Had my first drive in a Z3M today and have to confess to being very impressed with the performance - have any of you tried one (the 321bhp model ?)

 

You mean an M Roadster?

 

Don't you all kill me for this, but I'm looking for a Z M Coupe to replace me baby ! Nothing wrong with me S but life is short and you have to move on.... Prices are getting better etc.

Haven't driven one but have chased the Roadster up the road in me S and was suprised how well I kept up. Under braking the Z3M was v v skittish though which looked scary.

Trying to find one to test drive though is the hard part as there don't seem to be many of the coupe's about...

 

A mate of mine had a Z3M (convertible) and was disappointed by performance. Big engine but lazy.

The M Coupe is apparently completely different - a great performer.

 

I've driven the bread van version. Big engine, car shakes on tickover....initial thoughts were that it was very impressive.


Don't forget, nice as it may be it is a BMW and you know what people think of BMW's, plus its a Z3, not Z4.


It was nowhere near as poised as my S but I do have rock hard suspension and an engine brace so maybe that helps.

 

Guy,

I'm with you on the M Coupe, it looks like a bad bad car. Can't say the same abt the Z3/M Roadster though, it looks like a pregneant whale.

Regards,

 

I have to admit that the newer M Roadster (the one with over 300HP) is a sweet ride. I love the classic low-waisted roadster lines. And wowah baby, torque is a wonderful thing. However, if I switched, I would miss those runs to 9000rpm. It's a whole different type of excitement. If I were super rich, I would have one of each. For now, I'm keeping my S.

 

A good friend of mine has an E52 M Coupe (the 240 hp version). It's a nice, fun car...but it's not without it's problems, of course. First of all, it's built on the cheapest platform that BMW had at the time - the 318ti. It's not as solid - even in coupe form - as the S is, and the car is plagued with rattles and the like (this really annoys my friend). Not at all like the Z4 which is supposed to be very solid. The car pulls very nicely - it has the same power rating as the S does, but has a lot more torque so it pushes you back in the seat more. It's a lot easier to drive, and has traction control too which is nice when you don't want to swing the tail around in the wet. It doesn't feel quite as sharp as the S, but it's probably just as fast. The E54 version has a much more potent engine so is significantly faster, but the chasis is, i believe, identical.

 

in my opinion you buy that car for its engine and the ability to wipe the smile of Imprezza's, Evo's and the like in the dry and in a straightline - on a motorway or dual carriageway an M car will demolish any of the above with the exception of only the very quickest variants

 

I have to admit that after the test drive of the Roadster I'm very tempted as the torque definately makes it feel more impressive but I must agree that the looks of the thing .......... well not quite my cup of tea. Power and looks versus extra power and ugly hummm must think it over a bit.

Just checked out the cost of insurance for an early model and it was lower than the S - seems a bit strange as would have expected it to have been more.

I thought all the UK Z3M 3.2 Roadsters were 321bhp until 2001 when they added an extra 4 bhp (wow) - did they do a 240 version outside the Americas ?