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REVIEWS:
2006 BMW Z4 Coupe
December 01, 2005
- By Georg Kacher
It's been a very long time since BMW came up with a show car that caused
any of us to gasp with pleasure, to make us say, "Gotta have it!" X
Coupe? Nah. CS1? Not really. xActivity? Thanks, but no thanks. This year
at the Frankfurt show, however, almost out of the blue, BMW unwrapped a
car that gets ten out of ten on the desirability scale.
Two days after the show closed, we had a date with the new Z4 coupe
concept. (Sure, it's a concept-except that it looks virtually identical
to the car that will go into production next July.) After spending half
a day with the compact crowd-stopper in a derelict factory complex on
the outskirts of Munich, we can report that this thing is not only a
gorgeous looker, it also plays one of the catchiest street-legal sound
tracks. In the huge architectural echo chamber, part-throttle was the
stuff goose bumps are made of, and giving it stick almost instantly
separated the mortar from the bricks. Our "test track" was long enough
to grab the attention of every alpha male in the building but not quite
what we needed to write a proper road test, unfortunately.
Unlike the oddly shaped roadster, the coupe has a rare beauty. In
fixed-roof form, the Z4's proportions are spot-on rather than ho-hum,
its solid stance substantially im-proved by the self-conscious
nineteen-inch wheels and tires. The paint, which lacks gloss and
shimmer, emphasizes the dazzling contours rather than the controversial
cutlines. The unusual matte finish isn't the only thing that catches
your eyes-the car's surfaces actually feel as though they were sculpted
from a solid piece.
"The response at Frankfurt was overwhelmingly positive," says chief
brand de-signer Adrian van Hooydonk, smiling broadly. "Everybody loved
the paint, so we will do what we can to get it into production as soon
as possible. BMW already uses a similar application for its motorcycles,
but automobiles are something else-just think about stone chips or
automatic car washes."
Word is that the M division is contemplating a limited choice of matte
paint jobs as part of a future trademark look, but we don't know exactly
when this option will become available or how much it will cost.
From the nose to the A-pillars, the coupe and the roadster are
identical. But the roof and the rear end are completely different. While
one model has a rudimentary canvas top, the other displays a stylish
version of the classic double-bubble roof. The cutline management is
ingenious. Despite its size, weight, and complexity, the liftgate
treatment makes you wonder whether the Z4 started off with a metal top
and the roadster was developed later. While the neatly integrated rear
window has no wiper, the rear hatch eschews any obvious aerodynamic
aids. However, the tail does have some faults: three-quarter rear
visibility is poor, the loading lip is too high, the trunk is shallow,
and the badge-style latch is bound to get dirty and wet in no time at
all.
"The Z3 coupe was loved by some and disliked by others," says van
Hooydonk. "With the new model, we didn't want to polarize opinion.
That's why a wagon-style rear end was never on the agenda. Instead, we
opted for a quite sharp-edged fastback, because we felt it would go best
with the basic proportions of the Z4."
Strangely, the Z4 coupe that was shown at Frankfurt doesn't address the
planned face-lift for the whole range that is only months away. BMW says
that "it's all part of a carefully staggered process." This is how that
process will unfold. BMW will present the new M roadster-with a more
powerful version of the 333-hp, in-line six currently used in the M3-at
the Detroit auto show. At Geneva in 2006, the company will present the M
coupe, the face-lifted Z4 roadster, and the accordingly modified Z4
coupe. The key changes are revised bumpers that are more elegant for the
mainstream models and more aggressive for the M derivatives, restyled
rear lights, and an upgraded interior.
In more ways than one, the show car leads the way for the production
vehicle. The interior materials in particular are stunning. Everything
you touch feels expensive and very well made: soft nubuck leather
instead of coarse plastic, anodized and lacquered aluminum instead of
brushed steel, and neatly detailed knobs, switches, and buttons rather
than look-alike items from the bottom of the parts bin. Has BMW finally
remembered the importance of high-quality interiors-or will this lovely
cabin disappear in the transition from one-off to mass-made?
"Some of these things are quite expensive," van Hooydonk admits. "But
others are surprisingly affordable. Things like the two-tone cabin
treatment are absolutely cost neutral. Truly exclusive options like
full-leather dashboard trim or a bespoke color scheme could be offered
through the Individual division, however, which is in charge of
made-to-measure solutions." Our only quibble with this stunningly
beautiful driver's environment is the instrumentation, which features
tiny X3 gauges that sit in deep holes, making them even harder to read.
For anyone who's tall, however, the packaging is on the bonsai side of
ridiculous. The roadster is a tight fit to start with, but the coupe
makes this six-foot, seven-inch-tall driver feel like a woodpecker
trying to occupy a knothole sized for a nuthatch. The main culprit is
the bulky rear fire wall that acts both as reinforcement and as home for
the flexible cargo cover. Wedged between fuel tank and floorpan, this
barrier seriously limits seat travel and recline angle. The steeply
raked roof doesn't help much, either, and the bottom half of the
instrument panel curves down in such a way that you need an extra joint
between knee and ankle. Even the 95th-percentile van Hooydonk needs a
shoehorn to get in and out. His explanation: "The coupe is a handmade
prototype built for display purposes and by no means the definitive
vehicle." We sincerely hope the production engineers agree.
At this point, no one is prepared to talk about the nitty-gritty of
weight, drag coefficients, or price. Van Hooydonk elaborates: "The Z4
coupe is kind of a back-to-the-roots car. What looks like metal actually
is metal, not coated plastic. What looks like leather and has seams to
hold it in place is real leather, not fake. This is the real thing, in
appearance and driving pleasure."
We are not worried about the way the production car will drive, because
it should be stiffer than the regular Z4, which already handles sweetly
enough. The show car is equipped with the latest iteration of the
magical 3.0-liter in-line six that makes 261 hp and 232 lb-ft of torque.
Governed at 155 mph, the glacier silver showpiece can reportedly
accelerate from 0 to 62 mph in 5.7 seconds. The M coupe, which should
get a 370-hp engine, will have Porsche 911 speed. If the regular Z4
coupe is enough to get our mouths watering, then the M coupe has us
outright salivating.
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