Wow Remember when these were pushing 300 g’s https://www.gullwingmotorcars.com/2001-bmw-z8-c-3312.htm?searchtype=bymm&make=ALL&model=ALL&bodytype=ALL&stock=22001&&utm_source=2001+BMW+Z8%3A+One+Owner+CA+Car++%2322001&utm_campaign=classic+cars&utm_medium=email
It is one of the most beautiful modern car designs imo, but I feel they fell short putting the S62 engine in it. Some call it a rebodied E39 M5, but I think that price they command is too much because of that engine. They should have made a separate M motor for it imo. The Alpina one was a downgrade. I've seen several in person recently and they look kind of rough unless they were always kept garaged and have Ferrari-like mileage. The head/taillights and trim all have taken a beating from the years and sun with the mileage these usually are found to have. I think you'll have a hard time finding replacement parts at a good price. Edit: A euro rear bumper swap would be nice. The US one has too many reflectors and messes up the lines of the car.
Thats an interesting opinion. In general a nice Z8 in todays market would be ~150k. The history of the Z8 was they were planning to put the 282HP M62 motor in it. They were not planning to make an M5 for that generation. Then Mercedes did the 355 HP E55 AMG and they felt they had to respond. The S62 is a really fantastic motor- very creamy and also somewhat revvy. Then the problem for BMW was how can you sell a halo car such as the Z8 without the "best" engine in the lineup. So they put the M motor into the Z8. Only the second time they ever put an M engine into a non M car. I'm not sure what engine you'd rather have in the Z8. I think this was a perfect match for the car. Its more of a good looking cruiser and all that torque is great. Especially with the stick shift. Its amazing. The Z8 market got ahead of itself. Now we have the inevitable low tide. I think it will come back, probably very slowly, but they simply could not make a production car with this level of bespoke trim ever again- even if they wanted to. It is one of a handful collectible BMWs. This car is priced fairly. Aside from the miles- think of it, thats like 5,500 / year average- not too bad- the things that would concern me are it seems like it always rode on those run flat tires which increases the chance for the dreaded shock tower frame damage. No performance package ever fitted which helps mitigate this issue. And the hardtop on needs to be investigated. The soft top on most convertibles is designed to be kept up most of the time. If you don't keep it under tension, it actually will shrink just a little bit. When you go to put the top up, you will tear it. These are the reasons why I'd be extra careful with this example.
They should have separated the motor from the base S62 by modifying it. The Alpina did use an M62 and tuned it, but less than the S62 and had an automatic unfortunately. The naturally aspirated S62 had room for improvement as Dinan showed with the S2 package (S3 was supercharged). It went from 394 to 470hp and 368 to 419 lb ft of torque. http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/dinan-s2-m5-specialty-file The Alpina wheels on the Z8 look killer though...I'd love to have a black Z8 with red interior and Alpina wheels, but keep the standard S62 and gearbox instead of the Alpina. To me it's ridiculous you can get a sub-100k miles m5 for incredibly less than the same powertrain in a Z8 body. And with the Z8 you have to worry about prior frame damage...
I agree. I think it's drop dead gorgeous and one of the best looking cars of all time. Unfortunately it had chassis issues found after production and the early Dinan S2 ones were even more compromised with their subframe cutting to fit new headers. I agree with Rob...I think they're overpriced. If they had a unique engine, it would be more justifiable.
It's in my top 5 most beautiful cars of all time. I just love the car. Around 2005 my dad nearly bought one, I believe they wanted $130k. Dealer wouldn't budge on price so my dads ego wouldn't let him not win a negotiation. We still joke about that and he kicks himself for it. Could have driven it for ten years and not lost a dollar.
i saw a silver one the other day at my son's soccer game. They still look like they could be a brand new car.
Love the comment “ Low Tide “ That says it all where todays market is... Unless of course its ferrari supercars. There is never an ebb on a 288 or f50 only a flo.
Very cool looking but pretty uninspiring to drive in my opinion. Perhaps I just don't like cruisers...
At the other end of the Z8 market, Gooding sold a car with 61 miles in Monterey for $440,000 http://www.goodingco.com/vehicle/2003-bmw-z8/
no love for the Z8 here??? Bespoke and a 6 speed shifter, for under $200k currently. In the Ferrari lineup in the same time period, a 550 Barchetta is currently a $400k - $500k bespoke limited, topless 6 speed V12. This is what I compare the Z8 to.
I think everyone agrees it looks stunning. It had issues with chassis rigidity and uses an exact same engine found in a car that you can buy used for under $20k. I'd love to own one, but there are tons of other great options out there for the price they command.
Always liked the looks, a modern take on a e-type. The v8 always felt lazy to respond, although that can programmed out. Chassis will bend break tear if really used hard. So a really cool lookign car, a great cruiser, yes a collectable BMW, but not a seminal car. the price even at 200k is to me a vestige of the investor class buying everythign up a few years back. Now in theory rationality prevails. Do you buy one of these over a gullwing sls? Seems they are comparable on a number of levels. IMO the real "collectable" sleeper is the aston v12 vantage.
IMO, the inflated prices of these mass-produced "collectible" cars is nothing more than the effects of trillions of dollars of quantitative easing over the last decade. It already caused massive asset price inflation in stocks and real estate and the overflow/spillage into other areas that people consider investments like these mass produced cars. I can't put an exact amount on how much they're inflated, but your figure is not off base imo and probably fair.
