Much has changed, but some things stay the same. I might well be back in a Z4 in the next week, if luck falls my way.
In the ~7mths since I sold my lovely grey auto for £3700 to a delightful chap from the Midlands, I've bought a second home in the countryside (that is currently draining my bank account), and bought the most countryside of accessories to go with it.
That's a vanishingly rare petrol V8 Discovery 3, running a Jag 4.4L engine. It's been an absolute pleasure to potter around the countryside in, and has performed dutifully at shuttling various things between London and Norfolk. 8mpg around London is hard to stomach, but it's pretty happy to do 22mpg on a motorway run at 70ish. The Volvo continues to provide perfectly adequate service pottering around London on its battery, and that's about all there is to say to that.
So, what of the Z4? Well, I put a few Wanted notes out on the various Facebook groups, stipulating a few non-negotiables (3.0i, manual, £4k budget) and a few desirables (heated seats, parking sensors, service history). I was contacted by a lovely chap locally to me in Norfolk who's likely to need to sell his car after getting caught considerably the wrong side of 100mph. A shame for him, but wonderful news for me.
I went and drove the car over the weekend, and it's in every bit as good condition as he described. As sad as it is to appear to profit from another's misfortune, we immediately agreed his asking price and are waiting to hear the outcome of his court visit this week.
Plans at the moment are fairly loose. I've bought a set of sunflower 17s to get refurbed and shod with decent (square) rubber, as the car is currently on (mint) MV3s. I've booked a trackday for the end of August at my local circuit (Snetterton) with some friends, to see how it goes without any tweaking - although I'm planning to swap in some DS2500 front pads and a spot of fresh ATE Typ200 fluid. Then I'm aiming to make up for my missed Eurotrip last year (see further back in this thread) in late May, by taking a week-long drive around Switzerland and a few laps of the Ring on the way home with some friends.
Here's to updating this thread in a few days' time!