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I had a used 2004 2.5i with BBS RC, one of the lightest wheels. Drove for nearly 5 years before switching to a used 2010 3.5i DCT a year ago. First impression: My new Z was not as agile but the car seems more stable on road imperfection. Suspension is softer and ride height seems taller. It is definitely much more powerful and require a different handling skill especially on the gas or otherwise become shaky as the car tends to stay in low gear. I change the runflat to michelin pss. Not much help. Then, I use ESS ECU Stage 2 tuning. Cannot feel much different. Then I change the 19" 296 wheel to Advan RSII. The agility comes back to like the old z4. The factory wheels are just too heavy and its momentum actually fight against when auto shift to lower gear. The lighter wheels make this all go away. I start to drive fast. For my old Z4, I get used to force the auto to manual shift. This does not work out for DCT. Although BMW says DCT is fast, it is actually very slow when the RPM is not high. The computer seems to need time to analyse and get more data before deciding whether it is appropriate to shift up. I change my habit and put the gear to S, i.e. automatic sport mode gear shifting when I need sudden power. This works much better because I let the computer decide wholly. I drive 1/2 time faster than on my old Z4. I later make more step up to change to KW V3. I now drive one time faster, doubling the speed than on my old Z4. I take over most car on street. It is now truly a sport car, a king on street.
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