My first Z3 experience.
I may have recounted this somewhere else on this forum, I'm not sure, I think it may be on the
.beigesrule site. Anyway...
I knew Terry, the bass player in my band in Sussex had a BMW Roadster, but I never saw it because he ferried all his band gear around in his BMW estate car. Then one rehearsal evening in the winter of 2011/2012 he turned up in his Z3 because there was already a bass amp on site. He arrived after me,so I didn't get to see his Z3 until we were leaving to go home at about 11pm. Of course it was dark, but I said I would like to have a look at it and he let me have a sit inside. It immediately felt special, the grip of the seats and the smell of the leather and the shape of it looked super even in the dark. Fast forward 3 or 4 months, Terry said he reluctantly wanted to sell it as he couldn't carry his girl friend and recently acquired dog in it.
Little bells started to ring in my head and I googled Z3! I liked what I saw, but I couldn't recall ever seeing one in the flesh (so to speak). Anyway he sent me lots of details, specs etc and we haggled on the price, and then he changed his mind about selling it a couple of times!!. We finally agreed on a price and as I hadn't seen it in daylight I arranged a date to pop over and see it (he lived quite a distance from me) and on the same morning run it over to my motor technician son to put it up on the hoist to have a look over, and under it.
The morning in question was dull and it was raining, great. I had never been to Terry's house before, so there I was driving slowly down his road counting the house numbers along to his. A least it had stopped raining!
As I got to the house number before his I dropped my gaze onto his drive, and at that moment the sun came out and shone on this beautiful car, gleaming in three quarter profile in front of me. A little shock of electricity seemed to flow up my back into my neck and made the hair stand up. It was LOVE!.........Just like in the movies!
Terry drove it to the garage where my son worked, and he spent about 45 minutes looking over it, under it and in it, wheels off checking what techs check and he said to me, "It's all fine dad for its age and mileage, stuff will need to be done at some time in the future obviously, but it's fine as far as I can tell without driving it. Its the same year as our Primera. Have a drive yourself and see how she goes." I did of course but steadily as the roads were wet and greasy, and she was fine.
We shook hands on the deal, he got a new MOT and a week later he delivered it to my house and I ran him home. Now to tell my wife Chris. She was not happy as the bank froze all our accounts because of the cheque payment for the car, and she couldn't pay her bed and breakfast bill as she was up staying in Norwich helping our daughter looking after our new (2nd) granddaughter.
I still get a little thrill each time I look at Z3lda, and a bigger thrill each time I drive her. Chris says there is no hope for me........
ps If you've read this before sorry!
