Special Kay
Active member
Ahh Fredej, those are some great pictures 
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fredej's silver grey 3.0si coupé
- Thread starter fredej
- Start date
It is getting colder outside and Z4 season is almost over for me. I will put the Z4 into hibernation before the end of October.
So time to recap the last few months.
Here is some sunset images from early August.
In the summer I had the yearly statutory inspection done (similar to MOT testing in UK). The car was fine but the technician showed me that there were some slight play at the front lower control arm bushes. That surprised me because those were replaced with original BMW parts just before I bought the car 5 years ago. Since the I have driven it about 25 000 km. I expected the bushes to last longer than that. The play was not that bad, but eventually the bushings need to be replace again.
A summertime photo.
Not long after I bought the Z4 I had a full set of Goodyear Eagle F1 ASY5 installed. Now the rear tires have not much thread left. It is almost down to the legal limit of 1.6 mm. The fronts still has plenty of thread left, roughly 4-5 mm.
Looking at the wear pattern on the tires, they are worn more in the middle. This indicates that I have run with too high tire pressures. I have used what is stated by BMW on the label in the driver's doorsill. 2.3 bar (33 psi) front and 2.7 bar (39 psi) rear. Apparently that has been too high pressure with the Goodyear non-RFT tires.
The last two months I have instead used 2.2 bar (32 psi) front and 2.4 bar (35 psi) rear. Hopefully that works better. Anyway, I need new rear tires for next season so I will order Goodyear Eagle F1 ASY6 (as ASY5 has been replaced by ASY6) in the spring.
At the end of August the Z4 had a major milestone. It passed 100 000 km on the odometer!
And now, in the end of October, the Z4 will be 17 years old. Still looking fantastic!
At last, a photo from one of my usual photo locations; Fjärås bräcka. This time with harvesting in action.
So time to recap the last few months.
Here is some sunset images from early August.
In the summer I had the yearly statutory inspection done (similar to MOT testing in UK). The car was fine but the technician showed me that there were some slight play at the front lower control arm bushes. That surprised me because those were replaced with original BMW parts just before I bought the car 5 years ago. Since the I have driven it about 25 000 km. I expected the bushes to last longer than that. The play was not that bad, but eventually the bushings need to be replace again.
A summertime photo.
Not long after I bought the Z4 I had a full set of Goodyear Eagle F1 ASY5 installed. Now the rear tires have not much thread left. It is almost down to the legal limit of 1.6 mm. The fronts still has plenty of thread left, roughly 4-5 mm.
Looking at the wear pattern on the tires, they are worn more in the middle. This indicates that I have run with too high tire pressures. I have used what is stated by BMW on the label in the driver's doorsill. 2.3 bar (33 psi) front and 2.7 bar (39 psi) rear. Apparently that has been too high pressure with the Goodyear non-RFT tires.
The last two months I have instead used 2.2 bar (32 psi) front and 2.4 bar (35 psi) rear. Hopefully that works better. Anyway, I need new rear tires for next season so I will order Goodyear Eagle F1 ASY6 (as ASY5 has been replaced by ASY6) in the spring.
At the end of August the Z4 had a major milestone. It passed 100 000 km on the odometer!
And now, in the end of October, the Z4 will be 17 years old. Still looking fantastic!
At last, a photo from one of my usual photo locations; Fjärås bräcka. This time with harvesting in action.
Special Kay
Active member
Fredej, that interior picture looking out over the water should be your next competition entry, its simply stunning
I revisited some photos from two years ago. That day was a rather grey late afternoon in October.
The front of the E85/E86 is maybe its least appreciated design feature. I still think it works well and it's refreshingly simple compared to a lot of modern over-designed cars.
The halos are barely visible in the above photos. I think it would have helped the front design if they were brighter and of dual style similar to what other BMW models had at the time.
Just for fun, I added a second set of halos in edit for the photo below.
(I think someone on the forum has modified their headlights to something similar and that there are aftermarket halogen headlights with dual halos.)
I really like the interior of the Z4. It is simple, focused and (in my opinion) features everything you actually need in form of modern feature comforts. To be fair, a lot of it was options extra, but this particular Z4 have; automatic AC, cruise control, rain sensor, heated seats and HiFi with aftermarket bluetooth connectivity. Everything is well laid out with physical buttons and controls. No bright screens with endless menus.
The unusually large inlays (commonly of the same aluminium design, like in this Z4) can be perceived a bit odd initially. But I feel it's a distinctive design feature of the Z4 and that it works well. It feels sporty and like you're in something special. It's not shared by any other BMW model. In this case the aluminum breaks up an otherwise fairly dark interior and ties it (somewhat) together with the silver grey exterior.
Something I always liked with BMW interiors of the past is the monocolored orange glow from gauges and buttons. I find the design very pleasing.
The front of the E85/E86 is maybe its least appreciated design feature. I still think it works well and it's refreshingly simple compared to a lot of modern over-designed cars.
The halos are barely visible in the above photos. I think it would have helped the front design if they were brighter and of dual style similar to what other BMW models had at the time.
Just for fun, I added a second set of halos in edit for the photo below.
(I think someone on the forum has modified their headlights to something similar and that there are aftermarket halogen headlights with dual halos.)
I really like the interior of the Z4. It is simple, focused and (in my opinion) features everything you actually need in form of modern feature comforts. To be fair, a lot of it was options extra, but this particular Z4 have; automatic AC, cruise control, rain sensor, heated seats and HiFi with aftermarket bluetooth connectivity. Everything is well laid out with physical buttons and controls. No bright screens with endless menus.
The unusually large inlays (commonly of the same aluminium design, like in this Z4) can be perceived a bit odd initially. But I feel it's a distinctive design feature of the Z4 and that it works well. It feels sporty and like you're in something special. It's not shared by any other BMW model. In this case the aluminum breaks up an otherwise fairly dark interior and ties it (somewhat) together with the silver grey exterior.
Something I always liked with BMW interiors of the past is the monocolored orange glow from gauges and buttons. I find the design very pleasing.
Bmw850csiguy
New member
Beautiful car, enjoy it!
Thanks all of you! 
I was lucky to find a Z4 with a great specification and in pretty good condition! The plan is to enjoy it as it is while trying to maintain its condition.
However, the car was pretty much mechanically untouched (apart from normal service) by previous owners. So all the regular weak spots with the Z4 (oil leakage, water pump, suspension, etc) are left to do when those issues appears.
The style 202 wheel looks to be quite uncommon, at least here on the forum.
I was lucky to find a Z4 with a great specification and in pretty good condition! The plan is to enjoy it as it is while trying to maintain its condition.
However, the car was pretty much mechanically untouched (apart from normal service) by previous owners. So all the regular weak spots with the Z4 (oil leakage, water pump, suspension, etc) are left to do when those issues appears.
The style 202 wheel looks to be quite uncommon, at least here on the forum.
Now some photos from this spring. :driving:
Style 202 wheels and wippy aerial. Keeping it original 8)
A few weeks back I had the car on display at Tjolöholm Classic Motor together with BMW Club Schweden. Tjolöholm Classic Motor is one of Sweden's bigest car shows with about 1300 vehicles at display. I've been a regular visitor for over ten years but this year was the first time I had the Z4 on display.
I have one more car show planned in a few weeks. On 29 of June the Z4 will be on display at Halmstad Sports Car Event.
Style 202 wheels and wippy aerial. Keeping it original 8)
A few weeks back I had the car on display at Tjolöholm Classic Motor together with BMW Club Schweden. Tjolöholm Classic Motor is one of Sweden's bigest car shows with about 1300 vehicles at display. I've been a regular visitor for over ten years but this year was the first time I had the Z4 on display.
I have one more car show planned in a few weeks. On 29 of June the Z4 will be on display at Halmstad Sports Car Event.
The right-hand-side (passenger side) cup holder has had a broken arm since before I bought the car. I haven’t bother fixing it until now.
I saw a post on here with someone buying a cheap AliExpress replacement. I thought I would try that.
I ordered this cup holder. It came with a faceplate with the correct soft-touch-plastic finish. However, I reused the old faceplate.
Replacing the broken cup holder was easy. The hardest part was to remove the plastic screw cover in the air went without damaging it. I failed that and lightly damaged the screw cover. It should be available from BMW if needed.
Compared to the original unit, the Chinese copy may be marginally less sturdy. But it’s hard to tell. The original cup holder is already quite flimsy.
Every summer I spend some time detailing the car. I thoroughly cleaned it, applied Turtle wax, treated rubber seals with gummipflege and plastic trims with Autoglym Bumper and Trim gel. The interior was vacuumed and the leather treated with leather care.
I saw a post on here with someone buying a cheap AliExpress replacement. I thought I would try that.
I ordered this cup holder. It came with a faceplate with the correct soft-touch-plastic finish. However, I reused the old faceplate.
Replacing the broken cup holder was easy. The hardest part was to remove the plastic screw cover in the air went without damaging it. I failed that and lightly damaged the screw cover. It should be available from BMW if needed.
Compared to the original unit, the Chinese copy may be marginally less sturdy. But it’s hard to tell. The original cup holder is already quite flimsy.
Every summer I spend some time detailing the car. I thoroughly cleaned it, applied Turtle wax, treated rubber seals with gummipflege and plastic trims with Autoglym Bumper and Trim gel. The interior was vacuumed and the leather treated with leather care.
An end-of-year update to my thread. I have now owned the car for 6 years.
The Z4 has been in hibernation since end of October. I'm waiting patiently for when it's time to take her out again in April.
The rear tires needed to be changed this season. I had installed new Goodyear ASY5 back in 2019.
Initial I had used the recommended tire pressure found in the doorsill. It turned out that was too high pressure to use with these tires. They had worn more in the middle. I lowered the pressure slightly when I noticed that. Anyway, the rear tires lasted bout 26000km. The front still has about 4-5mm thread left.
I had new Goodyear ASY6 rear tires installed in September.
The Z4 coupé can be a bit noisy at motorway-speeds. A lot of the noise in the cabin comes from the tires. I was curious if the new tires (rated slightly less noisy) would make a difference. So I measured the noise on the same road, condition and speed before and after the tires change. It was slightly less noisy with the new tires. About 2-3 dB lower. Not sure if it's due to the new tire design or just worn versurs not-worn tire.
A week before the hibernation I had a service done at a garage. Since the car has now passed 100000km I had the gearbox and differential oil changed as well as engine oil. Prior to that I had myself carried out an inspection, changed cabin air filter and engine air filter.
Before hibernation I cleaned the Z4 thoroughly and drove it warm before I parked her for the winter.
The Z4 has been in hibernation since end of October. I'm waiting patiently for when it's time to take her out again in April.
The rear tires needed to be changed this season. I had installed new Goodyear ASY5 back in 2019.
Initial I had used the recommended tire pressure found in the doorsill. It turned out that was too high pressure to use with these tires. They had worn more in the middle. I lowered the pressure slightly when I noticed that. Anyway, the rear tires lasted bout 26000km. The front still has about 4-5mm thread left.
I had new Goodyear ASY6 rear tires installed in September.
The Z4 coupé can be a bit noisy at motorway-speeds. A lot of the noise in the cabin comes from the tires. I was curious if the new tires (rated slightly less noisy) would make a difference. So I measured the noise on the same road, condition and speed before and after the tires change. It was slightly less noisy with the new tires. About 2-3 dB lower. Not sure if it's due to the new tire design or just worn versurs not-worn tire.
A week before the hibernation I had a service done at a garage. Since the car has now passed 100000km I had the gearbox and differential oil changed as well as engine oil. Prior to that I had myself carried out an inspection, changed cabin air filter and engine air filter.
Before hibernation I cleaned the Z4 thoroughly and drove it warm before I parked her for the winter.
