The concept being that BMW owners should not have to bother themselves with any of the mundane, dirty bits of the car. In their wisdom BMW decided to pretend that there was virtually no need for maintenance whatsoever. These warning lights are just part of the “experience” of owning an older German prestige car.Įverything else I did to the car I would consider routine maintenance but when it comes to deciding what is “routine” for BMWs of this era things get interesting. Except all the lights were working perfectly well even when the warning light was on! Again this warning light would come and go randomly. I then started to have a dash light telling me one of the head light or tail light bulbs was faulty. It usually disappeared after a long, high speed run (what I like to call an Italian tune up) and eventually it stopped appearing. This would be checked and reset by the mechanic who could find nothing actually wrong, only for the light to reappear a few weeks later. For the first year or so I would intermittently have an oxygen sensor light that would come and go. Amber means something is wrong but it is safe to keep driving, a red light means stop immediately. All older BMW owners soon get used to amber warning lights in the dash. This was a relatively quick and cheap fix.Īpart from the above there was of course the famous BMW dash light issues. This time a flush of all the small oil channels in the VANOS variable valve timing mechanism cured the problem. The second time I was let down I was again heading for a Sunday drive to Healesville when the car suddenly started running very rough and would not idle. The only real solution is to relocate the motor into the boot where it remains dry permanently. Some try sealing the motor in a plastic bag but this never lasts for long. Every Z4 has had the roof motor replaced, usually more than once. The well is drained by a tiny rubber tube that blocks immediately from leaf litter causing the motor to flood and seize.
The E85 Z4 is infamous for having the electric motor for the hydraulic roof located deep in a drainage well. The first was when the electric motor in the roof mechanism seized resulting in a wet drive home in the rain from an early Sunday morning drive to Healesville. In more than three years of ownership the Z4 only let me down twice. When buying an older prestige car you have to go in with your eyes wide open, and reliability and maintenance were about what I expected.
How reliable has your car been? Tell us about any issues.