BMW Z4 S20i/S28i
Discussion
Evening all,
Been struggling for a while about what car to get next, I've sold my daily Mazda 6 so we just have the 1 family car now.
My commute is about 12 miles each way and that will be once or twice a week, was looking at something like a Octavia VRS but i walk my youngest to school and my older one gets on a bus, which means i can warrant getting a toy and the Z4 E89 ticks a lot of boxes for me.
Been on Z4 forum as well but wondered if anyone had run a Z4 as a daily and how you found it?
I will be looking for an auto 28i m sport around 2015/2016 in the next 2 months as i need to test drive as not driven one before.
I know some prefer the 20i and say get it mapped but then thats an increase in insurance and possibly warranty issues if i bought from a dealership.
Been struggling for a while about what car to get next, I've sold my daily Mazda 6 so we just have the 1 family car now.
My commute is about 12 miles each way and that will be once or twice a week, was looking at something like a Octavia VRS but i walk my youngest to school and my older one gets on a bus, which means i can warrant getting a toy and the Z4 E89 ticks a lot of boxes for me.
Been on Z4 forum as well but wondered if anyone had run a Z4 as a daily and how you found it?
I will be looking for an auto 28i m sport around 2015/2016 in the next 2 months as i need to test drive as not driven one before.
I know some prefer the 20i and say get it mapped but then thats an increase in insurance and possibly warranty issues if i bought from a dealership.
JayJayGT said:
Evening all,
Been struggling for a while about what car to get next, I've sold my daily Mazda 6 so we just have the 1 family car now.
My commute is about 12 miles each way and that will be once or twice a week, was looking at something like a Octavia VRS but i walk my youngest to school and my older one gets on a bus, which means i can warrant getting a toy and the Z4 E89 ticks a lot of boxes for me.
Been on Z4 forum as well but wondered if anyone had run a Z4 as a daily and how you found it?
I will be looking for an auto 28i m sport around 2015/2016 in the next 2 months as i need to test drive as not driven one before.
I know some prefer the 20i and say get it mapped but then thats an increase in insurance and possibly warranty issues if i bought from a dealership.
I've had 3 E86 Coupes over the last 6 years or so but not owned an E89 so can't comment from experience, but it does mean I spend a bit of time on z4forum! Been struggling for a while about what car to get next, I've sold my daily Mazda 6 so we just have the 1 family car now.
My commute is about 12 miles each way and that will be once or twice a week, was looking at something like a Octavia VRS but i walk my youngest to school and my older one gets on a bus, which means i can warrant getting a toy and the Z4 E89 ticks a lot of boxes for me.
Been on Z4 forum as well but wondered if anyone had run a Z4 as a daily and how you found it?
I will be looking for an auto 28i m sport around 2015/2016 in the next 2 months as i need to test drive as not driven one before.
I know some prefer the 20i and say get it mapped but then thats an increase in insurance and possibly warranty issues if i bought from a dealership.
Plenty of people seem to buy a 20i and get it mapped because 20is are so much easier to find, and the engine is the same unit in the 18i, 20i and 28i in any case - but 28is do have bigger front brakes. I've read a few posts from owners who say declaring a reap hasn't made much difference to insurance, but if you bought an AUC one with BMW warranty I suspect that may potentially cause issues.
Why not ask the same question on z4forum as you're much more likely to find owners/former owners of E89s?
Good luck anyway.
I'm not directly answering your question but I ran a pre facelift E89 manual 3.0 as my only car. Loved it. I tested a M sport S28i and wasn't that enamoured by it, found the ride very challenging and not enough oomph (I'd just come from a 300bhp Scirocco, admittedly).
The non M sport was much more comfortable and there is a purity about that 3 litre NA unit that's hard to explain, it has bags of character - sounds pretty good too! I just didn't see the point in going M sport, the gains in handling were not at all worth the decrease in overall quality of life. I also really dislike very thick steering wheels, which is a personal thing.
The manual was notchy admittedly, gearbox was probably the thing I liked least about it, but I didn't want a pre facelift auto as I'd experienced that box in a E63 already and knew it would be garbage in a Z4. It's possible I had a bit of a dud - the second gear in particular whined loudly at low speeds.
I think overall though it was a very good car, interior was well made (a big improvement on the previous gen, giving it more of a GT feel rather than the low slung feel) and the exterior styling is already reasonably timeless. The hardtop was absolutely fantastic and genuinely offered the best of both worlds. Economy was about 34mpg on a run which is pretty good for a fairly old engine.
Hope that helps - feel free to ask anything specific!
The non M sport was much more comfortable and there is a purity about that 3 litre NA unit that's hard to explain, it has bags of character - sounds pretty good too! I just didn't see the point in going M sport, the gains in handling were not at all worth the decrease in overall quality of life. I also really dislike very thick steering wheels, which is a personal thing.
The manual was notchy admittedly, gearbox was probably the thing I liked least about it, but I didn't want a pre facelift auto as I'd experienced that box in a E63 already and knew it would be garbage in a Z4. It's possible I had a bit of a dud - the second gear in particular whined loudly at low speeds.
I think overall though it was a very good car, interior was well made (a big improvement on the previous gen, giving it more of a GT feel rather than the low slung feel) and the exterior styling is already reasonably timeless. The hardtop was absolutely fantastic and genuinely offered the best of both worlds. Economy was about 34mpg on a run which is pretty good for a fairly old engine.
Hope that helps - feel free to ask anything specific!
I currently have the same car as the poster above, manual 3.0 E89 pre-facelift. Mine's a 59 plate so is getting on a bit, but is pretty tidy and is a great drive. The engine makes the car though, the roof is a bonus when the sun's out.
Mine's mainly for good weather and weekends but I can't see dailying it would be an issue. The Z4 forum is invaluable for info on these cars - oh and be prepared for hairdresser comments if you do get one, some people can't help themselves
Mine's mainly for good weather and weekends but I can't see dailying it would be an issue. The Z4 forum is invaluable for info on these cars - oh and be prepared for hairdresser comments if you do get one, some people can't help themselves
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