You can't spell "Roadster" without "ROAD"

Well, I bought this BMW Z4 M Roadster with the idea that I could have some great road trips with it. And since you can't spell "roadster", without "Road", I've been trying it out on some of my favorite roads in Northern California.

Here are some notes from two trips I've taken this month...

TRIP One: San Mateo Mountains and Half Moon Bay with my Wife 

No matter how much I like any car, in the end it has to pass by the ultimate reviewer, my favorite passenger and co-pilot in life, my wife Jill. So we decided to take a day and go drive a few great roads through the redwoods out to the beach for lunch and... whatever comes our way.

Packed up the BMW Z4 M and managed to fit two large beach chairs, a cooler, and a duffel with sweatshirts, towels, etc in the trunk. Tight fit, but ok.

The car did great, Jill loved it. With her in the car, I was far more aware of the stiff suspension over bad bumps, potholes, cracks and other imperfections. It feels everything. That's the good news and the bad news. Good news if you're a car geek and like to feel that "analog connection to the road". Bad news if you just like to pretend that a few of our Northern California roads aren't in bad shape. It's still wonderful on a curvy road and loves the 40-60 MPH band in 2nd and 3rd gear. Its also cruises smoothly and effortlessly on the freeway (when properly paved!).

It was the perfect day for a roadster. We started out down Highway 35 into Four-Corners and Alice's Restaurant (which was packed with cool cars and bikes), down Hwy 84 toward the coast and onto an epic curvy local road through the forest: Pescadero Road past Memorial Park.  I was too busy driving for any good pics, but suffice to say that this route still ranks amongst my favorite drives in the USA! 

We then turned south on Highway 1 and had lunch at the Costanoa Resort (excellent Clam Chowder and Calamari) and sat on the beach at Gazos Creek (across from the now-closed Highway 1 Brewing Company, which totally bums me out). 

Weather was 65-68 degrees most of the day. Early hours on Highway 35 were misty and cool under the Redwoods and Oaks and then the sun came out gloriously on the coast. Ended the day with an epic lobster roll at Sam's Chowder house.

My wife said as we drove home she loves the car and how it provides a closer connection to the sights and sounds around us. She also said she was sad for anyone who doesn't go out and adventure around this amazing place we call home. I agree! Go adventure!!! 

She said that the BMW is nowhere near as comfy as the Porsche GT3 for long drives, but it's a perfect "day car".

Trip Two: 3 Cars, 3 Brothers, 3 days in the Sierra Nevada Mountains

I had my brothers in town for a 3-day rally through the Sierra Nevadas in three cars: The new-to-me BMW Z4 M Roadster, the 2018 Porsche GT3 6-Speed manual, and the 2012 McLaren MP4-12C. We travelled about 500 miles and switched cars every hour or so on most days.

Here is the route we took over three days, in which we would drive cool roads, eat great local cuisine, golf, hike, and fish. If you've never been on these roads, you absolutely owe it to yourself to make some time.

Highway 49 provides the perfect driving experience. A deliciously twisty mountain road alongside a clear emerald green snow-fed river, old towns reminiscent of the 1950s, small and rustic riverside resorts, and an eventual link to Highway 89 toward Tahoe where it drops into the perfect High Sierras ranch valley. You might think you're in Montana or Wyoming. Two hours of driving bliss, it's a true California gem. 

Highway 89 alongside the west shore of Lake Tahoe is scenic beyond description. Just south of Rubicon Bay you climb up away from the Lake, hit a peak while driving along a scary-skinny spine of the mountain with lake views all around you, before dropping into a spaghetti-like set of turns to get you back to Lake level near South Tahoe. It's truly magical.

Both my brothers came away with amazing respect for the Z4M. They said that while the GT3 is the car they absolutely love, it was the Z4 that inspired confidence, allowed spirited driving, and was very playful and connected. to the road.  In short, it is perfect on the twisty 50-MPH roads along the Yuba River through Nevada City, Downieville, Sierra City, Sierraville, Truckee and on to Tahoe. 

The bigger roads like Highway 50 (coming over a beautiful granite mountain pass between South Lake Tahoe and Sacramento) allowed the more powerful and planted GT3 to really shine. In the GT3, coming out of a 60 mph turn and stomping on it to 75 mph is sublime and so fast that you can find your self doing 90 before the next brake point. If you're ready for it, great. But it also means that you are creating more speed differential from turn to turn, hitting the brakes more. It's ultimately faster on mountain roads than the Z4M, but at the cost of being less smooth. It's more dramatic and crazy fun.

In most cases, there was no use case along the route that anyone other than me preferred the McLaren MP4-12C. Why? well, you have to really be in the 4000+ rpm band, getting hard on the accelerator and pushing it hard through and out of a curve to truly feel the magic of the lightweight carbon monocoque shell, the magical suspension balance, and the power of the twin-turbo V-8 screamer sitting behind you.  And to do that, you are doing speeds that are downright scary if you don't know the road, the car, or your own capability.  Once again, showing that power and speed isn't alluring if you can't wring the car out at its limits. The McLaren MP4-12C was just too "easy going" at lower speeds. No drama, just a solid car cruising along and easily being tossed side to side. 

We all agreed that every one of these cars needs to be run between 4K - 7K RPM to really be having fun and really feel the connection to the car and the corners. And the BMW's M3-derived S54 straight-6 engine does that range SO well that it's hard not to reach for the Z4 keys. Both brothers wanted to run the Z4 at the end of the day when the sun was going down and the temps hit 70 degrees in the mountains. 

Neither brother could fathom why the Z4M isn't a far more expensive proposition. I agree.  It's an amazing used car value for a very special and somewhat rare car.

Can't wait for the next adventure ! (Hint: It's the Porsche GT3 on another great road trip, this time through Mount Lassen National Park).

2006 BMW Z4 M Roadster: Turns out...I like Convertibles

Here it is, my latest addition to the Garage. It's a 2006 BMW Z4 "M" Roadster. More on this in a minute, but first, as always... the story.

My Convertible History

I have a history with convertibles. I've owned eight of them, and maybe they were sort of my way of staying close to being a motorcycle rider (which I gave up years ago), but with less risk.  As I've told before in some of my car-guy origin story bits, I still remember the dark red MG convertible my Dad had when I was 3 years old, before my parents got divorced and my Dad went to live elsewhere. I think I was conditioned to like red convertibles, even if I barely fit in the back of one along with my two brothers, back in 1964.

 

So although I've owned many convertibles, I sold my last one a few years back (my 1969 Jaguar E-Type Roadster). I sort of swore off of them because my fair skin doesn't do well with lots of sun exposure.  "I need to stay out of the sun", I told myself as a I listed it for auction on Bring-a-Trailer. But we tell ourselves lots of things when we sell a vehicle that we otherwise, mostly, love. 

The reality of selling the Jaguar was that is also was due to a use-case issue. There's no doubt the E-Type (aka "XKE") lives up to its billing as one of the most beautiful cars ever made, but it was unreliable, particularly on warm summer days, when I really wanted to be out in an open-top sports car. But also, my town and area get quite hot during mid-day in Summer. The best time to be in an open top car around here is between 7 am and 10 am and any time after about 7 pm, so my use-time was a bit limited. I sold that car for the simple reason that I wasn't driving it. It wasn't useful enough to me.

But it wasn't the first time I had given up a red convertible. Below are photos of my prior convertibles, five of which were red, one tan, one blue, and one green. Green Datsun 2000, Red Datsun 2000 (not shown), Red Porsche 911, Red Ferrari F355, Red Datsun (again), Blue Corvette, Red Jaguar, Tan Jeep. Loved them all, sold for varying reasons (life, amiright?). I'll throw in my bonus ninth convertible, although it's not a street legal car: my 2022 Mazda MX5 Cup (factory race) car, which is also partly red. These cars spanned ownership years from 1982 through 2023, over 40 years.

So maybe you'll understand when I say that I missed having the red convertible in the garage. Just in case...for those perfect summer evenings or trips to the mild-weather Coast or to Wine Country on a cool Spring morning. And to be fair, my past convertibles were mostly older. So I started considering the fact that I merely needed a modern convertible. One with actual heating and air conditioning so my wife would like to ride along. One with a power top to cover up easily when needed. One that started every time. Maybe not modern-modern, but more modern than what I had previously.

Looking at Red Convertibles 

Having a few other cars in the garage means that I had a slightly different set of factors to consider. I already have a great sports car, great cars for racing or going to the track, a car or two I love to take on back roads for some twisty-driving fun and for going on long road trips. I didn't need a car that could do everything, just one that would do one thing well: connect me to the road, allow some wind in my hair, and be fun to hop into with my wife, Jill, and head to any of our favorite Northern California spots within a couple hours drive.

I starting researching online and Jill would roll her eyes a tad when she'd see me looking at reviews or ads ("I thought you were done with convertibles...?").  Never say never, my dear.  I considered various options including convertibles from Mercedes, Aston Martin, Audi, Lexus, Chevy, Viper, Nissan and others. 

The Chance to Buy:

Then along came good old Mr. Opportunity. A car enthusiast I had met years before had purchased a 2006 BMW M Roadster about a year prior and did a great job sharing in an online forum his purchase and all his subsequent work. To say he is meticulous would be an understatement. I had the pleasure of reading his story as it unfolded as he fixed, corrected, updated, and perfected a car he loved. And one day the chance came along for me to test drive it.  He and I went on a drive through Napa County backroads and we swapped cars for a couple hours. He got to try out my 2018 Porsche GT3 and I got to try his Z4 M Roadster. 

It was a revelation for me. The only BMW we had owned was Jill's amazing but very large 750Li many years prior. But this little BMW sports car felt perfect to me. Partly because of its architecture, partly due to the "M" division treatment by BMW,  and partly because of the work done by the owner, whose name is Kian. And in no small part due to the fact that the Z4 M is not nearly "too" modern. 

About the BMW Z4 M Roadster:

For those not familiar with the BMW Z4 M: They were made from 2006-2008, an upgraded version of the standard Z4, with all the goodness that the BMW "M" performance group could throw into it (or take out of it). It has hydraulic steering (not electronic like the standard Z4 Roadster). It has the S54 naturally-aspirated 6-cylinder engine from the BMW M3, with 333 HP. It has upgraded brakes from the BMW M3 CSL. And it has an old fashioned 6-speed manual gearbox. So it is devoid of all the latest tech. No turbos, no paddle-shifters, barely any electronic nannies to interrupt your driving, and you can turn them off if you want to. It's what driving enthusiasts love to call an "analog sports car". And they only made a small number of them. Only 3,042 came to the USA (they also made a Z4 M hard-top Coupe).  By comparison, BMW sold over 85,000 M3s during the generation (2000-2006). So the Z4 M Roadster is a fairly rare car. You know me... I like odd ducks.

I told Kian "If you ever sell it, I'll be the first in line".  Well, that got him thinking...

The Purchase: 

A month or two later, we made a deal. He suggested a fair price, and I wasn't going to negotiate. I knew how much work he had put into the top, the suspension, the Vanos (known issue with certain BMW motors), the convertible top motor, the valves, the shifter, and so much more. There was nobody that I would rather buy a car from. The only thing was that I wanted the original wheels. So we made a deal where he kept the aftermarkets and I stuck with the OEM 5-spoke wheels. They are similar to the wheels on the BMW Z8 roadsters that I love so much, so it was an easy choice for me.  

I flew down to LAX on a Wednesday and Kian picked me up from the Airport (try THAT Carvana!). The car was ready for me, along with a plethora of spare parts, records, spreadsheets, tools, and tons of helpful background and advice from Kian. He asked: "Do you speak French or know anyone...?" As I knew, this car was originally from Quebec, and many of the early service records are in French. Well, I don't speak French, so... C'est La Vie. Google Translate is my friend. But the car looked perfect, super clean, and in amazing shape for a 20-year old car.

I hit the road at 12:30 to get out of LA and back to Danville before dinner. I was initially considering going the coastal route at least as far as Santa Barbara and Pismo Beach, but with other things going on at home, I decided to just get straight there. Up Highway 5 through the heat of the Central Valley.  What better way to test the car's reliability?

Driving impressions:

I left L.A. at a nice 79 degrees. Top down, wind deflector behind my head. The car immediately felt familiar.  Just well put together and everything where it should be. I got on the freeway headed North and got to row through the gears with some throttle.  Fantastic. Kian had spent considerable time and effort replacing the shifter linkage and bushings for a better and more solid feel. The shifter is very precise and "notchy" with a confidence-inspiring feel to the pattern and engagement. One of the best I've ever driven, on par with my GT3. 

With the windows up and the small wind deflector placed between the headrests, the Z4 protects the cabin nicely from the wind. I drove this way for a couple hours and found the car to track beautifully straight and smooth on good pavement. Unfortunately, some the LA freeway system is older concrete, with lateral seams/ridges every 8-12 feet or so. At certain speeds, and with just the right wheelbase, the Z4 seemed to hit the seams juuust right to cause the front end to be riding up a seam just as the back end was running down a seam, causing the car to rock a bit like a hobby-horse. I had to change lanes at some points to get off bad pavement.  Also, getting out of traffic at 45MPH and getting to higher speeds helped! 

Other than bad pavement, the Z4 felt amazing. Plenty of power (always press the "Sport" button for better throttle response). At 80 Mph and 3000 rpm,  the car feels planted, secure, and barely breathing...just begging for a little gas to get to a triple-digit speed. Just enough engine noise, not a great deal of exhaust noise. And with the A/C on low to medium, the cabin was a pleasure to be in, even with 90 degree temps outside.  But then I crested the Tejon Pass and headed back down into the Central Valley. By the time I hit the town of Grapevine, a couple hours into my 6-hour drive, it was 104 degrees. 

Time to pull over, gas up, drink water, and put the top up. Press and hold the button for about 20 second and... voila' (that's French for "heck yeah"), the top is up! Far simpler than every manual convertible top I've owned. With water and gas and beef jerky, I was ready for the remaining miles. 

With the top up, I was frankly shocked at how quiet it was in the cabin. The Z4 definitely shows its BMW DNA here: well engineered, solidly built, and buttoned up tightly. Inside the cabin is similar in noise levels to many hard-top coupes I have owned. I start thinking: Jill is really going to like this, a convertible that is actually useable! My only complaint after my 6-hour drive home was the seat comfort. These come with a very hard lower seat. I've done 14 hours in one single drive in my GT3 and not felt the rear-end-fatigue that this one gave me in just 6. It will be fine for 2-hour drives, but it's not not a "grand touring" car built for 6 hour drives. 

I got it home and snapped some pics as I got it settled into the garage. I took Jill for a spin around the block and she declared it "Super cute" and "maybe one of my favorite cars of yours". That's not a bad first impression for a 20-year old car with 86,000 miles on it. The Z4 has great design cues, a classic roadster profile, and a simple interior to allow driver and passenger to enjoy their external surroundings with the top down. Can't wait to get her out to the beach. This may be the perfect convertible for me.  Will it be my last?

Never say never.