BMW Z4 M (2006 - 2008) 3.2 Coupé 2d (2006/06) Owner Review

What does this car say about you?

Enthusiast.

What do your friends / family / neighbours think of the car?

I picked up my girlfriend at the time at the airport (she knew nothing about me buying it) and she said "Omg, I'm not dressed nicely enough to get in this car". She soon forgot about that and switched to fear when I opened up the throttle. Friends loved it, family too.

Would you buy this car again and why?

Yes, if I can find one. I had to sell as moved to the continent. I'm looking for a LHD one as we speak, though they are rare, even when searching online across 5-6 countries.

What are you likely to buy next?

Another one, or a Z4 35is, Golf / Scirocco R, VX220, Boxter S, 911 C4, but I'm still not sure, it's hard to find anything to even match - let alone beat what I had before.

Type of dealer you bought from?

Franchised

Did you buy this car new?

No

What price did you pay?

£18,500

When did you buy the car?

June 2012

Did you get a good deal and why?

Yes, got a good price for my part-exchange.

Is there any special reason why you bought this car?

Incredible engine, looks, performance and reliability.

What was the dealer like?

OK until he was paid, but neglected my requests for supplying the tyre inflation kit which was missing from the boot.

What's it like to drive?

Quite a hard ride compared to the non-M coupé, but tolerable, and worth it. Brutal acceleration, it's easy to reach high speeds very quickly, especially from 3-5th gears. But I don't think I actually used all of the 343 bph even once in 2 years of ownership, despite spirited drives with club / forum members through empty Sussex A & B roads on early Sunday mornings. Only lost the back end by accident once, and it was my fault not the car. Traction control quickly kicked in and helped me correct the slide. Don't ever switch this off (dealers words when going through the controls).

What's it like to park?

Rear parking sensors helped, the steering is hydraulic so can be a little heavy when parking. Spread it over two spaces in supermarket car parks, if you dare to leave it in one.

Have you had any problems with the car?

Nope. Made sure the dealer did Inspection 1 before I bought it, lucky I did as all four discs required replacement at a cost (to the dealer) of several thousand pounds and two weeks waiting to be sent from Germany. At the time the car had around 27k miles on the clock.

What's most practical about your car?

Good boot space, metal roof. Don't expect anything better than 20mpg.

Favourite gadget, option or accessory?

Sat nav & that engine. Sharing the same engine as the E46 M3, it sounds incredible. If you read the manual section about the traction control, you find that whilst BMW are proud and confident in their engineering and design, the refer to "the laws of physics" when cautioning you about the car's limits. Seats are a let down compared to many other kidney crushing supportive buckets in less exotic beemers.