Moupe

I thought it might have been a personalised plate. But that was the original plate back in 1989 when it was first registered!

Or maybe the photo caught the wheel in mid-fold as that E90 transforms into a flying time machine.

That'll buff out. Tis but a scratch.

It’s gonna take a while to get the smell of burning rubber out of that interior

Total degenerates. They should be found and hung on the wall! They removed the steering column cover. Were they trying to steal it??

Definitely Taihape.

Thanks for that. Will check with the Grey Lynn workshop. Yeah, the OEM ones are fine on smooth(ish) roads but the minute it gets a bit bumpy the car gets quite skittish. To be honest it’s not overly bad but I feel like it’s time to spend some money on it

Hi All, I’m looking to replace the OEM shocks on my Z4M with Bilstein B6‘s (springs won’t be changing). I want the B6’s over the B8’s as I don’t want to change the ride height (it’s already a struggle getting out of my driveway as it is). I also want to stick with Bilstein as this has always been my preferred brand of shocks. The main reason for the change is to improve the handling of the car on NZ b-roads. The stock suspension setup on these isn’t that great on any road that is slightly bumpy. I’m looking for real world experience from anyone that owns (or has owned) a Z4M that has/had this setup. Or anyone with general experience that can recommend (or not) these on this car. I’ve read a couple of dozen forums and the consensus seems like they really transform the car. However, none of them are in NZ so will be dealing with completely different roads (although UK roads are worse than ours and there was positive feedback on UK forums). Also, where in Auckland (close to the city) would be the best place to have them installed (noting that I would be sourcing the shocks myself)? Thanks in advance.

😂 Until now I never noticed the similarities!

Cheers! And yeah, I was going to get that for my E46 and never got around to it. Over two years later it was still available! Thought it would have been snapped up

I'm actually comparing it with my old E46 M3... But I think the point of my post has been missed... Also, I already mentioned about the handling fix (suspension/springs) further up. Plus it was I who changed out the OEM grilles with black as I didn't like the chrome ones (on this particular car - I preferred the original chrome on the E46 M3). Personal preference though eh P.S. Thanks for sending me down an internet-search-rabbit-hole lol. I always thought it was Chris Bangle's creation. I guess he just took the credit as the lead designer. Also found this great short video on the design of the Z4 by Anders Warming. Sexy Math FTW!

"Not traditionally beautiful" - I think that sums it up really. The E46 M3 (again IMO as looks are subjective) is definitely traditionally beautiful. The Z4MC is not but yet it all works as a package. And the rear three-quarters is just awesome - especially when viewing it from a lower angle. Like Woodcocks, South Head Road has the perfect combination of everything. Not too much traffic, a few great straights, lots of decent corners, some good inclines, and it's a road that doesn't get munched by the trucks!

Re the looks. They are definitely unique. I’ve actually never seen another Z4MC in person (though I know they exist - my cars twin lives somewhere in Auckland and is for sale on Trade Me right now). It definitely took a while to love the looks (which I do now - 70% there on the nose though haha). I still think the E46 M3 (and R32 Skyline) is arguably the best looking roadcar made in my lifetime (I’m a 70’s kid).

On a smooth surface, they handle brilliantly (like a go-kart). But on NZ roads it’s a bit all over the place. My M3 on stock setup just never felt uneasy. The Z4MC does. That said, TC off (it’s very intrusive, much like the older versions of this) and the wider tyres definitely help. Plus you can easily fix this issue with geometry changes and new shocks/springs etc. However, at this stage I’m happy how she is (though the latter is on the list as a future mod).

On Saturday, I reached a turning point with the relationship I have with my Z4MC. And wanted to share this moment with fellow car peeps as trying to explain this to my girlfriend was pointless and involved lots of yawning and eye rolls 😂 So up until Saturday, I was still on the fence about my Z4 M Coupe (or Moupe as my GF calls it). After selling my beloved E46 M3 over two years ago (which I had a spent a lot of time and money bringing back up to near mint status - shout out to HellBM and OCD for helping with that), I bought an F80 M3. This was an amazing car but I never really fell in love with it. It looked the part, had performance up the wazoo, but it never had any soul. I missed what the E46 M3 was - analogue, visceral, and raw… After waiting for over a year with a saved search for another E46 M3 in Trade Me (and having my cheeky offer to the purchaser of my old M3, to buy it back with extra $$$, refused), I turned my search to something else. This is when I found my Z4MC. I knew of this car in roadster form, but I didn’t know much about the coupe version. So after a bit of research, decided that this would make a good replacement for my E46 M3. Especially given it is manual, has the same high revving and beautiful sounding S54, and shares a lot of parts from the E46 M3 and M3 CSL (basically a bit of a parts bin M). But it wasn’t all good news. After purchasing it…I just wasn’t sure I’d made the right call. I mean, compared to the E46 M3, I think it looks odd and borderline ugly in places (particularly the droopy front end). It also doesn’t drive the same - it’s very twitchy, not as composed, and suffers from understeer. My first few drives of it didn’t leave me with a feeling of excitement or elation. However… 6 months in (and many many weekend drives) I have come to understand and LOVE this car. As mentioned, it’s not as poised as the M3, so the biggest thing I had to get used to was that you can’t drive into a corner hot - it’s more of a slow-in/fast-out car. This took some time to get used to, but once I learned this, I found that the turn-in on the Z4MC is incredibly accurate and the car feels so planted (provided you turn TC off). Also, after changing the tyres from the OE spec to 10mm wider all round, this has removed some of its twitchiness (this was originally done because I hated the aesthetics of the factory spec with Michelin PSS’s on the front but the handling improvement was a silver lining). Additionally, it feels like a proper little sports car. You sit low and slung so far back (the bonnet is huge - and I once had a 3.0L Z3). There is a sense of occasion every time I remove the cover and disconnect the battery charger. The side profile, rear, and rear three quarters look incredible (the front is still a little weird but I’m getting used to it). And, no surprises, the S54 is sublime (even if the ZF transmission doesn’t feel quite as good as the Getrag in the M3). It sounds better than my old M3 (and 1000% better than the F80) and the odd interior styling has grown on me too (though I have always loved that go-kart-like steering wheel). So I finally think I can sleep at night now without waking up in cold sweats regretting the sale of my E46 M3. I think this Z4MC will have a home in my garage for a long time… Attached are some pics from Saturday (up South Head - which still remains my favourite road in Auckland after Woodcocks and Monument).

I thought these two reviews were probably the most honest yet. And amazingly, the grille actually looks ok on black... https://youtu.be/xMjxtd8UeOQ Having had an F80 M3 (and not really loving it) I'd be really interested to see what the G80 is like up close and personal. Edit: Chris Harris has a good one as well: https://youtu.be/YRpvDsWvtkc

Seems legit

Funny, as the PSS's were the exact opposite. The fronts didn't sit square (which I didn't like from an aesthetics perspective). I'm very happy with the set up now though. The extra 10mm all around has made a big different to the handling characteristics too. As mentioned further up the thread, the only drawback is the slightly off speedometer. But who has time to look at that when you're ripping down a backroad :P

Where were you when I needed you lol. I actually ended up going PS2’s. Older spec aren’t too far off the PSS’s although due to availability I had to pay a bit extra for Porsche spec 😕

The ACS Type IV's were already on it. I knew the previous owner, and like me, he was fastidious about his cars. And I'm borderline OCD where I'll replace anything that needs replacing - inside and out. People love buying my cars as they know they're getting a minter haha. Funny as I had "NZ New Manual 130i" in my Trade Me watch list for ages after selling it in case it popped back up. I totally would have bought it back And you're right in that most of them are all imports and there are even fewer manuals.

Second. Bought it when I still lived in Welly (traded my also much loved 540i M-Sport for it). Then it came up to Auckland with me in 2013. Honestly, even in stock form, it has been one of my most memorable cars. The only thing missing was a LSD (which, among many things, I see you have remedied).

Yeah, they are a weird sized tyre alright

OMG only just found this thread. This is my old 130i (I always regretted selling it - amazing car). I'd wondered what happened to it and now I know! Good to see that she is much loved

Massively discounted! I need these out of the garage...

Hey Bandit. I'm not sure where you were going with this post? The fitment I went for was 235/40R18 and 265/35R18. Extensive research (after not being happy with the "stretched" look of the front tyre) suggested that this is has been a pretty common non-stock size fitment for the Z4 M Coupe. There is no rubbing at all so no need for spacers I'm super happy with the set up and how she handles now. Definitely an improvement. The only downside is that my speedo is off by around 2.8% percent (reads faster).