Z4MC/R problems

[CliveN]

There is bound to be a thread somewhere which tells me this. I bought my Z4m only recently but already think “oh god it’s a 15 year old car and a tricky one at that” - in that the engine can be fragile and the cars are often tracked so you have no idea of how it’s been used. All I can determine from mine is that the 31000 miles is genuine and that it held a private plate and I have a sheaf of bills showing work being done when it was spotted at service and mot. Such work includes broken rear springs, seized calliper, new front discs and an abs fault. It also has broken front strut gaiters. I intend to give it an overhaul this winter. I don’t expect anything major as it passed the mot a month ago but I might put on replacement shocks. What’s a good set which provide a compliant ride and not super expensive? Electrically I already gave the airbag light but Andrew on here has already suggested I visit him to bring up the fault codes and then find the problem. Is the car susceptible to electrical gremlins? My E89 hasn’t had anything (famous last words)…. As I say you have probably covered all this to death beforehand. If so can you please send me a link. Thank you.

[mmm-five]

I'm sure there is a buyer's guide on here somewhere which will have all the usual watchouts.

But, as you've got the roadster, you won't have to worry about the duck pond on the rear window and the potential corrosion that comes with it.

Nor should you find the ride particularly unforgiving compared to the coupe as the roadster shell absorbs the bumps better as it's not as stiff...although probably stiffer/harsher than the touring-biased e89.

The hydraulic roof motor can be damaged/flooded due to the drains being blocked, and clearing out these should be part of a regular maintenance process. A lots of owners on here have had it removed from the floodable area into the nice, dry boot to avoid this issue.

Depending on who you talk to, rod bearings are or are not a consumable...and 50-60k miles is where most people seem to suggest getting them done 'for peace of mind'...however, others have done 100k+ miles and still haven't done them...and others have done 140k miles for them to fail (i.e. me).

Rear springs and O2 sensors seemed to be a common problem, but I never had either fail (have broken an O2 sensor wire from going offroad though).

[CliveN]

Thank you but I have the coupe! The paintwork at the duck pond seems okay and the ride isn’t too bad.

[CliveN]

I fully expect it to be a money pit to bring up to scratch but hopefully it will stay reasonably reliable after that

[mmm-five]

CliveN,

Thank you but I have the coupe! The paintwork at the duck pond seems okay and the ride isn’t too bad.

It's the underneath of the hatch that corrodes, as water sits between the hatch and the frame...but it's easy to check. Mine is left outside all the time, so have had mine treated/painted twice.

There's nothing else coupe specific really...and I went with Bilstein B16 PSS10 when I swapped my suspension out at 100k miles (along with Vibratechnic engine mounts) to help with the choppy ride when pushing on...but the suspension is not a particularly cheap job (was about £2k when I did it a long time ago).

[Mr Tidy]

I had my rod bearing shells replaced at 78,000 miles for peace of mind. They were worn, but could have been worse. The state of the engine mounts I got replaced at the same time was more alarming!

They don't seem to suffer too much from electrical gremlins unless the battery is getting low on charge, then all sorts of random warning lights can appear.

[CliveN]

Thanks everyone