2006 Z4 M Roadster - looking for feedback

I've spent a lot of time in the E9x forum but this is my first venture into this forum. I"m not even sure if this is in the right place because I couldn't find the Z4 in the M forums nor could I find the Z4M in this forum.

During a Meet & Greet tonight with the local BMW CCA chapter my wife befriended a BMW CCA member new to this area. It turns out she has a 2006 Z4 M Roadster that she's interested in selling. She carries all the original documentation in the car with her, including the Monroney sticker. Interlagos Blue, Black Nappa Leather interior, Carbon Leather Trim, 6MT, Premium Package, Navigation, and Heated Seats and are what I remember. ~60,000 miles and just had Inspection II done. Second owner, car well cared for, new rear tires and at least half tread on the front. Curb rash on all four original wheels. Interior and trunk were a little messy and the car probably needs a good detailing but the seat and steering wheel leather looked good with a small wear mark near the left thumb rest. Right cup holder broken. Our club president came out to look at the car. He's one of the top service technicians at a local dealer and has offered to do an inspection for me and said that he can access the service records. After speaking to her he thinks that it must have an extended maintenance warranty. It was getting dark when I looked at the car so I didn't get a really good look and I haven't driven it yet. My wife was quite surprised as I had never mentioned looking for a Z4 M Roadster to her before. I currently drive a 2000 S2000, I'd like a BMW M car, and it would probably be between a Z4 M or an E46 M3 or wait until 2015 for the new M4, which I might do any way.

I'd appreciate any feedback about what this car might be worth and whether this might be the really good find that it seems like. She said that some guy offered her $24,000 but eventually backed out. I mentioned $22,000 and she seemed amenable. MSN says ~$25,000, KBB says $24,000-$25,000. What appeals to me initially is that everything that I would order the car with if I were to order it new is already on the car (interior and exterior color, Premium Package, 6MT, and heated seats).

Eagerly awaiting feedback!

22k would be a steal id jump on that before she realizes what is worth.

Love my 06 Z4M. About the only other options I can think of is Navigation and perhaps bluetooth for your phone. Go for it if it checks out OK

Originally Posted by hawkeyehep

Love my 06 Z4M. About the only other options I can think of is Navigation and perhaps bluetooth for your phone. Go for it if it checks out OK

Oops, I forgot, it does have Nav! I've added it in my OP. Does this mean that it has iDrive for the Nav? (No) I'm pretty sure that I didn't see an iDrive controller. (I didn't) What is the interface for the Nav? I'm assuming that this version of Nav is the much-criticized DVD-based earlier version. I actually like the Nav in our 335is Coupe.

Other questions:

What are the problem areas on this car, known things to look for?
Does this model have xenon lights? (Yes) LED tail lights? (Doesn't appear to) Folding mirrors? (Yes)
Does it have M stainless/aluminum pedals including dead pedal? (No)

ETA: Found a 2006 Z4 brochure, a 2006 Z4 M brochure, a 2006 Z4 Owner's Manual, and the 2006 Z4 M Supplementary Owner's Manual which answered a few questions. Can't seem to find the separate Navigation Manual.

Most 2006 models can suffer from VANOS bolt failures. The bolts back out and are sheared, causing the cam to rotate freely... pistons collide with valves... new engine on its way!

To my knowledge, every E46 M3 is just as at risk as a 2006 Z4M. The problem was corrected towards the end of 2006, though no one knows exactly when; vehicle build date and engine build date aren't necessarily related.

There is a check you can do during the valve adjustment to see if the bolts have backed out, but you can't 100% visually confirm everything is ok without some delicate surgery. Expect to spend at least $600 at a good S54 shop, maybe more. I WOULD NEVER TAKE IT TO THE DEALER TO HAVE THIS DONE. If done improperly, the timing will be all screwed up and you'll end up in a several month long saga like certain forum members.

That being said, I have put almost 100k miles on my 2006 Z4M with no hiccups. I don't know if my car has the updated bolts or not because I have been waiting until my warranty expires to have the surgery performed. Cases of failure are rare, but they are out there. I wouldn't let it dissuade me from a purchase; every car has some small risk of catastrophic failure due to a design weakness, and at least this shortfall can be corrected with a little bit of skill. I love this car!

Well you won't have problems with the steering! Lol

You mentioned you already have a top mechanic on hand as part of your club, he should be able to give you a good explination about the Valve Adjustment issues. It's really funny that somone mentioned $600 to do the adjustment my dealership said the same. It's not as hard to do as I thought, just time consuming to make sure you do it right. Biggest issue is having all the small gaskets and shimes on hand and not dropping anything. It took about 3 hours from open hood to start engine for the test drive. I let my buddy who owns a SI and did the majority of the work on the valves take driver seat.....he aint been the same since.

I love my 08 and have had zero issues mechanically with it so far and I am at 38k. I think once you get behind the wheel you will know if the car is for you or not. It was instant the moment I sat in the seat for me.

Regards

^The $600 quote was for the VANOS cam bolts to be replaced. At dealer rates, I would expect it to be double that. I agree with regard to the valve adjustments though!

Originally Posted by SD 335is

Oops, I forgot, it does have Nav! I've added it in my OP. Does this mean that it has iDrive for the Nav? (No) I'm pretty sure that I didn't see an iDrive controller. (I didn't) What is the interface for the Nav? I'm assuming that this version of Nav is the much-criticized DVD-based earlier version. I actually like the Nav in our 335is Coupe.

Other questions:

What are the problem areas on this car, known things to look for?
Does this model have xenon lights? (Yes) LED tail lights? (Doesn't appear to) Folding mirrors? (Yes)
Does it have M stainless/aluminum pedals including dead pedal? (No)

ETA: Found a 2006 Z4 brochure, a 2006 Z4 M brochure, a 2006 Z4 Owner's Manual, and the 2006 Z4 M Supplementary Owner's Manual which answered a few questions. Can't seem to find the separate Navigation Manual.

In my opinion, having a Zed without Navi, I can say it is the SINGLE item in the car that will truly date it in the future. The nav is archaic to say the least. The rest of the car sounds about right, but I wouldn't expect Honda reliability from it, however. M cars are expensive, indie shops or not, everything mechanical seems to cost 2x. You should get behind the wheel of one though, it is an experience like no other. E46M3 has it's own share of nightmares, and as the chassis ages, you'll wind up spending more than the Z in the long run, especially if you go SMG.

Thanks for all the replies!

I got a reply from the owner yesterday afternoon. She scanned the Monroney sticker and attached it, and as I remembered, it is Interlagos Blue, with Black Nappa Leather, Carbon Leather Trim, Premium Package, Navigation, and Heated Seats. I ran a CarFax report on the VIN. It comes up clean with no accidents/damage reports, other than a windshield repair, but I still have to get that in writing from her.

The car was originally acquired from Ralph Schomp BMW in Littleton, CO in June 2006. It looks like it was a 24mo./24,000 mi. lease. (Is the first owner on Bimmerfest? VIN LE89504)

It was returned in May 2008 with 24,500 miles on it. There are no CarFax maintenance records during this period. The second and current owner bought it in June 2008 with 24,951 miles on it. From the CarFax report it appeared that she had it serviced regularly. As I mentioned above, she had Inspection II done in May. She said that both she and the original owner had all service done at Schomp. She's put another 37,300 miles on it in the last four years ("mostly highway" she says) and the mileage is currently at 62,247. When I was talking to her on Wednesday, the night I met her, she said she though the car was under warranty until 100,000 miles. If she bought the car as a CPO then the six year part of that warranty expired last month. She seemed vague when I asked why she was selling it, but I think that she's selling it because it's out of warranty.

Our club president is pulling the BMW service records at his dealership today. I'll ask my knowledgeable BMW CCA fellow members about the VANOS bolts.

I was talking to another club member who's a good friend and is knowledgeable about and has worked on a lot of BMWs. He said that the Nav in the E46 is basically useless and expected the Nav in the Z4 to be similar in functionality.

I still need to schedule a test drive and have a PPI done. The only hitch with that is that she lives more than an hour north of San Diego and there are no independents in that area. The closest independent is about 30 miles south of her. The club president works at a BMW dealer that is the furthest possible service point south of her, almost 90 miles. I'm sure that we'll get the scheduling worked out.

Again, thanks for all the input!

I wouldn't call the Nav in the Z4 (or the E46) totally useless, but as was mentioned, it looks every bit like the previous generation technology that it is. Don't expect the nice, high resolution screen and easy to use menus like on your 335is. It will get you where you want to go within the limitations of your map version, but I do wish I'd bought one without it. Fortunately, the screen can be turned off and driving the car is fun enough to make up for any limitations in the accessories.

I would not get to worked up about her reason for selling. If it were me and I liked the car I would test drive it, run it by your friend the mechanic and pull the trigger. If it needs nothing more than the TLC you described then get busy clean it up and join the club. $22K is not a bad price.

And if you really hurry up you might still be able to get a room at the ZSCCA Fest in Greenville in August.

I purchased my 2006 z4 3.0si about a month ago. EVERY TIME I drive it I smile. Paid about 22K with 48K on it, but got the color and wheels I wanted. You will love the M - my understanding is that its superfast! Mine is fast enough - feels and handles like a go cart - really amazing....go for it!

Our BMW club has a drive on Sunday and one of the fellow club members brought his 2007 Z4 M Roadster so I had a chance to take a look at his. Its Titanium Silver or Silver Gray with a Black Nappa Leather Interior and Carbon Leather Trim with Premium, Nav, and Heated Seats. Unfortunately, we were getting ready to get started so I didn't have a chance to drive it and he had brought along his neighbor so I could ride with him either.

Another club member has a 2006 Z4 M Roadster in Interlagos Blue but with a Beige interior, Carbon Leather Trim, Premium Package, Nav, and Heated Seats. I contacted him last week and he had planned to come to the drive but couldn't make it, so he invited me over to his house to take a look and go for a spin. He handed me the keys and said "Have fun!" I had a good 45 minute drive and really liked it. Similar in many ways to my S2000 but different in other ways. Even though the S2000 has Recaro seats, I found the seats in the M felt better. The engine obviously has a lot more torque, but sometimes it seemed like my S2000 was more responsive in second or third gear around 3,000 RPM. The power delivery on the M is much more linear. The S2000 is reasonably quick up to 6,000 RPM but then all hell breaks loose, especially with my Mugen titanium exhaust and K&N FIPK intake. It definitely doesn't sound like a 4 cylinder! The M has a nice growly exhaust and sounds great all the time. I think that I would be perfectly happy with the stock exhaust. Overall, the M is faster, as I expected it to be. The steering actually felt lighter but tighter on turn-in. I could feel the extra weight of the M and the S2000 might be a little more nimble in some circumstances.

Coincidentally, a local dealer just took in a 2007 Z4 M Coupe on Saturday. Arctic White, Black Nappa Extended Leather and all the same packages/options. I stopped by this afternoon and the technician (the club President) had just finished his initial inspection so he took me out for a ride, then dropped me off at the used car department down the block. They let me take the Coupe out for a spin. I was surprised that the throttle didn't feel quite as responsive as the Roadster. This car has only 40,000 miles on it and is still under CPO warranty for another year. The person who traded it in was the second owner and the problem is that he took off the stock wheels and tires, put on some black 19" wheels with Cooper tires in the front and Toyo tires in the back. He also has a huge amp mounted in the trunk which takes up most of the storage. The dealer is saying that since the tires are mismatched they're going to have to replace the tires and they're going to put run-flats on it! WTF!? Some crap about liability or some nonsense. I argued with the Used Car Manager about that saying why would you do that? It came with non-runflats so what's the liability issue? No enthusiast would ever buy the car with RFTs on it and most wouldn't want the amp in the back. I told him that if I bought the car I would take it as is (it was already CPOed by the previous dealer), and I'd take off the wheels and tires, take out the amp, sell all that crap, buy the original wheels and put Michelin Pilot Super Sports on it. They want $32,995 which is way above what I would want to pay. KBB puts it at $29,300 tops, this car's condition is probably about $28,000, less if they put RFTs on it. They need to get realistic with the pricing.

Tomorrow is the test drive for the car I'm looking at along with a PPI. We haven't talked pricing yet, I'm crossing my fingers!

After a couple of e-mails back and forth today, the seller wanted to change the test drive and PPI from Wednesday to Tuesday and bring her husband. I changed the PPI appointment as she requested and rearranged my schedule. She called me twice tonight and after the first call everything was set for Tuesday morning.

She called the second time a half hour later and things went from great to WTF in less than five minutes. I was stunned, still reeling. Bottom line, the deals off. So sad

Oh well, I wasn't even looking or in the market in the first place.

Oh, BTW, her husband unexpectedly got involved on the second call.

Thanks for all the feedback. I guess I'll go back to the E9x forum now.

You can't leave us in the suspense. We need details!

Ok, I've slept on it and I feel better now. Well, maybe a little.

The last call started with her saying that she "didn't feel comfortable" having someone else besides a BMW dealer look at her car and questioned the need for a PPI at all. I explained why a buyer would want a PPI done by an independent mechanic who has no vested interest in the car. Somehow he interpreted this to mean that not only that you shouldn't trust a BMW dealer, but the dealer was obviously lying to them and they were lying to me (paraphrased: They told us the car was in perfect mechanical condition and we told you that the car is in perfect mechanical condition, why don't you believe them or us?) He got belligerent and argumentative right from the start. (I introduce myself: Hi J, how are you? Him, paraphrased: Well, I've been working like crazy, I'm tired, but what the hell!)

The night we met and went out to look at her car, I asked the club president and BMW mechanic to come out and look at the car with me. That initial conversation and every e-mail since then was about having a PPI on the car. Because the president's dealership was on the opposite end of the county I was trying to make it easier for her to bring the car down from where she lives, 90 miles north of that dealership. I suggested two independents each about 45 miles away from her. She was apparently fine with this until last night. At this point things are starting to unravel and her husband says "You know, her blue BMW looks just fine sitting in the garage next to my red Corvette!". I ignore this as I can't believe that he just said this. Apparently this is now all about his ego.

Up to this point we hadn't discussed a specific price. I knew what she had been offered before and was willing to accept but the buyer backed out so I felt that my beginning price was lower than that. All of our e-mails talked about negotiating the price based on the results of the PPI and coming to an agreed price after that.

Her second bombshell was that the price was now a flat $24,000, the same price as when the previous buyer backed out. I said wait, you're not willing to negotiate and you're now saying that it's $24,000, take it or leave it? And you're refusing to have a PPI done? Now I hear her husband yelling (yes, yelling) in the background "She doesn't need to sell the car!" and "She doesn't need the money!". At this point, my mind is reeling, I can't believe what I'm hearing, and I'm realizing, holy ****, this deal ain't gonna happen.

At this point I'm trying to reason with this completely unreasonable asshole while still trying to remain calm and not blow my top. This is when I realize that she's been having cold feet about selling her car and apparently her husband didn't understand why she was selling her car in the first place. Although he never said it I actually felt like he thought that I was trying to pressure his wife into selling her car. I said something like look, I asked if the car was for sale and I was told yes and I've proceeded in good faith ever since. The fact is, I never stood a chance. Ironic that during our first conversation when I asked her why she was selling the car she said that her husband was a big guy, 6'2", and he "didn't feel comfortable in the car".

I said something like I felt like I was being blindsided and that I wasn't comfortable with how things were going. I told her that I was sorry that everything had ended up like this. I think that she said something about "cooling off" for a few days. I said well, if you ever decide to sell the car please let me know. And that was that. From everything's great to a complete disaster in less than 5 minutes after six days of e-mails. I couldn't believe what just happened.

I don't see this deal ever happening. I have the feeling that for some reason her husband feels like I'm the bad guy and I doubt he'll ever agree to selling the car to me. This is kind of weird but it's almost like we were having an affair, her husband found about it, and then stepped in to end it. It was almost like she was flirting with me, strung me along, and then she just wasn't ready to seal the deal.

I'm completely baffled with their refusal to have a PPI done. Google "how to buy a used car" and every hit that comes up contains the advice "have the car inspected by a mechanic that you trust". This is just Used Car Buying 101. When we were discussing why I wanted a PPI, I told them that I haven't bought a used car since 1969, and after that car ended up being a disaster and a bad experience, I swore that I would buy a used car again. I told them that I went to knowledgeable people that I know in our club and they all recommended having a PPI done at one of our many fine independent shops. I told them I was just following the advice of people who buy and sell used BMWs all the time. Afterwards, I was thinking, would they buy a house without having an inspection? I just don't understand.

Bottom line, I think I inadvertently got involved in some issue between the two of them that somehow became about the car. I never expected this drama.

I wasn't even looking before but if I was looking I was thinking that an E46 M3 or a Z4 M might be a worthy replacement for my S2000. This one fell in my lap so I went for it. My S2000 is in excellent condition and I've said a thousand times that I'll never sell it. I was willing to sell it for this, the right car, the right color, the right options, the right price. My long term plan was, and still is, European Delivery on an M4 in 2015. If I bought this car I would have pushed that out another year or two and may have kept it anyway, just like I'm planning to keep my S2000. It would have been quite the stable.

Wow, I had to go get some popcorn for that one!

You are better off, keep on looking. There are lots of others out there.

Best of luck.

Chapter II - The Z4 M Roadster Saga

I had convinced myself that I wasn't in the market, but on a lark, I did a search this morning. This is what I found:

2006 Z4 M Roadster
Interlagos Blue
Black Nappa Leather Interior
Carbon Leather Trim
Nav
Heated Seats
31,732 miles
One Owner
New Continental Sport Tires (description give by the sales guy, not sure the exact model)

http://www.eastbaybmw.com/detail-200...d-8912296.html

What do you guys think?

Read up on the navigation unit used in this M. I'm personally not a fan and would prefer to not have it. That said, I'm in a similiar situation where I found my perfect interior/exterior color combination, but it has nav. I'm debating whether I want to purchase because I know I won't use it and I feel it really breaks up the aesthetics. It's a stupid thing, I know. I keep going back and forth on whether it really matters.

I have the nav, I use the bluetooth and like the functionality of it with my Iphone. You can scroll through the menu on the nav to phone numbers and dial direct from the dash. Now having said that I agree with many other people that BMW Nav is a disappointment compared to other companies NAV units but it came with my car and I would not tear it out or make it the end all for a decision to buy or not buy the car. IMHO.

Regards

Originally Posted by STIHLBOLTS

I have the nav, I use the bluetooth and like the functionality of it with my Iphone. You can scroll through the menu on the nav to phone numbers and dial direct from the dash.

Regards

Not to hijack, but this is good info and I haven't read about iPhone / nav integration. So you're saying the Nav allows scrolling through contacts on your iPhone? Does it also provide ability to stream audio via BT from iPhone? My impression has been 'no'. That would seal the deal for me getting with Nav.

Originally Posted by GriffBrew

Not to hijack, but this is good info and I haven't read about iPhone / nav integration. So you're saying the Nav allows scrolling through contacts on your iPhone? Does it also provide ability to stream audio via BT from iPhone? My impression has been 'no'. That would seal the deal for me getting with Nav.

Just to be clear, we're talking about a 2006 car. This was probably first-gen nav. The next gen was better and the current generation is pretty darn good in UI and functionality, although some navigation choices and accuracy have been criticized.

My car was 08-08 build date, one of the last dozen or so cars built before they went to the E89 model. I have not tried to stream via blue tooth since I have a MP3 Plug under the dash that connects the iphone. I have looked at aftermarket docking station I saw on a web site some months back, but I keep my phone in a otterbox, taking in in and out of that thing is a pain so the MPE Plugs takes care of that for me.

Regards

IMHO, the BMW nav on the Z4 sucks. A Garmin unit is much better....

My Iphone/Ipod mount. Direct connection and powered. I have these in both Z's.







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