BMW Z1 2.5 2dr [LHD] (1989)

Proper head turner with the windows/doors down

The Z1 has become a bit of a cult car really, for good reason. It's an amazing car, very keen power to weight ratio, and loads of power underneath. The BMW Z1 gained fame for its fancypants window-and-door combo, so the whole side of the car is exposed. It's not for everyone but it's certainly distinctive.

It's not the comfiest of cosiest of cars, and I couldn't really call it reliable as a two seater with a piddly boot space, but that's really not why you wanna buy a BMW Z1. I definitely don't use it as a family car, although the kids do love to play in it.

I've got to be a bit of a mechanic with mine over the years. Not really the engine type stuff but all the panels and electrics I've got my head round now. That's been a mixed bag. What I would say is that you probably should try to learn that sort of thing because Z1s do have their faults, and also you can improve things a lot, and save a whole lot on labour costs.

For example I put airconditioning into my BMW Z1, which took loads of work, and quite a bit of fiddling and adjusting inside. The aircon motors get in the way of the stereo system a bit, and it took quite a bit of work to get it to all marry up properly.

Another thing was the door/window combo on the passenger side was playing up ones. I redid a load of wiring and switches inside but just had to give up in the end and take it to the dealer. It's a mixed bag, and I've definitely saved money overall, but maybe not time.

I can't quite tell how reliable the BMW Z1 is overall because of all the mods I've done on it, but I'd say it's probably medium reliability. It's not really from a tried and tested range of cars by BMW, so it's out on its own a bit, and it can be tricky to find a dealer or garage who knows their way round one. That's another reason to learn yourself, so you can spot someone who thinks he knows but really doesn't - there are plenty of mechanics out there like that!