[rishi_kapoor]

It all starts with a dream, as a kid I always dreamt about owning a convertible sports car. In my dreams it was a blue, Porsche! Well, you got to start somewhere, isn’t it? So here is my story…

I could have picked a sports car few years earlier but the guilt of a 2 seater car which will be exclusively used by me kept me away. To add, convertibles are always looked down as unpractical in Indian conditions and too low stance really makes it just a showcar in garage! So, it took a while more.

My choices:
With my budget of 1.25 to 1.5 cr the choices were really limited. I looked at Jaguar F Type, Porsche 718 boxster and of course Z4. I also considered an entry level Carrera but it was too out of my budget. F Type was ruled out as it became obsolete and was not available in India. Tried Porsche 718 but 2.0 litre engine was not the only deterrent, the option list made it to 2 Cr category.

I did a lot of research before closing on Z4. It turned out to be most practical sports car, it had a ground clearance which wont get hurt by every speed breaker, BMW reliability (yes, I am a BMW Fanboy!), B58 is a rock solid engine which can take mods to 500+ BHP in future, G29 LCI looks really expansive and stunning!

Due to some other priorities, Z4 took a back seat for purchase in 2026. But my belief is that you don’t buy cars, they choose to come in your life and that exactly what happened in my case.

It was a very routine call to Krishna BMW for my 1250 GS’s service and by sheer mistake I called Preeti (Sales head at Krishna BMW Cars) instead of service head for Krishna BMW Motarrad. She spoke with me and mentioned that there is one Z4 in thundernight metallic colour with almost the configuration that I was looking for! With current waiting of 1 year for Z4, this was a drooling offer.

Spoke with my dear friend Rohit Paradkar who is also assistant editor of Overdrive magazine and a fellow rider. He jokingly said that, “Rishi if not now then when? Get a sports car while you can still flex to get in its cabin.” It was enough for me to jump the fence. My spouse also supported saying that it’s time that you reward yourself. So I was all set!

3 days later on 4th of July, less than a week after my call, I found myself at Chandigarh BMW dealership taking the keys of my new shining Z4! Purchase experience was amazing with absolutely no hassles.



Boy! I was mesmerised by the way it looked in person. With lot of nervousness, I drove it out of Chandigarh thick traffic to Noida, 400 odd KMs of drive really got me a lot of confidence. Pop and bangs of the exhaust are sheer head turners if the stunning beauty doesn’t turn your head.

Here are some pictures I took in basement after reaching home:




I will not talk much about the tech specs but its a 3 litre B58 M tuned engine, 340 BHP (Europe spec, US spec is 384 BHP), M Sports LS Differential, M Gearbox, M sports brake, M light alloys and M adaptive suspension. First addition will be a RaceChip to get output to 420 BHP.

The Drive
The drive is just amazing, it has so much torque at hand that even at slightest acceleration or normal crawl it tends to slip rear wheels. It’s really difficult to drive it within speed limits as it really hides the real speed if you don’t look at speedometer. It doesn’t take long to get used to of it but its W-I-D-E, I mean really wide. Long bonnet which helps keep BMW famous 50-50 weight distribution is really something too. But this car has true BMW genes that are slowly changing (look at new 5 LWB), it truly drives like a go-cart and controls are German precise.

The PPF Story
I never really believed in PPF, for me it’s always the elbow grease that keeps a car shining. But lately with no control on how your daily car wash guy cleans car, I thought about getting PPF on this Z4. I did my research and this was the most confusing stuff, much much more complicated than actually deciding on sports car! There are tons of detailing studios that are offering you their white labelled Chinese PPFs. There are fakes of good brands all over the place!

I finally brought down my choices to Xpel, Llumar and AVERY Dennison. All 10 years warranty, top of the line PPFs. The other consideration was the quality of installer and installation. It really needed lot of courage to let your brand new car undergo this, I was really really very nervous. I knew a neighbour of mine who owns a detailing studio and I have seen her growing to a reputed detailer in last 9 years. But still I had my doubts. I asked her to demonstrate her results by doing one of my smaller car Polo GT, I liked her work and gave her a go ahead very reluctantly and nervously.

I finally chose AVERY Dennison extreme series, it had the best construction in terms on layers based on my research. It has a factory coated graphene coating on top of PPF film that adds gloss and additional protection. The owner of detailing studio assured me that for all high end cars, AVERY sends installer from their head office and don’t allow local installers, though she insisted that her installer was better.

I also got bumper scrape guard (Sliplo) from US so that uneven speed bumps etc don’t hurt my bumpers. Finally, the result was amazing, will share some pictures clicked at detailing studio later in the thread.

The way ahead:

I am enjoying the drive, it is my daily drive to office. Suddenly my 630i has a lot of respect, it feels like a carpet as compared

Jokes apart, Z4 is a dream come true, Z4 is a charm and I can’t wait to take it to track. Track is really where it belongs, for now, I am just trying to really drive it within moderate limits till 1500 KMs. Few rounds of Yamuna Expressway should do the trick.

I found it to be the most practical everyday sports car, it is reasonably comfortable, the top takes 10 seconds to cover you, ground clearance is ample for most indian roads, so far no issues whatsoever in last 450 Kms of drive.

Thanks for reading my story, I hope to add more to this thread as my ownership matures beyond kilometres. Happy to answer any queries you have, looking forward to your comments, signing off for now, enjoy some visuals:

[amitoj]

Congratulations on the beauty! I cannot agree more with your dear friend, "if not now, then when?"
Guess what. I drove its ancient predecessor, the 2001 Z3 Drop the Top | My 2001 BWM Z3 (Drop the top | My 2001 BMW Z3 2.5i) to office today and even after 4 years of owning it, it still brings a smile to my face. There is something about driving a car with the top down that you just cannot put a price on.
Wish you many happy miles and smiles.

[rishi_kapoor]

Originally Posted by amitoj

Congratulations on the beauty! I cannot agree more with your dear friend, "if not now, then when?"
Guess what. I drove its ancient predecessor, the 2001 Z3 Drop the Top | My 2001 BWM Z3 (Drop the top | My 2001 BMW Z3 2.5i) to office today and even after 4 years of owning it, it still brings a smile to my face. There is something about driving a car with the top down that you just cannot put a price on.
Wish you many happy miles and smiles.

Thanks. Well, I plan to take it to Shimla, want to enjoy on some twisty mountain roads with its top down.

Where are you located in US? DM me, let’s catch up. I will definitely read your ownership thread. Cheers!

[sudeepg]

A very beautiful looking car with some kick ass paint. The PPF application looks swell and oh! those alloys are to die for!

Congratulations on your new car and wish you decades of smiles with this one!

[quad_exhaust]

Damn! You're living the dream. Wishing you several happy miles ahead. Can't wait to see the track day pics.

[Maky]

Firstly, many many congratulations on your new car Mr. Rishi. It's wonderful to see the more senior gentlemen still have that passion in them : )

Originally Posted by rishi_kapoor

I will not talk much about the tech specs but its a 3 litre B58 M tuned engine, 340 BHP (Europe spec, US spec is 384 BHP), M Sports LS Differential, M Gearbox, M sports brake, M light alloys and M adaptive suspension.

I was wondering if you could comment on the ride quality with the provided M Adaptive suspension? Is it very comfortable in 'comfort' mode or is it still stiff.
Thanks.

[rishi_kapoor]

Originally Posted by Maky

Firstly, many many congratulations on your new car Mr. Rishi. It's wonderful to see the more senior gentlemen still have that passion in them : )


I was wondering if you could comment on the ride quality with the provided M Adaptive suspension? Is it very comfortable in 'comfort' mode or is it still stiff.
Thanks.

Thanks Maky. Just touching 50 so senior definitely gives a little jitter for now

Adaptive M is stiff, while comfort mode does makes it a little soft but don’t expect comfort like comfort mode of 6 for example. In my 630i also I have adaptive suspension but comfort and comfort plus modes really make it plush like carpet. And 630i has air suspension so really not a good comparison.

Having said that, the NVH is surprisingly good for a convertible. The comfort mode is reasonably comfortable to drive around in cities or expressways. Steering setting can be set to comfort along with other sports option in Sports individual mode though I won’t suggest that. Trust this helps.

[RajeevMD]

Originally Posted by rishi_kapoor

Spoke with my dear friend Rohit Paradkar who is also assistant editor of Overdrive magazine and a fellow rider. He jokingly said that, “Rishi if not now then when? Get a sports car while you can still flex to get in its cabin.”

Is it just me or anyone else here read this sentence with Rohit's familiar voice (from OD videos) in their heads ?

[Dippy]

Congratulations on your Z4.

I feel so elated reading your thread and feel joy (no pun intended) to see a fellow petrolhead realise his dream. The car looks absolutely smashing in that paint shade.

Nothing better if this is your daily drive to work now. These cars are meant to be driven and not to parked in the garage, only to be taken out sparingly.

Looking forward to more pictures and updates from you as you go along

Wish you countless happy miles

[Naman_Ferrari]

Congratulations sir. I absolutely love the Z4 for its unique look and overall package. Drool over it every time I see one on the road. It’s all great to see more people on Team-Bhp take the plunge into their first sports car. Things have changed for the better in the last couple of years in the Indian auto scene!

[rishi_kapoor]

Originally Posted by Naman_Ferrari

Congratulations sir. I absolutely love the Z4 for its unique look and overall package. Drool over it every time I see one on the road. It’s all great to see more people on Team-Bhp take the plunge into their first sports car. Things have changed for the better in the last couple of years in the Indian auto scene!

Thanks Naman, expect a 911 in garage soon (few years).

[nova.19_exe]

Congrats Rishi Sir, a sick ride you have there. Wishing you many more happy, fuss-free miles with that beast!!

Fun fact - I'm a BMW fanboy as well, favorite one right now being the G80 M3!!

Can't wait to hear more about your adventures!

Cheers!

[Nilesh5417]

What a beauty!!! I see one in Pune quite a few times but it's probably 10year old already. The Z4 is one of those rare BMW designs that have evolved nicely and haven't got too radical like the sedans.

Enjoy the drop-top!!

[indian21r]

Congratulations mate. Enjoy the ride.

Later on getting in and out will be a pain

[sandeep108]

Congrats, way better car than the 718. You did not consider the M2?