I got one!

[santov]

Well after months of searching and debating I got my new/used Z4 3.0si last night.

It's Alpine White with Beige inside. 24k miles, remainder of warranty and maintenance. I had been holding out for a red interior, but the price was great. 6sp auto (my wife can't drive stick), Sport package & Premium package.

Maureen at Roseville BMW did a great job for me. It was a 3 hour drive each way from my house in the south Bay Area. The drive back was nerve racking trying to play with all the buttons and get back in one piece.

I love the way the car handles. The power is great. Those with M's must be insane!

I'm disappointed with two things:

The sound system. I have the Premium package with NO nav. Does that mean I have Premium sound? I do see a round grill high and a rectangle grill low behind the seats. I did search the forums and I know it's hard to visually identify. I already emailed bavariansoundWerkes and the upgrade kit is ready for ordering. Group buy? I need to confirm I have the requisite system before I proceed.

The shifting when slowly leaving a stop with little to moderate throttle. From playing with the steering wheel buttons it seems like it starts second gear and the shift to 3rd is abrupt. When using more throttle it rolls out in second, then slams into 1st.

---------------------------------------

The first things I'm going to do this weekend is replace all the maintenance parts & fluids. The service history shows only the oil and air filter have been changed.

I was going to do the trans filter and clean the inside of the pan, but I want to shop some more to find the cheapest filter ($150!?). Once I source I don't mind changing the fluid again. Right now I'm hoping a fluid drain/refill will fix the abrupt shifting. After researching at bobistheoilguy.com the consensus is Valvolene MaxLife Dex/Merc. It's only $3.79 a quart and local WalMart. Any experience?

I'm changing the plugs with stock Boschs.

Air filter.

Oil/filter with Mobil1 0-40/Bosch filter. Without starting a flame war it's my favorite oil.

Brake fluid flush (and clean the dust out of the inside of the wheels)

What diff fluid? I'm planning Mobil1 75-90w Full Synthetic

I'll source the following from Tisher-
Cabin air filter.

BMW coolant drain/refill (it's cheaper the Zerex G-05 from local store)

Auto Trans filter - I need to figure out what transmission I have. I can't confirm from various online sources and don't want to order the wrong one. Seems some have cartridge filters others have a replaceable pan that has the filter built-in. Can somebody confirm/advise? When I look under the car it seems like my pan is aluminum and not black plastic. Is that a clue?

I'll do a nice writeup when I detail it. I need to order some canvas top cleaner/treatment.
-------------------------------------

Nice to meet you all! I'm going to enjoy the car and having a strong fan base to use as a resource makes the car more enjoyable.

Happy New Year!
-Vincent

[txz4]

convertible or coupe? and would you mind saying what you payed? i dont mean to pry but im curious because yours has the same amount of miles and some package as mine when i bought it.

[XMetal]

Congrats on the new toy!

Whatever you do with the transmission fluid change, make sure you pick up an original BMW filter. The extra few dollars on the OEM filter will be money well spent! The seal on most aftermarket filter will deteriorate and will cause all sort of problems (slipping on cold days is one of them). I had to find out the hard way on my X5.

[santov]

Originally Posted by txz4

convertible or coupe? and would you mind saying what you payed? i dont mean to pry but im curious because yours has the same amount of miles and some package as mine when i bought it.

I paid $23,999 for my roadster. I'm not sure how prices are between coupes and roadsters.

[txz4]

i paid a grand more for my coupe. it was in perfect condition too. prices are really high in texas for some reason. congrats, and good luck with the car, i love mine and im sure you will too.

[RBull]

Congrats. Enjoy the new ride and g/l with the maintenance you're going to do. Sounds like the right thing to do.

[l4zy]

congrats on the roadster!

[Endless619]

Originally Posted by santov

I paid $23,999 for my roadster. I'm not sure how prices are between coupes and roadsters.

I paid only $5000 more for my 08 Z4MC with 19000 miles on it 4 months ago and NO TAX!!! I would have done some more shopping around. It took me 3 years to find the one I wanted at the price I was willing to pay.

[txz4]

first thing to do along with the maintenace, pull out the carbon filter and put in a new drop in filter. you can really feel the difference.

[Finnegan]

Congratulations! Time to update your profile to reflect the Z purchase!

[GomboRombo]

Originally Posted by santov

I'm disappointed with two things:

The sound system. I have the Premium package with NO nav. Does that mean I have Premium sound? I do see a round grill high and a rectangle grill low behind the seats.

I have Premium Sound, but it I wouldn't call the sound coming out of it Premium. The FM radio.... my stock Honda Civic sounds better. The CD player sounds much better than the FM, but when I hooked an iPod through it with a DICE Media Bridge, it is Freakin AWESOME!
I tried all kinds of DSP settings to Make the stock CD/Radio sound better, but no such luck. There you go.... I think only Premium Sound has DSP, I guess thats how you can tell....

I do plan to swap out my mid-range speakers, just to make it that much better.

[santov]

Originally Posted by l4zy

congrats on the roadster!

Thanks! Day 3 of ownership and me and the wife ran errands. She had a sweet smile. I had a huge grin. Parking it at WalMart was a little sketchy, all the shopping cart "wranglers" watched us drive in and park in the far corner of the lot. I couldn't get out of the store fast enough.

Originally Posted by RBull

Congrats. Enjoy the new ride and g/l with the maintenance you're going to do. Sounds like the right thing to do.

Maintenance was kind of a bust for this weekend. Nobody has a Bosch oil filter in stock and the plugs are special order only. The K&N filter that was supposed to fit wasn't even the right shape.

I did manage to shop vac the air filter and all the debris collected underneath. I also got under the dash to vacuum/inspect the cabin air filter. It was pretty clean so I just vacuumed and reinstalled.

Originally Posted by Finnegan

Congratulations! Time to update your profile to reflect the Z purchase!

Selling my Jeep SRT8 left a huge hole in my heart. I set a goal to buy it and worked my butt off to pay cash. Selling it out of necessity for something cheaper with better MPGs was tough. I'll leave it up a little longer.

[santov]

Originally Posted by GomboRombo

I have Premium Sound, but it I wouldn't call the sound coming out of it Premium. The FM radio.... my stock Honda Civic sounds better. The CD player sounds much better than the FM, but when I hooked an iPod through it with a DICE Media Bridge, it is Freakin AWESOME!
I tried all kinds of DSP settings to Make the stock CD/Radio sound better, but no such luck. There you go.... I think only Premium Sound has DSP, I guess thats how you can tell....

I do plan to swap out my mid-range speakers, just to make it that much better.

I have three DSP settings (Church, JazzClub, and Concert > then DSP Off).

Does this mean I have Premium sound and meet the requirments for the Soundwerks upgrade?

[GomboRombo]

Originally Posted by santov

I do see a round grill high and a rectangle grill low behind the seats.

I don't know if non-Premium sound has 10 speakers, but did you adjust the fade and check and see if you have working speakers behind the seats?

[RickC]

Originally Posted by santov

I have three DSP settings (Church, JazzClub, and Concert > then DSP Off).

Does this mean I have Premium sound and meet the requirments for the Soundwerks upgrade?

My 2004 with premium sound has those same settings so I believe you have the premium sound. The sound on the system is pretty powerful. I wonder if you have something wrong with the system.

This Z4 system is significantly stronger than the Harmon premium system in my E92 3 series. I wonder if your external amp is not working.

Set the system to the Jazzclub setting and center the sound. If balance is set to the back the carver subwoofers will be turned off as they work off of the front portion of the system

[3002 tii]

Originally Posted by txz4

first thing to do along with the maintenace, pull out the carbon filter and put in a new drop in filter. you can really feel the difference.

Really...?

[Nhopkins1394]

Originally Posted by txz4

first thing to do along with the maintenace, pull out the carbon filter and put in a new drop in filter. you can really feel the difference.

What fluid filter are you talking about?
engine oil,transmission, air, or differential?

[Nhopkins1394]

We paid $25,788 with 42,779 mi in June in Texas. Made the dealer put on 4 new tires (even if they were RFT's) so that made the dealer a little better. Also had a little warranty left. 6spd auto premium sound.

Santov,
You got a pretty good deal. I didn't notice. What year is your car?

[santov]

Originally Posted by Nhopkins1394

We paid $25,788 with 42,779 mi in June in Texas. Made the dealer put on 4 new tires (even if they were RFT's) so that made the dealer a little better. Also had a little warranty left. 6spd auto premium sound.

Santov,
You got a pretty good deal. I didn't notice. What year is your car?

I got an 07 Roadster. I'm realizing now I got a smoking deal! Plus they gave me a great value on my trade (Jeep SRT8). FWIW it sat in the lot for almost three months. The Carfax dates lined up with the service history, so I wasn't worried about that time being in the shop.

I spent all weekend changing all fluids (haven't gotten to the oil yet since a filter is on order). ATF fluid made a HUGE difference in shift quality.

[santov]

Originally Posted by GomboRombo

I have Premium Sound, but it I wouldn't call the sound coming out of it Premium. The FM radio.... my stock Honda Civic sounds better. The CD player sounds much better than the FM, but when I hooked an iPod through it with a DICE Media Bridge, it is Freakin AWESOME!
I tried all kinds of DSP settings to Make the stock CD/Radio sound better, but no such luck. There you go.... I think only Premium Sound has DSP, I guess thats how you can tell....

I do plan to swap out my mid-range speakers, just to make it that much better.

How hard was the DICE Media Bridge? I want to run a hardwire for my cell phone, so I guess while I'm there I'll install the DICE.

[GomboRombo]

Originally Posted by santov

How hard was the DICE Media Bridge? I want to run a hardwire for my cell phone, so I guess while I'm there I'll install the DICE.

Very easy. The hardest part is looking for cd changer connections. mine was taped under the rear center console so I had to fish it out with a coat hanger and tear the tape off to pull it out. These youtube links pretty much show you how to do it.

There are several more Youtube videos that show you how to install the bluethtooth mic (mine already had bluetooth so my DICE did not have the bluetooth option), and how to use the media bridge for a few.

I have a Parrot in my Honda Civic which is awsome if you are considering bluetooth, but it will not have the stealth integration of the the DICE. With the Parrot you will have seperate display, controls, and cables showing.

If your CD Changer connection is hard to find it can be very frustrating. It took me several days to figure out how I should pull them out and even considered taking the rear console appart just to get to them. You may luck out and find yours just sitting there.......

Also if you have DSP and your Z is I think 05 or newer, you will NOT need the DSP module. You can find information on this on the web as well. Or call BavSound or DICE to confirm.

Hope this helps. I love my DICE. I Don't use radio or CD anymore unless i want to listen to news. I just use the iPod and Pandora on my iPhone now.

[oj]

It's a convertible. It is to be expected that the sound system is lackluster In all honesty congrats on the purchase though.