The best thing you can do to a Z4 Coupé...

For the M Powered Z4 derivatives
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dwz8
Joined: Mon 06 Sep, 2004 08:58
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  Z8 roadster

The best thing you can do to a Z4 Coupé...

Post by dwz8 »

There is no section for regular Z4 Coupés, so I had to post it here.

Now, I have to admit that I never had an undisturbed relation to the famous dent in the door of a Z4, which can hardly be embellished by using precise kicks with heavy shoes.
However, the Coupé comes with this sugarsweet top, a good reason to ignore the doors a bit.

Notwithstanding, a stock Coupé is hardly in a state you want to drive around with. Hence the following evolution... :wink:

First you take...

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a Z4 Coupé 3.0Si with M suspension and Xenon lights...

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then you run it in for 2,000 kms, following all rules...

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and then, you hand it over to Bonk Motorsport, one of the most famous racing team of the VLN, the endurance racing series taking place on the Nurburgring.

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Cheers, Dieter

Image Z8. mmmhhmmm.
dwz8
Joined: Mon 06 Sep, 2004 08:58
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  Z8 roadster

Post by dwz8 »

There, the guys approach the Coupé with great love and care...

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the interior looked a bit boring, so it was removed...

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Also the wild growing plants on the roof were eliminated...

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what do you need all this stuff for...

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Insalata di cable con tutti frutti...:w
Cheers, Dieter

Image Z8. mmmhhmmm.
dwz8
Joined: Mon 06 Sep, 2004 08:58
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  Z8 roadster

Post by dwz8 »

Some drivers should be in jail, therefore a cage was mounted:

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nobody will get out of there...

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The pile of redundant parts is steadily growing, including the air condition...

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Cheers, Dieter

Image Z8. mmmhhmmm.
dwz8
Joined: Mon 06 Sep, 2004 08:58
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  Z8 roadster

Post by dwz8 »

We are not barbarians (almost wrote Bavarians), hence the car is sprayed on the inside:

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Slicks and semi slicks on ATS rims are examined

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first seating exercise...

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Getting in and out needs to be trained...

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Bilstein produced a suspension especially for this car, based on the one for the E46 and E90. Before you swamp me with questions: it is a racing setup, don't even dream about driving something like this on regular roads, if you care in any way for your teeth...

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Looks quite cozy already, perhaps we should change the color of the blanket for the passenger...

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Safety first, and this cage is certainly safe.

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emergency switches...

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Cheers, Dieter

Image Z8. mmmhhmmm.
dwz8
Joined: Mon 06 Sep, 2004 08:58
Posts: 58

  Z8 roadster

Post by dwz8 »

Yesterday we finally saw the rollout during a driver's training on the Nordschleife.
Unfortunately, the suspension is still too high and needs some adjustment, that's the reason for the slight SUV look. However, this is not really important with regard to the driving experience.

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well, getting in is not easier once it is finished...
(fortunately, I did most of the photos, I didn't look any better initially)

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the first laps...

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Happy faces, the first laps on semi slicks went well.

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Cheers, Dieter

Image Z8. mmmhhmmm.
dwz8
Joined: Mon 06 Sep, 2004 08:58
Posts: 58

  Z8 roadster

Post by dwz8 »

back into the pits

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semis look good after 9 laps on the Nordschleife:

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changing to slicks

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Changing to more appropriate outfit...

Last escape routes are closed...

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and out into the training traffic...

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The driving experience? Sorry, but my English is probably not good enough to find the write words.
But I can say that we were not awfully disappointed.

Next week we will adjust the suspension to proper height. Next Saturday we will do the final setup.
During the first laps we were about 30 secs slower than the top people in our class, most of this can be attributed to the drivers I guess.

If everything works out well we will then participate in the first endurance race one week later.

We taped the first semi slick laps. Unfortunately, the laps on slicks were not taped. They were significantly faster of course.

http://www.zroadster.com/race/movies/QPRollout2.wmv (approx. 52MB)

Before anybody complains:
Yes, this is crazy, however, what can we do...
Last edited by dwz8 on Sun 29 Apr, 2007 08:06, edited 1 time in total.
Cheers, Dieter

Image Z8. mmmhhmmm.
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c_w
Joined: Thu 19 Aug, 2004 16:50
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  M roadster S50

Post by c_w »

Bonk Motorsport :lol:

Looks great, I'd imagine a 3.0 Coupe would be a good base to start with, the engine being a lot lighter than the Z4M and still gives a good 265bhp.
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Kipper
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Post by Kipper »

Blimey - buy a track car and don't molest the coupe!

Your car your choice but you've just turned a great car into a 1 trick pony.

For what you've spent you could have had an M Coupe and a track car.

Sorry I hate to see art disfigured.
dwz8
Joined: Mon 06 Sep, 2004 08:58
Posts: 58

  Z8 roadster

Post by dwz8 »

Kipper wrote:Blimey - buy a track car and don't molest the coupe!

Your car your choice but you've just turned a great car into a 1 trick pony.

For what you've spent you could have had an M Coupe and a track car.

Sorry I hate to see art disfigured.
We are not talking about a track car here, this is a competitive race car. For the odd track day the effort would have been somewhat too much.
Cheers, Dieter

Image Z8. mmmhhmmm.
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spokey
Joined: Fri 20 Feb, 2004 11:11
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  blank
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Post by spokey »

dwz8 wrote:We are not talking about a track car here, this is a competitive race car.
:shock:

Jeez Dieter, don't suppose you need a tame computer geek on your racing team? :D
Ciao,
Spokey
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whiteminks
Joined: Tue 26 Sep, 2006 09:58
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  M roadster S54
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Post by whiteminks »

That looks serious stuff Dieter :shock: :wink:

If you are going to do it I guess you should do it the way it should be done! :)

Doesn't it get hot without the air-con? ( sorry I'm a girl :D )


Cheers P :wink:
big cheesy wrote:'I nearly cacked my trolleys till I quickly tuned in'. Yorkshire Cruise 2008.
dwz8
Joined: Mon 06 Sep, 2004 08:58
Posts: 58

  Z8 roadster

Post by dwz8 »

whiteminks wrote:That looks serious stuff Dieter :shock: :wink:

If you are going to do it I guess you should do it the way it should be done! :)

Doesn't it get hot without the air-con? ( sorry I'm a girl :D )


Cheers P :wink:
Hi paula,

you're absolutely right, however, the air condition comes with a certain loss of power, so it needed to go.
I think we had around 50°C inside the car with air temperatures outside around 27°C.
Cheers, Dieter

Image Z8. mmmhhmmm.
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Gazza
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Post by Gazza »

Thanks for the video D.

It was nearly as good as Gran Turismo 4 :lol:

Seriously............Sehr Gut !

Gazza.
Gazza

"Understeer is when you hit the wall with the front of the car, oversteer is when you hit the wall with the rear of the car. Horsepower is how fast you hit the wall and torque is how far you take the wall with you"

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All Pina
Joined: Wed 25 Apr, 2007 16:36
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  Z4 M coupe
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Re: The best thing you can do to a Z4 Coupé...

Post by All Pina »

dwz8 wrote: Notwithstanding, a stock Coupé is hardly in a state you want to drive around with.
Huuuh :| ? ? I think many would disagree with that statement and not everybody wants/demands motorsports performance. Each to their own, I say.
dwz8
Joined: Mon 06 Sep, 2004 08:58
Posts: 58

  Z8 roadster

Re: The best thing you can do to a Z4 Coupé...

Post by dwz8 »

All Pina wrote:
dwz8 wrote: Notwithstanding, a stock Coupé is hardly in a state you want to drive around with.
Huuuh :| ? ? I think many would disagree with that statement and not everybody wants/demands motorsports performance. Each to their own, I say.
Sorry that it wasn't clear enough that this was meant ironically.
Cheers, Dieter

Image Z8. mmmhhmmm.
All Pina
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  Z4 M coupe
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Post by All Pina »

:oops: understand now, thanks :) :)
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stu
Joined: Fri 10 Oct, 2003 17:49
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  Z3 roadster 2.8 supe
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Post by stu »

Very impressive effort on the car. What about the motor?

When are the races? It would be nice to follow your progress.
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dwz8
Joined: Mon 06 Sep, 2004 08:58
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  Z8 roadster

Post by dwz8 »

stu wrote:Very impressive effort on the car. What about the motor?

When are the races? It would be nice to follow your progress.
here is the web site: http://www.vln.de/

Sorry, everything in German.
most likely our first race will be on May 12.
Cheers, Dieter

Image Z8. mmmhhmmm.
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Giles
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  Not specified

Post by Giles »

Class thread 8-)
dwz8
Joined: Mon 06 Sep, 2004 08:58
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  Z8 roadster

Post by dwz8 »

Forgot to reply...

The motor stays unchanged, actually it will be sealed so that no changes can be performed. In the stock classes all cars will be dyno tested to ensure fair competition.

The difference is really the setup and the weight. The driving experience - especially on slicks - can not be compared at all to regular Z4 driving.

Here is a diagram of speeds and lateral acceleration during one lap. The printed numbers are for a new Porsche Turbo, tested in the latest issue of sport auto, the numbers in red next to them are our numbers on semis. Of course, on slicks we went significantly faster.
Please keep in mind that we were not shooting for times here, this was lap 8 or 9 on the first day with this car.


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Cheers, Dieter

Image Z8. mmmhhmmm.
senna
Joined: Tue 21 Feb, 2006 13:33
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  Z1 roadster

Nice

Post by senna »

Well done, alot of people complained when I put an M3 engine into my Z1, and the fact that I keep on cutting up E36 M3's.

You only have one life, do what makes you happy.

Nice to see a car being inproved the German way.
Engine Transplants by Night, Heart Transplants by Day. "you own the best Z1 in the world"
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BimBeema
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Post by BimBeema »

Wow - looks very impressive and lot of effort has gone into that - it would be nice if you could keep us updated with your progress. Well done!
///M_aniac
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  M roadster S50
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Post by ///M_aniac »

Wow, Dieter.

That looks like a great project. Very well done. :P

Best regards

C
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sixspeed
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Post by sixspeed »

Love it!
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muppet
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Post by muppet »

new alloys, a loud exhaust and some furry dice are enough for most people . amazing make over . Hope she wins many a race. :D
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FredBloggs
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Z4 coupe.

Post by FredBloggs »

Dieter.
A fantastic video. What made you choose the z4 for this treatment? Was it the tracktime you have had in the z8 or have you been racing for a while?
Martin.
dwz8
Joined: Mon 06 Sep, 2004 08:58
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  Z8 roadster

Re: Z4 coupe.

Post by dwz8 »

FredBloggs wrote:Dieter.
A fantastic video. What made you choose the z4 for this treatment? Was it the tracktime you have had in the z8 or have you been racing for a while?
Martin.
Martin,

the Z8 is way too heavy for serious track usage. You can have a lot of fun with it, but not more.
The choice was between an M3 E36 and the Z4 Coupé, because the class we're running in allows for up to 3 liter engines only. We decided for the Z4 for a variety of reasons, although the old M3 has more horsepower.
Cheers, Dieter

Image Z8. mmmhhmmm.
dwz8
Joined: Mon 06 Sep, 2004 08:58
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  Z8 roadster

Post by dwz8 »

I promised to post a couple of pics, sorry that it took so long.

Pics have been taking on May 12 and May 26 at the Nurburgring.

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fresh slicks...
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of course, no patience to wait for them to heat up...
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Last edited by dwz8 on Mon 25 Jun, 2007 09:09, edited 2 times in total.
Cheers, Dieter

Image Z8. mmmhhmmm.
dwz8
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  Z8 roadster

Post by dwz8 »

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And here is a video showing the start of the last race and the first two laps: http://www.zroadster.com/race/movies/07 ... _Start.wmv

enjoy.

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Cheers, Dieter

Image Z8. mmmhhmmm.
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Roaders
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Post by Roaders »

Wow, that is some make over!

To begin with I was wondering why someone would spend all theat monay and not start with an ///M but now I understand why.

Good luck with the racing.
senna
Joined: Tue 21 Feb, 2006 13:33
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  Z1 roadster

Wow

Post by senna »

NICE, WELL DONE!!!
German style modifications!!!
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whiteminks
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Post by whiteminks »

Wow that looks pretty amazing :shock:

Pure adrenaline :D
big cheesy wrote:'I nearly cacked my trolleys till I quickly tuned in'. Yorkshire Cruise 2008.
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stu
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  Z3 roadster 2.8 supe
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Post by stu »

Some superb photography and action shots there!

Thanks for posting.

How did you get on in the race?
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dwz8
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  Z8 roadster

Post by dwz8 »

stu wrote:Some superb photography and action shots there!

Thanks for posting.

How did you get on in the race?
The first time we came in 9th in our class, the second time 4th.

The video is the start sequence of the second race.
Cheers, Dieter

Image Z8. mmmhhmmm.
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stu
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Post by stu »

dwz8 wrote:The first time we came in 9th in our class, the second time 4th.
Fantastic results.

I think we might have to see if we can fit a visit in to see the VLN series.
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