2010 Get involved+++++++

I'll second that -

@ Topaz Z3 - I think I also spoke to you at Gaydon?
(your car interior has additional detailing to match the exterior?) - anyway welcome to the forum.


For members in the Scottish region - we don't have specific Z meetings. However, there are a number of Z owners who attend the region's monthly meets - details here Events - 2010

Feel free to come along

There are a few Zeds in the Scottish region and it is a good crowd though one day I would like to get down for one of Phils drive and dines

I am a new member of the club have recently got a Z4 and would be up for some meetings.

Staffordshire, how about you?

Worcestershire for me

There are people from both Worcestershire and Staffordshire who attend the Drive and Dines. They are Wednesday evening events starting from Solihull.

Hi Paul--am in MoTown----MK-land of the petrolhead,before we became Public enemy No 1.(Love it!!!)

Jay Stride wrote: Paul Johnson wrote: Not that far then. How long have you been involved with the club? Not sure if that was aimed at me........ about 6 months ago, after I bought a Z4 2.0SE and went to Gaydon. All those lovely Z3's lined up there and a chat with a couple of owners including NeRo convinced me that I really wanted one and one very nice one turned up last month!

Paul Johnson wrote: I have never driven the Z3, how does it compare to the Z4?

Feels a lot more retro and you certainly notice scuttle shake on bumpy bends. You can see over the bonnet a bit better on humpback bridges etc and you dont seem to be sitting as far down in the car compared to the Z4.
More room in the 4 and certainly a lot more in the boot!

I guess most people go the opposite route to me but I love the feel of the Z3 as well as the looks.

I've not got involved with the club yet, but once the weather improves I intend to.

  Hi Phil  You know where I am down here in the Western Region. As far as I know only me and one other Z in my region. As seen in the club magazine we have monthly Pub meets at the Fox & Goose. Also a new one in Stroud. We have had one meet in Swindon and a Z3 turned then. Hope to have anther in Swindon, of course the more Zs the merrier.

  RonZ

safe1 wrote: Hi Paul---Imola Red MCoupe for 7 enjoyable years + meeting some very pleasant owners Z1/3/4/8----Hope we can get some good road tours sorted for this year.

   The Z3 was launched in 1996 so it will be 15 years old in 2011!!

  RonZ


Edited by 325iRon - 17 Jan 2010 at 5:43pm

The problem with 'Z Tours' etc is that when more than a couple of cars are involved, it can degenerate into either a race or a procession, depending on one's point of view.

The annual Z Rallie run by the French 3-Series Club is a good example - living in France, I prefer to give at least a little attention to speed limits, but others tend to regard them as a minimum! 

It's the same in terms of safe vision, as many will simply follow the car in front into a blind bend on the assumption that they did it, so it should be all right.  I prefer to be able to stop in the distance I can see to be safe, but perhaps that's a sign of old age.

That's the problem - one person's 'Spirited' drive is above another's confort zone, and a stream of sports cars can be guaranteed to attract the attention of the police in any country.

Travelling with someone else who has similar driving habits can be fun, as is meeting the rest of a group at  various stopping places, but I really think large group drives are rather risky.

In a recent UK court case, where one member of a motorcycle group was fined for speeding - to catch up with the rest - the leader was regarded as having encouraged the tail-ender to exceed the speed limit, and given a heavier fine.  This was under an old law which has recently been dug up, as it permits those watching any breaking of the law, such as a riot or a fight, to be treated as aiding and abetting it.

However - it would be fun to meet a group of Zeds at, say, a good hotel in Switzerland, and use it as a base for a few days of mountain pass driving with pre-arranged lunch stops.  The problem would be that very few Zed owners can think in terms of travelling more than thirty miles each way! 

I've tried it a few years ago, with a trip to le Mans, and a trip to the Mosel valley for wine-tasting.  The result?  Not one reply, even after two months of publicity in the Club Magazine.

However, the annual Champagne Tour is always popular, as Epernay is only a stone's throw from Dover.  It's also a perfect way to experience France if you have never been, and are worried about driving there.  If you can drive in the UK, you will find France very relaxing!

Don't buy any champagne, though - it's poor value for money, and there are plenty of cheaper alternatives. 

Out here in rural France, we all drink 'other' sparkling white wines made locally by the same process, such as Blanquette de Limoux (5 Euro) or Sire de Beaupre (1.30 Euro!) which taste exactly like the 30 Euro per bottle Mercier champagne etc.

Maybe I should organise a 'Cheap Champagne Run' around here!


Edited by Mike Fishwick - 17 Jan 2010 at 2:00pm