? for Z8 owners... - The Unofficial BMW M5 Messageboard (m5board.com)

M5Bob · 19th October 2002, 17:04

I found a Z8 that I am seriously considering trading my M5 for. I haven't driven it yet. I have several questions for you lucky Z8 owners out there:

1. What is road noise like at highway speeds with the soft top up?
2. How about turbulence and noise with the top down?
3. Are there any little quirks with the car, like with anything in the interior (i.e. A/C or stereo controls,etc.)
4. Can a V1 be hardwired?
5. How much fun do you have driving it?

Thanks for any input.

2001's X5/Z8 · 19th October 2002, 18:22

1. low road noise.....
2. with top down, it's very smooth (both airflow, and ride)
3.the only thing I don't like is the storage compartments on in the doors...
4. A V1 can be hard wired into the car....
5. The car is a blast....When I drive with the top down (100% of the time) it's truly amazing.....The sound the exhaust makes when you step on it...it's almost like an old vette....the power is second to none in it's class....I don't care what anyone says about the sl55....The Z8 is the best....No supercharger here.....The only other complaint I have about the car is the crap tires that come stock....Other than that all I can say is....BUY IT and you won't stop smiling, I promise...it's worth every penny...

PS...there is a downside to owning the car...you will become quite bothered after a while by all the people asking you about your car...It happens to me all the time on the road...People honk, give me thumbs up, at lights people ask a million questions...At first it was great, but It got very annoying.....

sorry for rambling...

M5Bob · 19th October 2002, 18:55

Thanks for the info Mike. It really is a great car and I hope the deal goes through. It's very hard to think of parting with the M5 b/c I love it. But there's always been something about the Z8.....It's the only convertible (besides a 360 spider of course!) that I love the looks of both top-up and down. While the M5 is a blast to drive, I'm sure the fun-factor goes up exponentially with the Z. We'll see!

A_Train · 19th October 2002, 19:45

Quote:

Originally posted by M5Bob
1. What is road noise like at highway speeds with the soft top up?
2. How about turbulence and noise with the top down?
3. Are there any little quirks with the car, like with anything in the interior (i.e. A/C or stereo controls,etc.)
4. Can a V1 be hardwired?
5. How much fun do you have driving it?

Thanks for any input.

1. For a convertible, it's decent, like a 911. With hardtop on, it's coupe-quiet. I found the car more enjoyable sport-wise with hardtop on.

2. With top down, no cell phone conversations over 40 mph. Lots of cabin wind and noise. Must raise voice a decent amount to have a conversation with passenger at highway speeds. Some people prefer the wind rushing around, others don't.

3. Both's dash units began to have a little creaky noise, noticeable just when the hardtop was on, as though the epoxy wasn't firmly set. No big deal. The stereo is terrible. You can play with treble and bass but bottom line is the system stinks. The GPS has no maps, only arrows. There's no tell-tale way to know if the doors are locked or unlocked when in the car, other than opening the door and then hearing if the doors unlock or already were so. You will get lots of looks from people, only had positive experiences. People literally would whip out their video cameras when seeing Z8. Takes 10 minutes to get used to the offset instrument cluster. The phone bin is set way too far back, behind the elbow. If you have to deal with putting the top up and down regularly, it's a pain. The trunk has limited space when the top is up b/c the tonneau cover eats up a majority of the trunk space. With top down (and tonneau cover on), you could put in a normal set of golf clubs or two travel-size sets, plus a small piece of soft luggage.

4. Yes, though I'm not sure what's involved to do so.

5. With the top down, and no need to deal with the top or figuring out how to store things, the car is a lot of fun. It is no 911 in feel and does not want to be. Z8 is a luxury roadster with very good power. It has a fairly soft suspension, not too far different from an M5, but feels faster due to the top down, better engine note, shorter shifter (not a short shift, however; just shorter), and 500 fewer pounds in curb weight. Lots of low-end torque, feels more so than M5. The 911 Turbo cabriolet, when it comes out, would be much better if one were more sport rather than luxury-oriented and didn't have to deal with the top much.

Bottom line is that BMW accomplished its mission with the Z8. Just not for me. Some people live and die by them.

- A-Train

NO-MERCY · 19th October 2002, 23:29

I just did the opposite. I traded my Z8 for an M5 ... so far I do miss the stunning good looks of the Z8. M5 looks plain compared to it.

BUT I must say that I really do believe I mad a good decision. The M5 is much more car, feels much more comfortable and still has some serious balls!!

BTW Bigger balls are on the way.

clauswagner · 20th October 2002, 10:10

I think it is very hard to be objective with a Z8. In any case, there is no rational spending over 100k for a car. I saw the car and fell in love with it. It delivers high performance and a lot of fun driving paired with solid German engineering. You can fit two sets of golf clubs and a decent amount of luggage for short trips.

Sorry, I couldn't get into your detailed questionaire.

Claus

MEnthusiast · 20th October 2002, 23:00

I agree with everyone but want to add my own 2 cents here.

1. you cant have a cell phone call (hands free) with the top up at speeds over 60mph. The wind noise with the soft top up is fairly high for a convertible. this is because BMW decided the rag top would only be used for "emergencies". for consistent periods of bad weather they give you the hard top. so the rag top doesnt have the same amount of insulation as some other cars, but its OK.

2. the Z8 is fairly unaerodynamic. if you are of the mindset that a convertible means wind in your hair then youll be happy with the Z8. but if you think a well engineered convertible means there is very little wind in your hair, you will be very unhappy. the windscreen helps- it takes about 20mph off the turbulance, but it also obstructs your rear view. I prefer to drive w/o the windscreen.

3. I actually think the nav is nice w/o too many functions- suits the car better. the stereo is OK, but the bass needs to be reduced to lowest for the am/fm and 1 notch from lowest for CD (there are seperate memories for the radio and cd). trebble needs to be maxed out. with these settings, there is a little suck out in the mid bass thats too bad, but it fixes the totally bloated bass. I find the controls to be the easiest and most intuative of any car Ive ever owned. the tonneau cover is a manual job, and many gripe about it. BMW could have made it automated, but it would have added a few inches height to the cars waist line and that would have ruined it. The car is also not well designed for parking lots (not a lot of protection, especially for the nose which sticks out- but lets face it, the car wasnt designed for the parking lot! if you get a car with any interior color but black, I suggest you get a set of black floor mats as the other colors will get soiled very quickly. save the originals for show days. and yeah, I dislike all the stares it gets- but it is so beautiful.

4. Im sure a V1 can be hardwired, but I havent tried because I just dont want to mess with the Z8. the lighter is literally next to your arm on the tranny tunnel so with the V1 that means an ugly wire is run from the detector to the outlet. I dont care- its "temporary".

5. if the Z8 is the car for you, then you will find that no matter what is happening in your world, when you just look at it you will find yourself grinning. when you are driving it, you will be giggling like a little girl. its that good- if its for you- it was made for a few lucky souls.

bobafett · 20th October 2002, 23:34

I will be hardwiring a V1, and so I'm interested ot hear what people have to say about it.

Andrew managed to have someone do it. Look here:

http://www.bmwz8.us/vbb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7

--Dan

MJ · 20th October 2002, 23:40

Ditto on most of the above. Just had the Z8 out for 65 miles today. I went to my BMW Master Tech's house to repair the soft top retractor strings which are breaking on many cars (service bulletin came out last week). If the black strings are dangling you need to have them fixed with a new heavy silver colored crimp.

This car continues to amaze me...this convertible is tighter and sticks to the road better than any car I've had with a roof. It's like a solid block of aluminum with wheels--well it sorta is.

MJ
'01 Z8 (hit 3000 miles today!!!!)
'03 M5
'03 X5

MEnthusiast · 21st October 2002, 01:52

very interesting install. I always thought one could grab power from the mic area.

very scarey that the guy will turn his lights off to avoid the laser warning- why not just turn off the v1!

bobafett · 21st October 2002, 01:59

Quote:

Originally posted by MEnthusiast

very scarey that the guy will turn his lights off to avoid the laser warning- why not just turn off the v1!

Or at the very least press the mute button.

--Dan