[mcboatface]

It’s been a week since I picked up my much-delayed 2021 Z4 30i. I confess to being a bit sad to have sold my terrific Audi A3 Cabriolet after 7 years of flawless service. I generally only keep a car one year, so that shows how much I loved the A3. But then I saw my first Z4 a few months ago (yes, really), and knew it was time to make a change. I am a rag-top guy, and convertibles with hard tops are not my thing, so glad BMW finally made the move back.

It’s been a struggle to get to 300 miles as my commute is only 3 miles each way, but I have gone out for a few pleasure drives, including 50+ miles today. It was 80+ miles home from the dealership and still only at 300. In no particular order, here are some early impressions:

This thing wants to go! I live on a small island and the speed limits on my commute are 25, 30, and 35 mph. Our very quiet street is 25 and frankly it’s damn near impossible to drive this car 25. Today I went for a brief jaunt one exit on I-95 and even at 80-90 it feels like it’s just idling. Really impressive. I can’t imagine how the M40i is. And, I can’t wait to get past break-in. I did blow through the 4500 rpm suggestion today at one point. Fun. But then again, I will have to go somewhere else to really use it. I can break any speed limit on this island in about 3 seconds without trying.

Speaking of which, I think I am pleased with my decision to stick with the 4. I raced sportscars for about 20 years and no longer drive on public roads the way I once did, nor are there many opportunities to do so these days. I had a lovely Audi S8 when we moved to this island, but 550 hp here just seemed like insanity. I think it’s the same for the Z4. The 4 pot is more than enough for here, and I just don’t get to do much driving, other than some blasts up and down I-95 to Jacksonville or Savannah. There are no great roads in southeast Georgia. Open to suggestions though.

And, I like the lower profile of the engine sound, although a couple of times today I would have loved to hear that 3.0 screaming. If there is engine noise plumbed into the audio system in this car, I sure can’t hear it. Is that only on the M? Even in Sport Plus it sure seems subdued.

The ride, with adaptive suspension, is much better than I thought. I did stick with the 18” wheels purely for comfort. Yes, the 19s look better, but in my 60s I do have my priorities. :-) And it’s very, very quiet with the top up. I don’t keep the wind block in place as it’s so hot here for 6 months, I want all the air I can get flowing through the cockpit. It will get used for Interstate runs though.

I have only a couple of interstate off ramps as a test so far, but the handling is incredible. Not that it will come in very useful where I live.

The AC is spectacular, which is really handy down here. Yes, the cabin is small, but man, I could hang meat in this thing. I do drive top-down much of the time, but when it’s 90 degrees with 70% humidity, like now, I like my AC. Remote engine start is awesome since it will cool the cabin in just minutes. But, I can’t for the life of me figure out how to get climate control Auto mode to control the fan speed. Surely it can?

The HK sound system (Executive Package) actually sounds pretty good using CarPlay, if the volume is cranked up, after a few tweaks of the EQ. At medium or low levels it’s really unimpressive. Sirius is a joke. Reminds me why I cancelled my subscription in the Audi. HD radio sounds best, but man, I hate ads.

CarPlay is really good, but I have never used Siri before on any device, so I am having to learn how to make best use of it. Of course in an 8 minute commute I don’t do much work. Now I just need to figure out how to make the Map button go to Apple Maps and the Media button to go to CarPlay. I know I saw this somewhere, but I can’t find the right setting.

I really didn’t realize how many iDrive systems we do not get in the Z4. No traffic camera app. No 360 camera and thus no Remote 3D view. And a couple of others I think.

I love the speed of the top. 10 seconds is way faster than the Audi which had to move body panels.

The pedal offset is a bit weird to me and feels pushed left a bit. Also the brake pedal seems quite a bit higher than the loud pedal and I find myself having to lift my foot more than I am used to. Maybe it’s just that I have been driving the same car for 7 years. But driving with flip flops is not comfortable in this car as they get snagged on the higher brake pedal. I just take them off now. Maybe it’s time to go back to left foot braking.

I am finding it very difficult to drive this car smoothly, mostly when slowing. The transmission downshifts at awkward times when slowing to a stop, even in comfort mode. And, the brakes, while really good, are hard to modulate to a slow, smooth stop. Perhaps they will get easier to modulate as they break in more, but I am not convinced that will happen. Just more practice I guess.

Auto Hold is cool, but I can already see danger if you get used to it and then turn it off. You come up to a light behind other cars and take you foot of the brake assuming hold is turned on. I haven’t done this, but I am trying not to use it very much so bad habits don’t form. Getting in the habit of looking for the green indicator on the dash.

Auto Stop and Auto Hold can cause some unclear situations. Yesterday I was at the bank drive through using Auto Hold and just as I was getting ready to leave the engine stopped. Auto Hold releases when you hit the accelerator, but Auto Stop wants to see your foot taken off the brake so I wasn’t sure which action would make the car re-start and move. Just gotta get used to these things.

Fuel milage is really mind-blowing if you can resist the thrill of the car. At one point today, 20+ miles into my drive, I was over 40 mpg in Comfort mode, not even in Eco-Plus. Wow. Naturally I then had to entertain myself with an I-95 on ramp and a couple of passes, so I ended up at about 37 mpg over 54 miles. Without trying.

Minor point, but the small cabin was apparent when my wife got into the car with her rather large purse. I swear, she must have hit every exterior and interior surface with that thing trying to get into the car.

This is not the easiest car to get in and out of. The seat is pretty low and the sill is really wide. Especially in the garage where I can’t open the door all the way without hitting my wife’s Volvo V90 wagon. On that point, we now have, as far as I know, the only V90 (not the cross country model) and the only Z4 on the island. Both great looking cars!

One negative is that I will have to go back to washing my car. One nice thing about an older car is that you don’t mind running it through the car wash.

So, my first week with my first BMW. All good so far. I think I love it, but it’s early days yet.

Anyway, sorry for the long post, but hey, that’s why we have this forum, right?

[Horseman]

The ling, and thorough post is appreciated!!!! Feedback is always welcome. Many of the same experiences you have, I also have. Especially with slowing down. It’s never smooth. Hoping that will change with age or I’ll get used to how that works and brake better.

[Kwajtrader]

Great first impressions! Agree on the brakes, they are a little grabby, but I also assume the pads need to bed in. The other thing I plan on doing is putting Xpel film on the door sills to keep from scuffing them up when I swing my shoes in. For now I’m just being very careful.

[TAZ007]

Originally Posted by Kwajtrader

Great first impressions! Agree on the brakes, they are a little grabby, but I also assume the pads need to bed in. The other thing I plan on doing is putting Xpel film on the door sills to keep from scuffing them up when I swing my shoes in. For now I’m just being very careful.

Good write-up. As far as the brakes go, they will bed in. It takes a long minute though. I experienced the same when I got my M235 in 15.

[MarkB01]

On the brakes, I noticed that at first on my car, but it quickly disappeared. I don't know if the brakes broke in or my braking habits changed. But no longer notice it.

I haven't noticed rough downshifting on my M40i. Wonder if this is unique to the 30.

Autostop/autohold does seem to be problamatic. I've turned both off (you need to change a setting with bimmercode for autostop). But note, you can manually do autohold with the parking brake. Set the parking brake when you want to autohold, and just giving a little gas automatically releases it just like autohold.

I put clear rubber edge bumpers on my driver door to protect hitting my wife's X3.

You need to bring your car to the mountains for some real driving fun :-)

I understand about hand washing, I've been doing it weekly since I got my Z4 (note, it's Frozen Grey)

Good looking car.

[TAZ007]

Originally Posted by MarkB01

On the brakes, I noticed that at first on my car, but it quickly disappeared. I don't know if the brakes broke in or my braking habits changed. But no longer notice it.

I haven't noticed rough downshifting on my M40i. Wonder if this is unique to the 30.

Autostop/autohold does seem to be problamatic. I've turned both off (you need to change a setting with bimmercode for autostop). But note, you can manually do autohold with the parking brake. Set the parking brake when you want to autohold, and just giving a little gas automatically releases it just like autohold.

I put clear rubber edge bumpers on my driver door to protect hitting my wife's X3.

You need to bring your car to the mountains for some real driving fun :-)

I understand about hand washing, I've been doing it weekly since I got my Z4 (note, it's Frozen Grey)

Good looking car.

In response to your brakes statement, I would say both things are occurring.

With the rough transmission shifts, the ZF8 has been the best and smoothest tranny I have had the pleasure to drive. If you are experiencing rough shifts, enquire with the dealer under warranty. It probably needs a top off of tranny fluid.

[Mixitt]

Great write up, thanks!

Wife and I are both in our 70's and yes, it's a bear to get in and out of out as the floor sill sits about 5" tall. I've learned to put my right foot in first, bend down and swing my big butt into the seat. Lifting the left foot high (struggle big time) over the sill is a challenge and subject to smearing the black trim with our red clay soiled shoes.

Fun car, great ride. I've got about 300 miles on the car and have rimmed it up to 6,500 RPM's often. In fact I gunned it on a left turn coming off a red light the other day in town. The back fish tailed but recovered quickly. Such fun for this old pHart!

[CJ421]

Honest write-up, mcboatface.

I agree on the downshifts. When it downshifts, it seems to "push" a bit. And the car doesn't like to come to a complete stop, either; you have to put more effort into the brake pedal than you think. This car just wants to go.

I'm glad you pointed out the missing iDrive parking-related items. My '17 3-series had the 360-degree view, but this car does not. It is also not available with the foot-kick trunk release (I don't know the official name). As an aside, I wish pressing the trunk release button actually opened the trunk, but it just unlocks it.

What did you tweak in the HK stereo's EQ? I turned down the lower three bars a notch so I could turn the volume louder. I experimented putting the master treble +1 but found it could sound a little too sharp.

Charles

[Horseman]

Originally Posted by CJ421

Honest write-up, mcboatface.

I agree on the downshifts. When it downshifts, it seems to "push" a bit. And the car doesn't like to come to a complete stop, either; you have to put more effort into the brake pedal than you think. This car just wants to go.

I'm glad you pointed out the missing iDrive parking-related items. My '17 3-series had the 360-degree view, but this car does not. It is also not available with the foot-kick trunk release (I don't know the official name). As an aside, I wish pressing the trunk release button actually opened the trunk, but it just unlocks it.

What did you tweak in the HK stereo's EQ? I turned down the lower three bars a notch so I could turn the volume louder. I experimented putting the master treble +1 but found it could sound a little too sharp.

Charles

Funny how you say that it doesn't want to come to a complete stop... I have definitely noticed this.

[mcboatface]

Originally Posted by Horseman

Funny how you say that it doesn't want to come to a complete stop... I have definitely noticed this.

Yes, this is really driving me nuts. I like to be able to bring a car to a stop without my passengers even knowing we have stopped. I can’t even come close in the Z4, but it’s getting a bit better with practice. The brakes just have no interest in modulating at all. In my countless previous cars, I have always been able to find a good method for this. Not here. Quite odd really.

[mcboatface]

Originally Posted by CJ421

Honest write-up, mcboatface.


What did you tweak in the HK stereo's EQ? I turned down the lower three bars a notch so I could turn the volume louder. I experimented putting the master treble +1 but found it could sound a little too sharp.

Charles

I turned the surround down a couple of notches, boosted the second from left EQ bar a couple of notches, the third from left a notch and the second from the right a couple. I think. Not in the car but it’s close to this. It was suggested in another thread here, or an another Z4 forum somewhere.

However, it only makes a difference when cranked up. Remember the old “loudness” button from hi-fi systems back in the day? It would boost the bass and treble at low volumes to make up for the lack of output. This car is begging for a loudness button.

[mcboatface]

Originally Posted by MarkB01

You need to bring your car to the mountains for some real driving fun :-)

Good looking car.

Well, I’m not driving the Z4 that far, but I did win the Ferrari Challenge Rally in your neighborhood back in 1999 or so. We had a blast driving those roads.

On the second day we stopped in Crested Butte for the night. Watching 50 Ferraris trying to drive 15 mph (the speed limit in that town) was quite entertaining. Many tickets were handed out. It was like sharks with blood in the water.

Kind of like the 1984 Cannonball when we hit the Ohio state line. They had 40 trooper cars, paddy wagons, helicopters disguised as news teams, etc. Someone really had a weed growing in dark places. I ran 4 of these with Brock Yates and company and never got a ticket.

[Geradeaus]

Originally Posted by mcboatface

Yes, this is really driving me nuts. I like to be able to bring a car to a stop without my passengers even knowing we have stopped. I can’t even come close in the Z4, but it’s getting a bit better with practice. The brakes just have no interest in modulating at all. In my countless previous cars, I have always been able to find a good method for this. Not here. Quite odd really.

When I wrote up my first driving impressions back in March, I mentioned the brakes being grabby. I've got 2600 miles on the car now and they are somewhat better - still not great. I'm wondering if there is a generator that kicks in at low speeds to provide energy to the lithium battery used for the auto stop / start function. I read somewhere that there is some system for that purpose. Just a wild guess. Anyway, the braking is still my only real complaint with the car. Well, that and the absence of ventilated seats. My $30,000 Mazda CX-5 has better brakes, ventilated seats and a 10 speaker Bose stereo that puts the HK to shame. Come on BMW, you can do better.

[Geradeaus]

Originally Posted by Mixitt

…Fun car, great ride. I've got about 300 miles on the car and have rimmed it up to 6,500 RPM's often.

OK, have fun, but don't come complaining to the forum when you start burning a quart of oil every 1,000 miles. The break-in period is 1,200 miles not 300. BMW does that for a reason. Patience is a virtue.🤞

[TAZ007]

Originally Posted by Geradeaus

OK, have fun, but don't come complaining to the forum when you start burning a quart of oil every 1,000 miles. The break-in period is 1,200 miles not 300. BMW does that for a reason. Patience is a virtue.🤞

maybe he is not virtuous.

[PrionFawkes]

Originally Posted by mcboatface

Minor point, but the small cabin was apparent when my wife got into the car with her rather large purse. I swear, she must have hit every exterior and interior surface with that thing trying to get into the car.

I feel your pain. We've adopted a process where she either, one hands me her bag while she gets in and settled; or two, she puts it in the trunk.

This isn't an issue unique to the Z4, nor my wife in particular. Every woman I've known, shy of fellow petrol heads, have assaulted every car I've owned with their handbags.

[TAZ007]

Originally Posted by PrionFawkes

I feel your pain. We've adopted a process where she either, one hands me her bag while she gets in and settled; or two, she puts it in the trunk.

This isn't an issue unique to the Z4, nor my wife in particular. Every woman I've known, shy of fellow petrol heads, have assaulted every car I've owned with their handbags.

It's the price we pay for love. Who knew it would be the most expensive purchase any of us would every make.

[Horseman]

Originally Posted by Geradeaus

OK, have fun, but don't come complaining to the forum when you start burning a quart of oil every 1,000 miles. The break-in period is 1,200 miles not 300. BMW does that for a reason. Patience is a virtue.🤞

BMW told me 500. But maybe because I’m in a 30i?

[TAZ007]

Originally Posted by Horseman

BMW told me 500. But maybe because I’m in a 30i?

Need to follow break-in instructions for longevity of the vehicle. It's worth it.

[Kwajtrader]

Originally Posted by Horseman

BMW told me 500. But maybe because I’m in a 30i?

The performance center expert told me the break in period was 1200 miles and during this period to keep the car under 4500 rpm. Additional info I read on-line said to avoid aggressive downshifting that creates a heavy load on the engine.

Here is what is on BMW.com:

Doing an engine break-in used to be a standard procedure with new cars. And it’s still the case that you should avoid running the engine at high RPM for the first 1,300 miles. Experts recommend a maximum 3,500 rpm and 90 mph in diesel models and 4,500 rpm and 100 mph in gas models. This will give the engine and transmission sufficient time to adjust to each other. Once you’ve reached the 1,300-mile mark, you can gradually increase your speed and your engine’s RPM. In particular, avoid to put too much strain on a cold engine. However, that’s true not just when breaking in a new car but for the whole life cycle of your car. Likewise, never turn off an engine that has been running hard. Allow it to cool down by driving a few miles at a gentle pace.

[Mixitt]

Originally Posted by Geradeaus

OK, have fun, but don't come complaining to the forum when you start burning a quart of oil every 1,000 miles. The break-in period is 1,200 miles not 300. BMW does that for a reason. Patience is a virtue.🤞

I'm not ramping it up often, just a "rare" kick in the pants to show "Duke" who's boss.

https://g29.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1823719

[Geradeaus]

So I watched the Power Flow monitor today as I drove around and sure enough it charges the battery at low rpm as the car comes to a stop. It felt like there was some jerkiness at the point it kicked in. The price we pay for the wonderful auto engine stop/start feature.