Z4 vs 350z vs Miata vs 335i
 

When it was time to seriously consider a replacement for my wife’s car (which I would then take over as a daily driver) I was happy to try to point her to something sporty, small and FUN.

We have 3 kids…every other week, from Monday to Monday (that’s how we both worked our custody agreements from our previous marriage) and we already have an exploder (seats 7 for family trips) and with her old car (BMW 5series) able to seat everyone as well….it seemed OK to get something for our “Kid free week” that we could both enjoy.

Pricepoint: Somewhere close to $25k
5/6 speed manual
Sporty, fast, and not too girlie that I couldn’t drive it without putting into question my sexual orientation every time (sorry Karl….cabriolet wasn’t going to cut it)

Enter my desire for a 370z:rockwoot:

Sporty: Check
Fast: Check
Manly: well…moreso than a lot of other choices..Check
Affordable: (used) Check

And she liked the idea. So we drove a few, and she seemed OK with it. Not in love with..but OK.

Then one day she sees this Mercedes E350 at the MB dealer :td: seriously? C’mon we already have a “family car”…but I bring it home for the weekend anyway :wtfru:

Thankfully the “sensible” side leaves her and we get back to browsing FUN cars. However, now she's more looking at her own personal fun machine. Afterall I have my bikes. So she gets back to something SHE would really love to have, and has always liked
Enter the Miata

Sporty: Well…I’ve been told by so many people…yes it handles like it’s on rails…but to me that doesn’t fully define it as sporty…so semi-check
Fast: Again, I’ve HEARD from so many that the handling made it fast, but my motard was faster than any sportbike DOWN tuggles gap & orchards gap…never got to test it on deals gap, but from what I hear….yes faster on deals gap…However, my motard was anything BUT fast once the road unkinked. So NO…not fast
Manly: As a tampon
Affordable: (used) Check

So we look at one (because I love my wife) and at 6ft 2in 235 pounds…I sit in the seat and peer over the top of the windshield with the seat all the way back. Even as a passenger.
That one is abandoned forever (thank God)
SO then she sees a 335i 2dr. (And that’s a friggin SUHWEET car) and says it’s “nice” but just looks like an “old man car” :wtfru:
But even IF she liked it….doesn’t fit the whole criteria
But I certainly want to push the 335i

Sporty: Hell yeah (well…me..SHE thinks old man)
Fast: Hell yeah
Manly: Hell yeah (even if OLD manly)
Affordable: umm…not even close. Cheapest one with what SHE wanted was in upper $30k range USED

But while at the dealer looking around the used lot on a Sunday (they’re closed here on Sundays so no lot lizards) she spotted a Z4, and said “THIS is the car I keep seeing that I LOVE..what IS it?”
I say “a women’s tennis shoe” and start walking away, HOPING she would be a good wife, and follow 4 steps behind me. But….no….she has to have a mind of her own :idk: (one of the reasons why I DO love her) and stands there looking it over.
Initial impression of the Z4 having never driven or sat in one

Sporty: Sort of….in a “Miata” kinda way
Fast: Sort of…..like a “Miata” with a decent squirrel
Manly: Maybe if you’re a smallish metrosexual yuppie
Affordable: not this one

At this point she talks herself out of anything new(ish) because the 5 is doing the job and she’s happy with it. That is…till the water pump starts leaking, then the passenger rear window won’t roll up, and she tops it off by almost pulling the entire front end off by pulling over a sidewalk edge. It’s at this point she wants a newer car.
We start the look again.
Then a buddy tells me on the way to Florida to get my Gixxah that his mom is trading her low miles ’08 Z4 to get a 335 because his sister has a baby now and gramma needs a back seat.
Light bulb goes off, and I tell him to bring the “women’s tennis shoe” by the house so the wife can drive it.

He does the following weekend, but she’s asleep when he rolls up so I drive it.
I expect to get in this car and have the same issues as the Miata, which was: after shoe-horning my big ass in the driver’s seat, peering over the top of the windshield, feeling as if I was forced into a womens cocktail dress that is 5 sizes too small (BTW I'm a 32). But amazingly this car has a really long door…making it very easy for me to get in it. And I had him put the top up before I got in it so I could scoff at the limited headroom…but when I got in I had a good 5” clear above my head ?!?!
I get comfy with the wheel and I’m surprised how much legroom I have. Honestly I have to move the seat UP about 2”.
I look over and see an auto…..OK that kills it….but Jason told me that it had an auto stick with paddle shifters, and they rocked. OK, maybe not too bad…I’ll at least drive it. But it’s still girlie (to me)
Once I got out of the neighborhood and onto some curvy roads (with the top up to still check for clearances & blind spots) I pulled it over into the sport mode and attempted the paddle shifters…..they were awkward to get use to I ain’t gonna lie…but once I got the hang of it I loved them. And the handling…..holy crap!!!! I LOVED it.
We stopped and I put the top down. Then we railed back to the house with me bumping this little roadster off the limiter left and right.
I pulled into the driveway with a shit-eatin grin on my face that no car has put on it before. It was a blast. PLUS…it was in the low range of what we were looking for. PLUS I knew the owners son…and knew how meticulous HE was (as a result of his parents) so I knew it was treated right.

Too many pluses NOT to buy this little car…..SO… We now own a women’s tennis shoe :lol: and I friggin love it! Drove it to work yesterday, and made sure I had several job meetings to attend on different sites all over town!

http://www.troybaker.com/bmw/z4/z401.jpg

http://www.troybaker.com/bmw/z4/z403.jpg

I drove the hardtop m version and hated it :lol: 'course I was comparing to the nsx

3 car garage and 3 BMW's inside?

Did you leave enough room in the former man cave for your latte machine?

You've come a long way, flannel boy!

No.. the "big chair" in front of the bikes takes up too much room :(

I've never forgotten my roots though! I just get em dyed more often now :rockwoot: :lol:

Nothing wrong with that plus the wife is happy = win.

We like the 335i and the 370z as well for the wife BUT as you stated...not in the $25k range.

Nice little car man.

Thanks

And that's the BIG one

Otherwise I'm right there with Dave :lol:

Nice......Though I kinda like the first Z4's better because it has a sharper rear end/taillights. Either way they are way better than the old Z3's in my opinion.

I agree with your wife about the 335i, the 2-door is ugly. The 4-door is much better looking for some reason. In fact when she is ready to trade in her 5-series, that is what she should get.

That's one reason I'd have trouble buying a new toy car for myself...sure the Vette is a 2002 BUT only has 40 some odd k miles...everything works...the A/C is ice cold...looks good...handles well...and produces 500 rwhp and is paid for. I'd like something newer but for what newer cars cost that have decent performance I just can't see having to make a payment. :idk: :lol:

The next car I'm sure will be for the wife but now we're wanting a NC mountain cabin. :willy:

Nice pick up! Fun little cars. Enjoy it in good health.

the 335 has the great warranty, but after its up, expect to shell out a ton for the repairs if and when they happen, its a common thread in nasioc that they are great cars as long as someone else is footing the bill to fix it when it fucks up

The Z4 is fairly reliable. Mine is seven years old and I don't have any major problem with it.

The roof is squeaky when retracted but that's pretty much all convertibles.

The power window regulator may go out (3-series weakness).

The weather seal around the windshield tend to deteriorate. Keep an eye on it and once you see what looks like dry-rotting, it's time to replace. Alas, usually you'd have to replace the windshield too. I didn't mind replacing my windshield along with the weather seal because my windshield was chipped and all crappy looking.

Door handle mechanism may go out after a long while.

I respectfully disagree

^ 2nd pic = ok............1st and 3rd? No thanks, the coupe was always an afterthought IMO. Looked kind of like an AMC Pacer with lowering springs :lol:

Maybe so....
But I still love em (goes along great with my shitty taste in cars)

Some people drool over 911's or g37's.
I say to hell with them poser mobiles.

Me...I'll stare at a XR4Ti, a 88 MR2 sc or the sneaker known as the Z3 m.

:lol:

I'm a sucker for aw11s

I would have gotton a GTI personally in that price range.

The Z4 is a chick/metro car.

There are 2 in my neighborhood. One looks like a basket case and the other spent the past couple of years being beatin the piss out of by its owner.

Round here GTI is
A. Gay Man mobile ("Can haz cock and satisfy inner car guy?")
B. Asian metro car ("Hey brah my dad just bought me this awesome graduation present....lets drive to Hollister")
C. Female who is not into cars and doesn't even care if its a GTI or not. All she knows is that its the first car she bought by herself and its not a stick shift and the salesman was really nice when he pointed it out to her on the showroom floor.

You'd rather have a fwd hatch over a rwd vert? You may need to surrender the card brah

True for ANY BMW product....the 5 we have is a cost free car..until something breaks, then HOLY HELL

My RT is the same as well.....PLUS the $800 12k service :td:

2 have gone out on the 5 so far

Yep...the 5 did this as well 2 years ago when it tripped 9 yrs old

Right rear did this on the 5



I take it you just skimmed the first post as usual right? :lol:

:lol very close to what I was thinking

Wrong, the Z4's hood is long, thus masculine old-school.

And as for the GTI, it isn't metro if you pick a muted color like gray......... Instead of homo yellow or red. And don't get the optional 20" wheels.......Wheels that large look stupid on a short hatchback in my opinion.

When did red and yellow become homo colors? :lol: maybe you should stick to pants

Well, would you really describe those colors as masculine? :scratch:

But OK, if you had to describe any color as homo, what would it be, if not yellow and red? And no, you can't pick purple, because it's not even an option for most cars.

So, you tried the 3-series, but not the 1-series?

theres very few colors id describe that way. probably your browns, beiges and dark greens. whites and silvers are boring as hell. might as well be driving a rental car. reds, yellows, blacks, and to some extent blues are bold look at me colors, the human equivalent of a horny male peacock's plumage :rockwoot:

the prius for example should not be sold in solid black, although its the best looking color the car sucks too much to be worthy of it

Brown and beige maybe...........But I don't see how dark green would be gay. I like dark green, it's very conservative, especially British Racing Green. In fact it's mostly older people who buy it, I've never seen anyone remotely flaming with it.

Bright red is fine on Ferraris and real sports cars like that............But it looks silly on sedans IMO.

Red has always been known as a fast "sporty" color. I kinda think of Yellow that way because for years it seem to be sporty or sport cars that came in yellow. Years later that changed but I wouldn't say its a gay color.

James

I loved my Olds Intrigue in Silver.

James

If you're passing on the 370Z because of purely price...

I'd go with an older Z06 that's been well maintained and owned by an old guy.(not hard to find) I would even say C6 BUT I don't think the market has those down to 25k yet and I'd pass on one for the Z06 anyway purely for performance.

dark green only works on brit cars in the BRG format. i do hold that as an exception an should have mentioned as such.

color didnt deter me from buying my 240z in white

Well..I wouldn't pick any of the above choices. In that 25 grand price range, I'd find a used Mustang 2010 GT or 2010 Camaro SS.

both are heavy piggys

Yeah, but they look cool.

or would at 7/10th scale. i love the chally myself, just wish it wasnt dinosaur sized. like i get it dodge, you do trucks now. no need to make the cars so fucking big

I'd own a Z4 in heartbeat if that's what I wanted. Fuck all that "gay man car" bullshit. For some reason most sports cars are "girl" cars. What the hell is wrong with that. I have no need for a giant pickup truck to waste gas and make up for penis size.

Well then how are you gonna make it up there Mr?

Yamaha R6 and guns

high rpm, better bring your lube :lol

Correct. She did not like the look of the 1-series at all


Not only price...but she didn't like it as well. She said it just didn't look like HER.

If we could get a 370 for $20k then she may have "settled" for one. But I wouldn't want her to "settle". She works hard....VERY hard, and this was HER car to play with. So I wanted her to have exactly what she wanted.

The evaluations in my initial post are simply my opinions on the various cars presented to her.


Well if it were ME, that would certainly be an option. But these days I'm more interested in pulling a "Darius240Z" and trying to find a mint 240 or 260Z and stuffing a crate LS motor/trans into it along with a killer suspension and rollin old skool fast.

But again....wifes car, wifes choice. She's happy, and it makes me smile too.

I've said it before but I happen to have a mint 73 that happens to be for sale...;)

Like and have thought about doing this but never looked too seriously in to it. I had a 78 260Z with a bad engine but the timing wasn't right for me and ended up putting a 1982 280Z engine in it.

About the only Miata I've considered is the Monster Miata type with a 302 in it. I've owned and messed with 5.0 Mustang's and had good luck with them.

My FIL is owed quite a bit of money from a guy that has a 73 that he restored a few years ago. We spoke a little more about it this weekend and he said he could "get it for me" if I wanted it.

What that means...not sure, but logistics are difficult now. With the garage full and one car having to stay outside now.....I dont' have a place for it. Unless I kept it at the rent house in the shed....then I wouldn't get to mess with it.

May still get it to have it when I DO get a place to work on it.

But just out of curiousity....how much is yours? Running?


Not saying you're a grape-ape like myself or anything..but you're NOT a short guy :lol: That Miata better not ever have the top up :D

Prolly ask about 7k. Runs good, gets some vibration in the upper rpms but I believe that's the fan clutch engaging

:lol: True.

Even with the Cobra replica's that I really would love to own (Superformance has a shop near the house)...I can't stand most of them with the top up...just doesn't look right at all.

Saw an ffv cobra the other night, extra sexy