We're looking at a 2.5 Z4 today as a second car (SWMBO's mid life crisis ).

I'm not that convinced by it's reliability/drivability.

Any useful comments or tips gratefully received.

Honda S2000 is pretty bullet proof and very similar niche.

I have friends with an early S2000 (an 02 I think) other than a pin ***** leak in the roof caused by a cats claw it's been faultless. They only wheel it out the garage in summer but are intending to hang on to it indefinitely believing it to be a future classic.

My only thought is that if your SWMBO drives like my SWMBO then she might find either of those cars a bit of a handful if the road get greasy.

We're looking at a 2.5 Z4 today as a second car (SWMBO's mid life crisis ).

I'm not that convinced by it's reliability/drivability.

Any useful comments or tips gratefully received.

Well the first generation Z4 was made in the USA and quality was not always up to BMW standards. The 2.5 litre is quite a good little motor, 2 litre a bit weak IMO. Had a drag against a 2.5 and narrowly lost out in a Mark 1 VRS. Also recently sold an MX5. Very nice having the open top but even the 2 litre in that I thought was a bit flat as you miss the turbo once you have got use to driving with one.

look for FSH. Servicing a bit pricey, fuel consumption mid thirties I expect as average. Get a Lotus, much better mid life crisis!

There is only one marque for a mid life crisis... they're plastic, have very odd interiors, and were made in Blackpool.

There is only one marque for a mid life crisis... they're plastic, have very odd interiors, and were made in Blackpool.

I disagree.

Can't comment on the 2.5l but the 3.0l certainly seemed to drive well with a nice linear power delivery and fit and finish was usual BMW. My biggest complaint was that the bonnet was too long which made getting out of some junctions interesting. Didn't feel as involving as an MX5 or as lively as an S2000, but a great GT car (I don't think this was on run-flats). Also worth looking at the Boxster...

Chris

There is only one marque for a mid life crisis... they're plastic, have very odd interiors, and were made in Blackpool.

Those tea cup rides at the pleasure beach

There is only one marque for a mid life crisis... they're plastic, have very odd interiors, and were made in Blackpool.

And all leak like seives!!

Some even catch fire on their own!!

I took a mate out a few times in 2009 to look at convertibles as a weekend car as he drove a van for work. I'd suggested the S2000 (just out of his budget for a good one), MX5, Lotus Elise, TT 225, MG-F and MR2 but all those were either too wide or too long to fit in his garage. Looked at a 2.5 Z4 in Thurrock then a 2.2 one near Gatwick which is what he went for in the end.

My impression was it went well but didn't feel as quality as I would expect from a BMW. The doors felt like they were made out of tin foil compared to my Octavia's and it had a pump and tyre sealant in the boot instead of a spare or space saver. There was a pointless cubby hole between the seats which could hold lots of CDs until you braked at which point they all flew out. I like the metal frame in the engine bay of the 6 cylinder versions which gives good rigidity to the front end. The 6 cylinder engines can be susceptible to VANOS problems and you should make sure the oil has been changed regularly - the 2.5 one we looked at we walked away from as the oil was like treacle.

The 2.2 was pretty torquey and with the roof down it felt very fast. I believe the 2.2 is 175bhp as standard and certainly I had trouble keeping up with it on the way back up the M23 in my Mk1 Octavia VRS.

Certainly do consider something like a S2000 now as they really are brilliant RWD fun and are probably kicking around for under 10 grand these days.

It depends why you are going down the convertible route, is it for pose value or wind in the hair fun driving? The number of convertible owners you see driving with the roof up always amazes me. As far as choosing I would suggest comparing the tin top convertibles with the cloth tops, having owned both the tin tops do make you feel like the car is more secure when left (a common theft from a soft top is the tax disc).

I would be taking a few test drives and sitting in some different cars to see how they feel. One of the best cars I had for driving position was a Fiat barchetta (it was was also lovely to look at and fun to drive). But this was probably because it was left hand drive only and the manufacturer had not bodged a right hand drive conversion (as most do).

S2000 is available for well under £10k. You'd probably want one of them (or a Z4) on an 05 or earlier so you don't get hit with £460 for the road tax every year. £270 is going to be bad enough.

S2000 is available for well under £10k. You'd probably want one of them (or a Z4) on an 05 or earlier so you don't get hit with £460 for the road tax every year. £270 is going to be bad enough.

Yes I've just realised that, Band L,243 gms /co2 I think.

Also consider a Boxster if you want a more premium feeling convertible. Some have issues with the image and the design isn't to everyone's tastes, but they drive brilliantly.

What's the budget?

Other than that - as suggested: S2000 (facelift if budget allows as they drive better), or MX-5. Elise can feel compromised to some, in everyday used - it's a pretty focused bit of kit, and handling can be a bit unforgiving. I'm not really a massive fan of the Z4 in driving or design terms, although I would consider a Z4M

^^^^^^^^

I second this, look for a nice Boxster, it is by far a superb car. And your darling will love you for it. Nothing like Porsche, nothing

I need this one in my life:

Briskoda Classifieds: Porsche Boxster S for sale

It's perhaps out of mine, and the OP's budget though...

The 2.5 lump is a bit long in the tooth & doesn't make sense to me when compared to the m54 3.0 engine which is more powerful, & offers slightly better mpg & if I remember rightly sits in the same or similar co2 tax group

I had an 2003 e46 330 for many years & loved it. In some respects it was more entertaining than the m3 I replaced it with as the limits of grip were lower & there is very little opportunity to drive an m3 near its limits on public roads where as you could get closer to the 330s limits without being a complete lunatic.

Anyway I digress - the later 3.0 engines in the z4 were very reliable, my 330 had the same engine & didn't miss a beat in well over 70k miles & generally cost me less to service than my mothers aging polo 1.6cl!

DYOR but I think the z4 running costs will be lower than a boxster, however in my opinion the Porsche build quality is better than later bmws.

If you find a good one, then suspect you'd be very happy with either the z4 or boxster so whatever you opt for enjoy :-)

I've been running a 2005 Z4 alongside my trusty 99 Octy TDI for nearly 3 years now.

Its the 3.0i and I love it to bits. All manual 3.0i and si Z4s sneak into the £275 tax band (up from 265 this year I think), the only one that defo gets into the top tax band is the Z4M and the 3.0 with an auto box.

Mine has been virtually totally reliable since I have had it, only problem was a broken rear spring which surfaced 2 days after I hit the mother of all potholes, bought the spring online for £65 and fitted it myself. The 3.0l engine is a peach and its worth noting that open road driving gives virtually the same economy as the 2.2 and 2.5 litre due to having a 6th gear cutting about 500rpm off a cruise at 60 ish. Its happy to pull from 1000 rpm around town just like my octy TDI too lol. I get about 32mpg overall and about 36-7 on a long run. I never planned to have it serviced by BMW but BMW 4+ servicing is so cheap why not. I just had an interim service done at the main dealer for £140. The oil alone would have been about £70 + air/oil filters filter had I done it myself.

There are a few simple mods that improve the car massively, 3.0i/si has a sound generator (only engine to have it as standard) which means you can easily tune the sound in the car from standard to nascar, mine is about 50/50 at the mo. Ditch the runflat cars, they ruin the ride quality and don't necessarly help the mid corner handling on our bumpy roads either (I carry a 3 series space saver in the boot for long trips). Remove the CDV from the clutch makes a rapid launch (3.0 does 60 in 5.9 ) much easier and smooths out what can be a tricky 1-2nd gear change. Cruise control is also about a £50-60 15 min retro fit on cars with a pre Oct 2004 build date.

As far as the comparison with a Boxster goes a friend at work bought a 2003 Boxster S a year before I bought the Z4 and his services were averaging more than double the Z. He has actually sold it since as on going repairs were getting silly. The pre 2006 6 cylinder engines are pretty bomb proof but the later slightly more powerful si engines are less so. The Boxster is a better handling car (largely due to the electric pas on the Z4 robbing some feel) and the Z4 has a cheap interior for what was a 32k+ car in 3.0i spec but it is considerably cheaper to run and in my opinion looks better. The boxster is too "double ended" in my opinion where as the Z has a much more classic long bonnet roadster look.

Thanks for all the info Guys.

Neither of us liked the Z4,particularly with the roof up.

Plan B is now the Merc R129 SL320.

There's some very low mileage ones about at rock bottom prices.They all come with hardtops as well.

Seems more like my sort of cruiser.(We have a small Merc independant specialist just down the road as well.)

What do you think?

Definitely something appealing about those Mercs.

The z4 is defo on the firm side if you want a cruiser and despite loving mine, if its a roof up day I tend to take the octavia, it can feel a little small in there! Those Mercs are lovely, get a good one and I can't see it depreciating over the next few years. Not a clue about relaibility and running costs though.

The R129 shape is certainly worthy of consideration. One of the last well-built Mercs done before they hit their quality slump IMO. They've sorted most issues out over the last 3-4 years, but obviously an SL of that era is still quite a lot of money

The SL320 is a nice happy-medium too, especially as a cruiser. My Uncle sold his as a 2nd car a couple of years ago and I still miss going out in it now! For cruising and longer trips with the hood down it takes some beating.

Obviously they're not in the same league as the Z4 and Boxster handling-wise, but then I wouldn't drive it in the same way anyway - that's not the point of them so it's pretty much a null point really.

If there's a local one that's available go and try it for size. As for moving forward with a purchase, I might ask the local independent if he'd give it a look over for you. I'm not that well up on them to point out issues to watch for, but I'm obviously aware that it was a premium motor and fairly well specced up with toys - so you want to avoid any problems you can really.

Definitely get an R129 over the Z4. Miles more style and class in the Merc than the brash wideboy Z4 (sorry to owners that have posted above! Each to their own of course). The R129 looks very blocky now next to the latest melted Mercs but that is what they were. Solid decent cars. Just avoid red ones or wild colours as that just looks stupid on a classy R129. I know this is supposed to be a fun weekend car, but a red R129 just looks wrong (to my eyes).

Quite agree. Metallic silver or midnight blue on a R129 for me.

Interior leather colour needs to be right too. Preferably grey leather for both of those colour choices IMO.

Personally, I'd go with one from here

http://www.jaguar.com/gb/en/xk/gallery

Those Mercs are lovely, get a good one and I can't see it depreciating over the next few years. Not a clue about relaibility and running costs though.

+1 future classic just about to turn from depreciation to appreciation. Pick a good one, look after it and you won't lose.

I think the styling is about to turn a corner now too. Cars are funny like that, they look great when they come out, look cak after about 5-10yr then about 10yr after that they suddenly look good again.