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Z3M vs Z4M

ChrisXL

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ChrisXL Gold M member

ChrisXL

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Leuk stukje geschreven door DavidM uit de UK

OK - my dealer kind of knew what he was doing - a very gorgeous, very clean Z4M roadster was sat outside the dealership, shining and gleaming in the sun, in the very colour choice that I did not want to see - Imola Red and Black - why because it was going to be way too easy to draw a comparison to my Z3M which was parked up a few cars down ...

The sales chap was finishing up with someone else - so this allowed me to take a look around the machine - it looked great just standing still - I got to chatting with one of the other sales people about the colour options - and she obligingly went and sought out leather swatches and things - wow what a shock - Light Sepang leather is "interesting" someone described it as "creamy, almost like the froth on a cappucino" - I describe it as how cold milky coffee looks, cold and unappealing - against a suitable body colour it may look great - but on it's own - it did nothing for me. And all the time, I keep finding my eyes flicking outside to look at the Imola Red beast. And thinking "dang, those rear lights look really good now" - so there is pet hate number one scratched off my list - this could be a problem - I need to keep a list of things I hate going

So I get given the keys - and head out to the front - the sales chap says "Hey you are used to an ///M engine, this should be fun", I reply "is it broken in yet" - he winks and replies "Just ..." - I get in and close the door, then open the door and close it again - no annoying tinny sound, that is a door that sounds like a door, it has a sound befitting a door - not something that should hold beans - scratch another one of the pet-hates from David's list off - the doors are fixed.

Soooooo out of the car park, pootling along - he had already taken it out - and warmed it previously - and it took no time for the lights on the dash to go out - he says "Pretend I am not here", so I did - and it was awesome - up the gears until I hit the speed at which my Z3M gets twitchy - anyone who has driven with me knows the sort of region that that speed will be within ... and this thing was keeping going and was as flat as a millpond whilst doing it - credit where credit is due - that is one hell of a chassis.

So I came off the motorway and asked "How much does the sport button change things" - his response was to stab the button and say "try it" - ok ... this thing went from a beast that "smashed your head in with a sledgehammer" to one which did that and then "farted as it walked away" - uncouth does not even come close to describing it - the Z3M is brutal, if you want it to be, it too smashes your face in - but it's completely unsubtle, because it craps next to you whilst you lie bleeding from the hammer impact - the Z4M is a tiny bit more refined - hence the "farting whilst it walks away" comment. Just time at the lights to drop the roof - what ... no plastic windscreen to worry about ... this is nice - and it's fully automatic - rock on ...

So now I'm on roads that I really know and are twisty as a snake, the kind of roads that I hunt down and tackle in my Z3M - and let's state for the record, I like these roads because they make my Z3M feel a bit dangerous and scaty - but the Z4M ride soaked a lot of the imperfections in the road up - for those that complain that the 3.0 ride is too hard - try my Z3M, then try the Z4M - then try yours again - in comparison to mine the Z4M rides like a fluffy cloud - but there is a shedload of feedback - which brings me onto one of my major criticisms and hates about the Z4 - the steering - weak, limp, non-feeling, pathetic - all in my not so humble opinion - I like to know what the front wheels are feeling and doing - and the Motorsport chaps have got it right with the revised non-electronic setup in the Z4M - I am so glad that they ditched non-M steering setup - about time.

Other pet hates that I may as well scratch now - that line across the bonnet - I still want a one-piece bonnet - but it ain't going to happen is it? The odd cuts and creases and lines in the bodywork - perhaps the design has grown on me - but the redesign of certain elements has helped - it's more cohesive - now I can see a line starting on the rear bumper and ending on the front spoiler ... and that big flat expanse of bonnet - with the addition of the two definition lines it is transformed ... heck it is starting to sound like they got it right for me - damn it, they put angel eyes in too. But that big fat Z slash on the side - still does nothing for me - and the round pudgy indicator - nope, no boat floating on that score either - but now my list is down to two "hate" items only - with the counter-list of "things I love" growing. Just time to pop the roof back up - and head on for part 2 of this little jaunt ...

So it's back to the dealership for a bit of fun - part of this exercise included PN having a drive - because she has a big list of loves and hates about both my Z3M and the Z4M - she hates the clutch on mine - it's very heavy, she loves the power, she - like me - has had to grow used to the sometimes skitty chassis - she dislikes the noise of my zorsts - she finds the seats comfortable but not armchair like - she would like an adjustable steering column - she likes the road presence of the Z3M - and having something red coming up behind you at a fast speed is not something that most drivers want to stay in the way of ...

Obviously the saleman thinks that the "missus" is going to take him for a gentle drive - ha - how wrong could he be - not having any of it, PN heads for a twisty undulating road that is going to test the chassis - and test it she did - heading back towards our house - one important fact to note here - I am chasing her in my Z3M - believe me, we got some great looks with both the cars in Imola Red. We live on a road that has 9 or 10 speed bumps on it - which is another thing that she dislikes about my car - to get really great handling it has been lowered - and that comes with a cost - attacking speedbumps like a crab in a sideways fashion is one such compromise - but they were sailed over in the Z4M - so practicality test number one is sorted - next up the "stupid drive" test - our drive has a peak in it that the Z3M grounds out on - so PN has to get out of the car in all weathers - and then the Z3M has that little bit of clearance needed - but no it gets over the peak properly - and then disaster - nose first into the garage and it grinds the front spoiler down due to the incline - the saleman laughs - but is obviously thinking "Oh Shit!" - he is fine about it though as the scratches are underneath the front splitters. So PN says "Which way back then", the sales guy shrugs, and I say "motorway".

We head to the M25, the Z3m is a smaller car, it slipped into and out of the traffic far easier and got a real lead, to watch that lead get obliterated as she came up behind me, cars in front of her parted like Moses parted the sea, both the Ms are matched in power, whilst the Z4M has more power, it's bigger and heavier, the Z3M is a lithe retro machine that when wound up to the full is capable of obliterating much of the durdge on the roads and nipping into and out of opportunities - on that score I honestly think that the extra 20bhp between a Z3M and a Z4M is of no consequence whatsoever - what is a big difference though is the braking - the Z4M can bring down the speed a lot faster than the Z3M. Put them together in a drag race - and I guarantee you the Z3M will get away faster, but it would be neck and neck in a very short time, and you'd need a photo to work out the winner at the finishing line - but the Z4M would stop faster. Put them on a circuit with twists and I would not be placing any bets ...

Now heading back to the dealership - and I am on a road I know "oh so well" - doing a speed which is not recommended in the UK - if you take my shoe size multiply it by ten and add five you'll work it out - suffice it to say I have feet that would not look out of place in a circus - now, I am thinking that PN will fall in behind me - but no, the sales chap has just introduced her to the "sport" button ... and she overtook me - and disappeared into the distance - I get back to the dealership and she is talking to the sales guy - as though she has been driving Miss Daisy - discussing the finer points of storage and practicalities

And my conclusion - draw what you like from the above - the Z3M is an awesome car - it has given me so many thrills in the last two years or so - it is a nasty, "smash your face in" sports car - and in my opinion is a massive step above the rest of the Z3 range and well deserving of the ///M badging that it wears with pride - but that is what you expect - you want refinement - go elsewhere - you want manners - go to the local womens institute - you want balls to the wall fun that leaves you gagging for more - that is what the Z3M is all about ... and the Z4M, it's a similarly large step above the Z4 range, it deserves those ///M badges, it has earnt them with the care that the motorsport division has put into it, but don't fall for the nice looks, the Z4M is an evil car that will rip your head off if you let it - but it IS a bit more refined than the Z3M. So no doubt all the waffling makes you wonder, do I think that the Z4M is a worthy successor to the Z3M??? ... a definitive and loud YES - is it a wildly different beast? Until today I thought so, but it's still a yob - it's just a yob in an oxford blazer now - but it still wears an ASBO t-shirt underneath, with pride - so things have changed, but not that much ... things have certainly moved on - and the Z4M is a refinement of the Z3M in every way, but whilst the Z3M is a little more raw, the Z4M is chasing up it's backside with it's credentials just right

There is an obvious question here - will I be getting one ...

And there this tale must end ...

_________________

DavidM - Imola Smut - the Big Red Shiney One

En dan nu het stukje van zijn vrouw, PN

My first impression upon getting into the Z4M was how comfortable the seats were - even more so than my own Z3. My biggest complaint about David's M is that the ride is very hard and it isn't helped by the fact that the I also find the M seats very uncomfortable. This wasn't the case with the Z4M

My second impression was how easy it was to drive. I am often reluctant to drive the Z3M because I find the clutch incredibly heavy. Motorway driving is fine but urban driving is hard work, especially if there is heavy traffic and I find that I tire very easily. The clutch on the Z4 was nice and soft which made the whole driving experience, for me, a very pleasant one

As I drove the car off the forecourt, I didn't feel the power going through my foot and up my leg that I normally experience with the Z3M and that threw me a bit. "Where is the power?" I thought to myself. I decided to take the car down one of the most difficult roads I know to see what it could do.

The road I had in mind was twisty, had pot holes, chicanes, long stretches of nothing followed by more twisties and the odd speed camera on hidden corners. This car was infinitely chuckable and more than capable of handling anything I could throw at it. The brakes are slightly sharper than those on the M and took a little getting used to but my god, the speed of those brakes!

The next test it had to pass was the "going home" test. There is a lady who lives round the corner from us and she owns a Z4. We know when she comes home as we can hear her grounding her car over every speedbump and it is painful! Having driven the Z4M now, I can only conclude that she has either had the car lowered or she is doing something seriously wrong. I took the speedhumps off-centre, at the same speed as I take them in my own car and even centred one (admittedly, by accident) and not once did I ground her. Putting the car onto the drive was also a non-issue - "Hurrah!" I thought, "no more having to get out of the car in crappy weather." Sadly, we failed the driving the car straight into the garage test - that sort of ended in tears when I ground the front bumper on the soakaway Personally, I blame David because he was actually in the garage at the time but failed to tell me to stop when it became clear that there was no way the front bumper was going to clear the soakaway.

It was now time to take the car back to the dealership. The salesguy didn't mind which route we took so David suggested that we go via the M25 - before he left, he said to me "You have GOT to try Sports Mode!" Yeah, yeah, I thought to myself.

As we came off the Darenth Interchange roundabout to join the M25, I said to my passenger, "So what's this sports mode?"

"This" he replied as he pressed the button. I was not prepared for what happened next. I found myself flung back into my seat as the car took off and I mean, took off!

Sports Mode is fun but frightening at the same time. Driving in Sports Mode felt very much like driving the Z3M. Having now experienced it, I can't imagine why anyone would want to drive in non sports mode

When we got back to the dealership, I started talking storage space. The boot of the Z3M is small - much smaller than that of my Z3. I was gratified to see that the bootspace in the Z4M was significantly larger than that of the Z3M but disappointed to see that it was smaller than a normal Z4. With the exception of the boot, I found the amount of storage space in the cabin of the Z4M to be comparable to that of the Z3M.

Overall, I really like this car (but the chunky steering wheel is going to take some time to get used to). It is much easier to drive than David's Z3M. Will it get garage space? Am I tempted to upgrade my car? Who will upgrade their car first? Watch this space

_________________

Mrs Founding Member of Team Lauterbrunnen

Resultaat????

De Z3M staat te koop :thumbup:

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ChrisXL Gold M member

ChrisXL

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Ah kom op Ruud, jij kunt niet links schakelen??? :rolleyes:

Links schakelen heb je zo door, je zal er versteld van staan hoe snel dat gaat, heb verschillende Engelse auto's nu gereden met rechts stuur, niks aan :angry: Alleen je zicht is vervelend met inhalen, maar ook dat went heel snel.

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pvr 2.8 member

pvr

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Rij nu zo'n 15 jaar met een rechts stuur auto. Vind links stuur nog steeds makkelijker, maar zoals Chris zecht, raak je er wel snel aan gewend.

Ik het begin wel flink in de deur geslagen met mijn rechter arm ... :rolleyes:

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Roodkapje Gold M member

Roodkapje

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Links schakelen heb je zo door, je zal er versteld van staan hoe snel dat gaat, heb verschillende Engelse auto's nu gereden met rechts stuur, niks aan :guitar: Alleen je zicht is vervelend met inhalen, maar ook dat went heel snel.

Ze zeggen dat alles went zels een vent, ik mot geen vent en ook geen rechts stuur :lol:

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RobC Gold M member

RobC

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Ik was gister bij de dealer voor de jaarlijkse kwelling APK.

Komt er een trailer aangereden met een auto erop, je raadt het al Z4M.

Vond hem een beetje tegenvallen zo originalo, tegenover mijn mooie lage ronde Pumped Up/Pushed up la Lopez -_-

Z3, Z4, M of niet, QP of R, als 't er een beetje leuk uit moet zien zul je tóch iets moeten doen, IMHO. :blink:

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