSL is in another league but how does it compare to the M3, not the new one due out next year.

Hi ya - yes, just the few of us owners here! ;-)

I've never driven a CSL, but had a rented M3 2 years ago for three months while my car was in the body shop being ironed. It's chalk and cheese really. The engine is the same ... fantastic... and I reckon it sounds less tinny in the Z4. But the drive is different. The Z4 is alot more raw than the M3 and the ride is much less forgiving. I like it cos it reminds me in some ways of my TVRs. Not better or worse...just different.

J.

[stopgo]

BTG = Bridge to Gantry is the usual way of timing your self on public days at the 'ring as even when you have white knuckles its hard to miss them!

[Top pup]

Hi another Z4MC owner signing in, i haven't driven an M3 so i can't compare but DoctorD and Gyrock both have/did have an Z4MC and CSL at the same time. I believe the Z4MC rates slightly above the M3 and compares very well with the CSL from some of their posts.

[cheburator]

Rich_Alpina said:

cheburator said:

I am fitting Porsche 993 brake calipers all round and have bought a second set of M3 wheels to fit R-compound rubber on. Hoping to see very low 8s for BTG once the mods are finished...

Go on, test drive one... You know you want to!

Cheburator... nice to hear you got the Z4MC. I pick up mine in 6weeks as well and planning on hitting the ring with a few mates straight away. What mods if any have you done? I was thinking of an ECU remap, cat & exhuast (Tubi) i think. Apparently this should give at least another 20 -30 hp!! See link re BHP/Ton http://www.zed-cars.eu/discussion/Topic12897-15-1.... interesting ha!!!!

Carl - I currently drive a Z4 Alpina (for sale) but the MC is a beast in its own right, as the link shows above, spend about £2.5k and our in CSL power to weight territory. When i test drove the MC, i personally thought the brakes were quite strong, so not sure if they need changing - suspension compared to my uprated KW's on the Alpina was about the same. I thought my KWs made a huge diff, so on the Z4MC the difference should be take the car to a whole different level.....

In terms of power, it felt quicker than my car which is just as quick as my mates M3. If your in two minds, this should convince you about comparison to m3..... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1BPhrnevm_I

You guys should come along to the ring next month if you can - Alex it would be nice to meet up again since Abeveille in Jan... didn't know that the Zed effect left such a lasting impact on you LoL.

What does BTG mean??

Edited by Rich_Alpina on Thursday 7th June 19:48

The Z4M is my daily driver thus it ony has the brakes modified and the front camber is set at -1.79 degrees. The rest of the car is stock. I read the post on the other forum and to me that is the biggest waste of money you can commit. The engine does not need another 25horses. There are not that many CSLs that are faster than mine at the Ring. Last time I was there I dragged with an early 996 GT3 from 40mph to 140mph and I stayed with him throughout. Why would I need to spend 2.5k on 25 horsed which you would not notice. Is this guy aware that he will never get these horses unless he runs the car on Optimax only etc. etc.

If you want to make the car faster I would shed the electric memory seats for example and stick in Recaros. Mine does not have SatNav/TV/DVD bollox either. Good rubber is also a must... Jesus, 2.5k will buy you the BMW Motorsport suspension set-up and leave you with change for rubber. Now, that woould make the car a CSL beater...

Overall, I still prefer my Porsche 928GT, which you would not recognise by the way, as it is finally coming together for the Intermarque Championship - dry sumped engine, bare interior, 400bhp engine, perspex windows, roll cage etc. 1300kg...

[[OcUK]Gibbo]

cheburator said:

Rich_Alpina said:

cheburator said:

I am fitting Porsche 993 brake calipers all round and have bought a second set of M3 wheels to fit R-compound rubber on. Hoping to see very low 8s for BTG once the mods are finished...

Go on, test drive one... You know you want to!

Cheburator... nice to hear you got the Z4MC. I pick up mine in 6weeks as well and planning on hitting the ring with a few mates straight away. What mods if any have you done? I was thinking of an ECU remap, cat & exhuast (Tubi) i think. Apparently this should give at least another 20 -30 hp!! See link re BHP/Ton http://www.zed-cars.eu/discussion/Topic12897-15-1.... interesting ha!!!!

Carl - I currently drive a Z4 Alpina (for sale) but the MC is a beast in its own right, as the link shows above, spend about £2.5k and our in CSL power to weight territory. When i test drove the MC, i personally thought the brakes were quite strong, so not sure if they need changing - suspension compared to my uprated KW's on the Alpina was about the same. I thought my KWs made a huge diff, so on the Z4MC the difference should be take the car to a whole different level.....

In terms of power, it felt quicker than my car which is just as quick as my mates M3. If your in two minds, this should convince you about comparison to m3..... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1BPhrnevm_I

You guys should come along to the ring next month if you can - Alex it would be nice to meet up again since Abeveille in Jan... didn't know that the Zed effect left such a lasting impact on you LoL.

What does BTG mean??

Edited by Rich_Alpina on Thursday 7th June 19:48

The Z4M is my daily driver thus it ony has the brakes modified and the front camber is set at -1.79 degrees. The rest of the car is stock. I read the post on the other forum and to me that is the biggest waste of money you can commit. The engine does not need another 25horses. There are not that many CSLs that are faster than mine at the Ring. Last time I was there I dragged with an early 996 GT3 from 40mph to 140mph and I stayed with him throughout. Why would I need to spend 2.5k on 25 horsed which you would not notice. Is this guy aware that he will never get these horses unless he runs the car on Optimax only etc. etc.

If you want to make the car faster I would shed the electric memory seats for example and stick in Recaros. Mine does not have SatNav/TV/DVD bollox either. Good rubber is also a must... Jesus, 2.5k will buy you the BMW Motorsport suspension set-up and leave you with change for rubber. Now, that woould make the car a CSL beater...

Overall, I still prefer my Porsche 928GT, which you would not recognise by the way, as it is finally coming together for the Intermarque Championship - dry sumped engine, bare interior, 400bhp engine, perspex windows, roll cage etc. 1300kg...

Hi there

Sounds good. When you say you adjusted the camber can this be done easily or does it require 3rd party parts?

You done any other suspension mods like AC Snitzer strut brace for example?

Is it true DMS offer a remap that gives 30BHP more for £1000?

[Rich_Alpina]

[OcUK]Gibbo said:

You done any other suspension mods like AC Snitzer strut brace for example?

Is it true DMS offer a remap that gives 30BHP more for £1000?

I plan on fitting KW V3's straight away, so will let you know feed back once its done. Also spoke to DMS today and they do a remap, which according to the person i spoke to gives you between 28-30hp. In addition to this, they come to you with a 4 day lead time so you save on fuel costs - this works quite well for me cos i live in London and will otherwise have to travel at least 60 miles round trip to get this done. It also costs £934 (£795+vat) which is on the right site of a grand. Also, if for any reason the dealer overwrites the s/ware due to upgrades during service etc, they will re map at no extra cost!!

I know some may be against this, but to me this 30hp (knocking on 380hp)sounds too good to miss - Not trying to sell this, but i'm definatelty down for a dose of this when she arrives in July!!!

[[OcUK]Gibbo]

Rich_Alpina said:

[OcUK]Gibbo said:

You done any other suspension mods like AC Snitzer strut brace for example?

Is it true DMS offer a remap that gives 30BHP more for £1000?

I plan on fitting KW V3's straight away, so will let you know feed back once its done. Also spoke to DMS today and they do a remap, which according to the person i spoke to gives you between 28-30hp. In addition to this, they come to you with a 4 day lead time so you save on fuel costs - this works quite well for me cos i live in London and will otherwise have to travel at least 60 miles round trip to get this done. It also costs £934 (£795+vat) which is on the right site of a grand. Also, if for any reason the dealer overwrites the s/ware due to upgrades during service etc, they will re map at no extra cost!!

I know some may be against this, but to me this 30hp (knocking on 380hp)sounds too good to miss - Not trying to sell this, but i'm definatelty down for a dose of this when she arrives in July!!!

Hi there

What are KW V3's and what improvement are they supposed to give?

Also the DMS remap sounds ace, if you get it done let me know how it goes.

[Rich_Alpina]

[OcUK said:

GibboWhat are KW V3's and what improvement are they supposed to give?

Also the DMS remap sounds ace, if you get it done let me know how it goes.

KW V3 (varient 3) are a three way adjustable suspension ie ride height, damper and rebound all which allow you to tailor your setup to the conditions eg track day, fast road, as well as a much much comfortable set up for.. say long journeys, work, etc. Haven't got my MC yet so can't comment on improvement, but on my current outgoing motor, the difference was UNBELEIVABLE what's interesing is that on the softest setting its as comfortable as stock - so best of both worlds. See link for more info http://www.kw-suspension.co.uk/variant-3.htm

DMS ETA'd for end of July after a months drive to familiarise myself with the car, so will give you an update then.

[taffyracer]

I had a roadster for a few days and that felt better than my current M3 although same engine and gearbox but i believe it has the CSL steering and brakes, these made the difference IMO, haven't driven the coupe but I suspect that it will be even better, so alot better than the E46m3

[[OcUK]Gibbo]

Hi there

Well I driven a Z4 M Coupe now, this was an AC Snitzer (spelling?) and so it had bodykit, exhaust and strut braces etc.

The car is beutiful from the rear and sides and I think with time the front would grow on me. The interior well that was amazing and really shows the poorer quality of my Mustang interior up, the BMW was such a nice place to be.

The dealer brought the car to me and handed me the keys, well that was after he'd had a good look at my Saleen and started asking why I wanted to sell. Anyway onto driving.

The steering was sublime, so quick and reasonable amount of good feedback, this is the first car I've driven that not only matches my Mustang in steering but is actually better. I've driven an M3 and in comparison the Z4 is leaps and bounds better.

The car with the AC exhaust sound quite nice, like a whaling banshee but nothing to loud or annoying just something that lets others know when you've got the loud pedal buried. Performance wise well its not slow but its not a 530BHP Mustang and hence I was dissapointed because of what I am use too, however it was indeed quick and am sure if they can be tuned to 380BHP then one would not be too far behind the Mustang on the straights but on the corners this thing handled like a go-kart, so precise it was awsome. Also the rear-end is very planted but just wants you to play as it was so easy to balance the car, which was really impressive.

I really liked it, for me it was a lot of fun to drive and certainly a car you'd go seeking out twisty country lanes with, it was a hoot to drive and so much better than a regular M3, in fact the difference is night and day, this is how all M cars should be.

Obviously over the Mustang it lacks all out acceleration and speed, plus the Mustang is completely unique and its a car I've built myself and hences why it drives so well because I've set it up like that. However I preferred the Z4 M handling, steering, interior it was just great.

Here are some pictures of the car in question:-







So yeah for me its the best M car I've ever driven, I thought it was a stonker a car that makes driving so dependent on the actual driver and does not nanny you. Really good fun!!

Only issue is I've just got back from a 2 hour test drive in a Z06 and wow that thing is night and day improvement over the standard C6. In comparison to the Z4 M Coupe well yeah the Vette is crazy fast, its even quicker than the Mustang. Corners well the Vette believe it or not seems to have more corner grip than the Z4 M Coupe so it certainly handles incredibly. However the Z4 M Coupe still puts you more in touch the road and does seem that little more rewarding through the twisties but the huge lobs of power from that 7.0l V8 and supercar looks is making this one very hard decision indeed.

[taffyracer]

Just joined the club, can't wait to ring its neck, sooo excited, going to get the stripes removed though!

Edited by taffyracer on Monday 18th June 19:18

Edited by taffyracer on Monday 18th June 19:19

[Rich_Alpina]

Nice car mate - please do let us know how it drives..

Why does it have the go faster..stripes though??

[JayZ4]

Nice one Taffy, great car and you will love it I am sure.

Those stripes dont work thats for sure.

You got any plans on modding the car?

Jay

[carl_w]

Actually I quite like the stripes

But those asymmetrical ones are more suited to French cars like Gordinis. I'm trying to persuade the missus that we want M-stripes on ours, but I don't think it's a go-er

[taffyracer]

JayZ4 said:

Nice one Taffy, great car and you will love it I am sure.

Those stripes dont work thats for sure.

You got any plans on modding the car?

Jay

Yes, 1st mod to remove the stripes! I want some CSL wheels and i'll just upgrade the pads, fluid and hoses and leave it at that, maybe a remap and some 100cell cats but apart from that bog standard.

[Top pup]

Nice one Taffy, but lose the stripes ASAP.