Clamber into the Z4 cockpit after a heavy day, twist the key and as that velvety engine burbles into life the world seems a better place. Prod a button and ten seconds later the roof has disappeared. Useful when we're in the middle of the best summer in years. The gearchange also reminds you of cars of old, with a lovely mechanical feel. I wish the gearing wasn't quiet so long, though; even third takes you close to 100mph and there's still another three cogs to go.

Our Z4 is a quality item inside, with classy instruments, subtle leather upholstery and a plethora of optional extras. It has things like a sat-nav screen that peels out of the dash - a stonking ΂£1835 extra - heated, electric, memory seats, Pro Hi-Fi, and cruise control. Another option, and one I'm not so sure about, is the 18in alloys. They might look good but they reduce the ride to near-appalling on some surfaces. Concrete surfaced motorways are positively painful, though almost certainly part of the problem is that the 18s come with run-flat tyres. Run-flats are notorious for wrecking ride quality thanks to the super-stiff sidewalls needed to make them function properly if you're unlucky enough to get a puncture. We'll change them for conventional rubber at the earliest opportunity.

The cause of last month's strange, muffled knocking from the pedal box area remains a mystery. Confusingly it's not there all the time, nor is it getting any worse as the miles build up. But it's now been joined by a number of squeaks from the interior, mainly from where the seats butt up to the roll hoops. Yet these problems aren't serious enough to dislodge my rose-tinted glasses; in fact I'm still rather chuffed to be blatting around in the Z4.