Z3M Roadster

Yes, but do you use the exact same amount of throttle opening, you never get stuck in traffic? Always change gear at the same revs and at the same time? Is there a head wind or a tail wind? A fair test is impossible unless in a controlled environment. You can get a near fair test but that is all.

Mine is a 92Hdi which I chose for tax reasons being a company car. I achieve around 50mpg average. Fully synthetic oil, is that recommended? Will be a pretty expensive fillup if you use Mobil 1

You will never get a true fair test as you will never drive the same roads at the same speeds twice on two separate tanks of fuel, so direct comparison is impossible. Driving in triple figures probably gets better fuel consumption than constant town driving. I know it does in my Z3.

How many miles has the car done? Generally fuel consumption will improve with age and mileage. Saying that I reset the computer for the first time last month and fuel economy has dropped for 54mpg to 51mpg. Still pretty good all the same and it doesn't get driven lightly.

Sounds like my car. I have some of those faults too. Aircon won't blow cold unless the car is moving. This has been repaired once but has recurred. Had new tyres and now one can balance the wheels including Citroen. My mirrors no longer adjust, the motors make a noise but the mirrors are stuck, unless you give them a helpful push with your finger. Good luck getting everything sorted, I have had no luck with the useless dealers I have tried. I am told someone is coming direct from Citroen to inspect the car on the 30th. Fingers crossed the car will be faultless for the first time in 18months

I put Ultimate Diesel in my C4 almost every fill up because I have a fuel card and don't pay for any fuel. Sorry but I have not noticed any difference in performance or fuel economy over the 42,000miles the car has covered. If it were my own car I wouldn't waste my money on optimax for no gain. I'd stick with standard diesel or 95RON.

The book recommends 98 because I don't believe you can get any lesser RON in France, the norm is 98RON. As for the difference in performance for smaller engines running 98RON, I would say that yes, the difference is purely psychological. Scientific tests by numerous motoring establishments have proven that small engined cars with low compression ratios do not benefit in any way shape or form from running higher RON fuel. 102RON is only available in certain BP stations, and I wouldn't bother trying it as it is £2.49 a litre.

How does the extra octane help with smaller engines? It has been proven that it makes little if no difference on small engines, for the reason I gave above.

There was a recent test in EVO magazine saying that smaller engined cars with low compression ratios will notice no difference whatsoever. There is no benefit in spending the extra money on optimax. I have to use optimax 98+ Ron in my z3 and have never used anything else, other than the occasional fill of Tesco 99 but mine has a relatively high compression ratio and will pink if run on lesser RON fuel.

I keep looking on ebay for an armrest, but never seem to be any, not even an aftermarket one. Here is a photo of my carkit, The microphone is by the courtesy light with an aerial stuck to the inside of the windscreen at the top and the speaker is in the dash under the steering column. http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c298/alexlomas/C4/DSC00064.jpg

I seriously doubt that, why would a manufacturer under quote its cars performance figures. If you put the car on a rolling road I would put money on it not actually having as much bhp as quoted on paper. Bearing in mind the bhp on paper is bhp at the flywheel and not at the wheels. As for a 1600cc diesel doing much more than 115mph, again I doubt it. Perhaps down a seriously steep hill with a tail wind. If you like to do traffic light grand prixs you will probably want a petrol, however if you do a lot of motorway miles and like more torque and acceleration through the gears then probably best to go for a diesel. Personally if I were in the market for a hot hatch, I am sorry to say I'd buy the 182/197 Cup/Trophy.

Anyone got a price list?

I'll take a photo if you like so you can see what it looks like. On a separate note, does anyone know if it is possible to retrofit a standard armrest, opposed to the one which houses the cd changer. If so how much does one cost, I should have specced it when I ordered the car, but didn't think about it at the time as it was company ordered.

I did wonder this same point Ciaran. I would have thought they wouldn't have a leg to stand on if they were trying to blame a professionally installed genuine Nokia or Parrot car kit on a separate electrical fault. None of the dealers I have taken my C4 to have commented on the kit and whether it has influenced the electrical faults my car has had, all of which have been repaired under warranty.

Agreed, Ciaran, nor does it make you a good driver though. That is my only point.

If you don't know the roads don't drive fast, how about that for a tip. Bearing in mind I live in the middle of the countryside, I am fully aware of meeting tractors, horses, mud on the road, water on the road from field irrigation, you name it, but thank you for the warning.

It is probably cheaper to buy an aftermarket car kit and have it professionally fitted. I have a Nokia CARK-7W which has both the cradle to attach your phone to and the bluetooth wheel which affixes to the dash so you can connect a bluetooth phone. This has a stereo mute which mutes when the phone rings or when you press a key on the handset, or voice dial by tapping the wheel

Righto, keep thinking you are a good driver. Next time you get caught out, then you might realise that you are not as good as you might think. A good driver wouldn't lose control in the first place (presuming the road conditions were dry and clear), losing control means you were beyond the level of your competence due to inexperience.

Prejudice or not. The truth is in the statistics, lots of newly passed drivers crash, you being one of those. Giving the excuse "the road was dangerous" doesn't really cut it, the road is inanimate and it didn't cause you to crash. Good drivers don't regularly leave the road and drive into trees! Admittedly some younger drivers are better than those who have been driving for years. My point is, when you have been driving for less than a year you can hardly class yourself as a "good driver." Experience is the key.

A good driver is someone who has had considerable experience on the road, and that is not someone who has just passed their test. I drive circa 40k a year in my company car and around 5k in my private car and have taken part in a number of track days but wouldn't call myself a "good driver." I am competent and *touch wood* have never had an accident which was my fault. Generally those who think they are good drivers, are not, as they are overly confident. Why do you think insurance companies have such high premiums for 17-21s, because in general they are high risk, inexperienced road users. In response to your link, no doubt posted by someone who can't afford a BMW. I didn't buy the car for the brand, purely the rarity and performance. By the way it is "etc" and not "ect" abbreviated from the latin Et Cetera

Sadly yes! :( I was not even allowed to see it!! :D ) They are going to send some pics of the car soon. I will post them in a NEW thread! I loved that car so much! The insurance company are still sorting everything out at the moment. We found out that i did over £8500 worth of damage! Not hard when you realise that ONE headlight is £850!!!! :o (Both of which were in perfect nic! :) Something is fishy about this!) I am a good driver, but have yet to learn the car control skills that i would like to! I would like to do a skid-pan session, advanced drivers course, ect ect. I am a good driver in the sence of everyday driving, but admit that i could not get a car out of the sort of spin that happened. Not sure many people could! Scary really! I did let it out in a previous thread, but as you could imagine, i was quite sheepish about it! :unsure: Guess there are positives: 1. I know that a C4 is rediculously safe! 2. I know that i NEED to learn more car control in the event of something bad happening (hopefully i will never need to use them!). 3. I know that this particular road is very dangerous, and so are many other country roads. 4. You're never too young to die! (I know, I Know :ph34r: ..... very sad, but true) .....and yes that quote is from a movie! :D Stormbreaker. I wouldn't call anyone who has recently passed their test a "good driver." Also roads are only as dangerous as the people who drive on them, as someone else mentioned 60mph is not a benchmark, you should drive within the conditions of the road/weather etc. New headlights are £350inc fitting for non xenon as I had mine replaced when I hit a pheasant at 60mph. The important thing is that you are ok, but obviously a lesson learnt

I saw a Megane 250 yesterday at Donny South on the "strip," didn't appear that quick but always difficult to tell in a straight line and when you aren't up against it.

I signed up too, unfortunately can't reply to posts as the message "cannot find server" appears

I have to say that I agree that red is the nicest. When I chose mine in oriental blue there were no cars to look at to compare the colours.

Yes it is aircon and not climate. It is never really cold and the only way to feel cool is, as you say, to direct the vents at you at stick it on full fan, but the ambient air temperature in the car never seems to cool down much. But getting warmer when the car is stationary definitely indicates there is something wrong. Tracking/alignment/balancing has been carried out on numerous occasions, they even tried replacing all of the wheels, still no joy. I will wait and see what Citroen UK say, if anything.