Lots of Fun, Some Minor Issues

Details - 2003 BMW Z4, 3.0L engine, convenience package, no sports package. Purchased in June 2003, driven for about 6000 miles.

For a tad bit of background, we are a young professional couple that purchased the BMW Z4 as our one big splurge. After several years of dutifully investing and paying down debt, my wife and I both wanted something FUN and frivolous. She has always wanted a convertible, and I have always wanted a fast car. We decided to go ahead and take the plunge before kids forced us to give way to practicality. I researched every "topless" car available under $75K, and we eventually settled on the Z4. This is our second BMW (owned a 328i for a couple of years), and our first convertible and our first "sports" car. My wife drives it to work (10 miles) every day, so it is NOT a third car. We live in a moderate climate and the car is garaged at both work and home.

Our first impressions are all very favorable. The car strikes a stunning pose, and gets noticed everywhere it goes. If you are looking for a subtle car that blends in easily, look elsewhere. Second, the car is a tremendous amount of fun to drive. A friend of mine commented this after his first ride "It's like there's glue on the road". Handling is a definite strong suit, as the car seems to really love taking corners aggressively. It often feels like a thoroughbred being taken for a trot and asking to be run harder. In line acceleration is good, but there are faster cars out there. If you absolutely have to have the fastest car on the market, this isn't your baby.

The interior design is fine, although if you are taller or shorter than "average" height, the displays can be difficult to see clearly due to how far they are set back. The driver's seat has more of a cockpit feel to it, which is needed when you are zooming around the corners the way you are going to driving this car. The layout of the dash and controls is minimalist, which is fine by me. The top absolutely ZOOMS down so quickly that you can put the top up at nearly any red light if a surprise shower pops up. The glass rear window is also a must if you are going to spend over $40K. The cabin is a tad noisy, but not overly so. Besides, the roar of the engine/exhaust is one of the fun things about the car. The dynamic stability control (DSC) is wonderful, giving you a confidence that you can handle the car gracefully even amongst the myriad of bad drivers the world throws at you. If you have ever driven a BMW Z3, you really won't even recognize the Z4.

On to the few minor issues I mentioned. The car is no bargain. It is a decent value, but not a great one. You get the loads of nice things mentioned above, but you pay a nice price, too. Value is thus average. Also, BEWARE OF POTHOLES! We hit a severe pothole, and bent three of our wheels. Insurance covered the repair costs, but I was still surprised that they were damaged. Perhaps this is a function of all "sports" cars, and perhaps this is why people often buy a roadster as there third car, perhaps not. Also, as mentioned earlier, if you are taller or shorter than average, the cockpit may not fit you just right. Finally, you are buying a $40K roadster. The BMW Z4 is a very sporty roadster, but it is not an M5. If you have to have the fastest, biggest engine on the road and are going to be angry when the Subaru WRX Sti beats you off the line, the look elsewhere.

Finally, a word about the performance delivery option. For anyone purchasing a Z4 (or an X5 for that matter), you can either pay to have the car delivered to you, or you can show up in Spartanburg SC and pick it up yourself. The latter is called the "performance delivery" option, and is a lot of fun for most folks. If you are a NASCAR driver, it's probably boring, but then again I doubt many NASCAR drivers are reading epinions for my take on a car. The performance delivery consists of a driving class - not at all like your high school drivers ed, either. A real driving class taught by a season veteran race instructor. Then you get the highlight, which is a couple of hours on the test track with a car identical to the one you just purchased. You get to push their car under control conditions to illustrate exactly what your new BMW is capable of.

In closing, we ended up choosing the Z4 over the Nissan 350Z, Honda s2000, Porsche Boxster, and Audi TT. If I had it to do over again, I am pretty sure I'd stick with the BMW.