Apr 2001
In this issue:
Sexpress
BMW beef up their Z4 with a new sport package – and a lot of under-the-hood goodies
Issue: Jan, 2010
It looks like a Z4. In fact, it has the same chassis as a Z4. And pretty much the same interior. And indeed it is a Z4, only BMW have decided to call this latest addition to the two-seat sport range the sDrive35is – which combines more upper and lower case letters than an Apple brainstorm meeting. Basically, it’s a Z4 with the now-legendary M Sport styling and tuning package, which has clearly changed the car so much it needed a new name. Or a much longer one.
BMW themselves claim it is the best-handling sports car they have ever produced, and the spec-sheet certainly underlines their confidence. The twin-turbo 3.0-litre direct-injection six-cylinder engine, helped by redesigned air intakes, knocks out 335bhp – 35 more than the original Z4 – and reaches 100kph in just 4.7 seconds. Other than the engine, the suspension has been remodelled to reduce ride-height by 1.2cm and incorporates electronically-controlled shock absorbers.
Of course, if the engineering hasn’t tempted you, then the new interior might. If you’re a hairdresser. Our press release gem for this month comes from the description of the leather upholstery that caresses the driver – it apparently comes in a “brand new” colour, Kansas Wheat. Or beige, as we usually call it.
This handsome devil, complete with off-white seats, will be the centrepiece of BMW’s stand at the Detroit Auto Show in January. It will then hit the streets of Europe in March, priced around $80,000.
