2007 BMW Z4

Highlights

• Great example of the sportiest non-M Z4
• Substantial, known history
• Wheels refurbished in 2024
• Desirable six-speed manual
• Roof motor boot conversion (popular Z4 mod)

Overview

The BMW Z4 was right first time – something that (perhaps unjustly) wasn’t said of its predecessor. Despite the James Bond seal of approval, the original Z3 was never heaped with praise by Europe’s automotive media.

Many of them were embittered by the fact that BMW was making its first volume sports car not in Germany, but in Spartanburg, North Carolina, as part of BMW’s co-investment-led move into US design and manufacturing. So, despite being based on the brilliant E36 chassis, the Z3 was criticised for having a choppy ride and poor steering which were not entirely true and they remain desirable in their own right.

But with the car’s successor, those detractors were immediately silenced. The Z4 was a masterstroke. Styled by Danish designer Andres Warming, who went on to be Design Director of Rolls-Royce (no less), the ‘E85’ debuted at the Paris Motor Show an astonishing 22 years ago. We say astonishing as, frankly, you could launch it today and its sinewy interweaving of multiple design themes could still look contemporary. Dramatic yet clinical, it remains to this day a stunning piece of design.

Otherwise, it was much of the same but better. A compact rear-drive roadster with similar dimensions to the Z3, but with a more modern design and with sharper dynamics. The four-cylinder engines were ditched, too, in favour of a six-pot-only line-up at launch, in 2.2-litre, 2.5-litre and 3.0-litre capacities with BMW’s proven M54 engine under the lid.

Obviously, the 3.0 was the most desirable, but if you really know what you’re looking for then it’s the later 2006-on N52-engined cars that deliver even more. The Si, in particular. Discreet it may be, but the sportiest E85 came with an extra battalion of horses under the hood, with peak power leaping from 228bhp to 262bhp, meaning 0-60mph in a Porsche-baiting 5.7 seconds and a top speed limited to the industry-adopted 155mph. Anyone who was still saying that BMW didn’t know how to build a sports car immediately shut up, and they remain silent to this day.

If you want to find out why, then here’s your chance, not least because there has never been a better time to buy a Z4. They’ll never be as affordable as they are now, and this one is as good as they get – a well-loved and brilliantly presented example of the Si, in a great colour and with a fully known history.

History and documentation

• UK registration document in the name of the private vendor
• MOT September 2025
• Owned by vendor since 2021
• Purchased from his father who bought the car from its original owner in 2017
• Vendor’s father is a retired naval engineer who serviced the car annually himself
• Original handbook, service book, dealer books and owner’s pack in BMW leather wallet
• Service history as follows: PDI (2007: Douglas Park BMW, Glasgow), 8,300 miles (2009: Grassicles Garage, Perth), 25,166 miles (2012: Harry Fairbairn Ltd, Kircaldy), 41,323 miles (2015: Baldowrie Garage, Dundee), April 2017: owner serviced, April 2018: owner serviced, April 2019: owner serviced, April 2020: owner serviced, April 2021: owner serviced, 67,277 miles (2022: Foundry Motors, Winchester), 71,097 miles (2023: Foundry Motors, Winchester), 71,499 miles (2024: RBM BMW & Mini Specialists, Hampshire)
• Invoices totalling over £1,500 in 2024, including service, new rocker cover and four-wheel refurbishment
• Two keys
• Indoor and outdoor car covers plus magnetic roof cover

Interior

• Black leather sports seats
• Heated and electrically adjustable
• Genuine BMW carpet mats
• BMW Business stereo
• Automatic lights
• Auto wipers
• Automatic climate control
• Very smart and tidy with minimal wear
• Some slight wear to gear lever surround
• Electric folding mirrors
• Original tools and BMW gloves
• Roof motor moved from rear bulkhead to boot to avoid known water ingress issue with Z4s

Exterior

• Lovely Estoril Blue Metallic paint – excellent paint finish all over
• No body damage or recorded previous accident damage
• Very minor marks and chips on bonnet but nothing of any substantial note
• All four wheels refurbished in 2024 with good Goodyear Eagle F1 tyres all-round (driver’s side rear is brand new)
• Electric roof in great condition and works perfectly, including from the keyfob switch
• Appears to be in excellent order underneath with no evidence of structural corrosion

Mechanical

• 3.0-litre straight-six
• 262bhp
• Six-speed manual
• 0-60mph in 5.7 secs
• Recent new battery
• New starter motor in 2019
• Full brake overhaul and new track rods in 2022
• Spark plugs and new lower arm bushes in 2023
• New rocker cover gasket and Valvetronic gaskets and seals in 2024

Summary

As striking to look at as it is good to drive, the E85 generation Z4 has to be one of the sports car bargains of the century right now – and this one’s an absolute corker. The best engine, in one of the best colours and diligently looked after by all three of its owners, it’s presented in stunning original condition. All that’s left for you to do is enjoy it, so what are you waiting for? Here it is…

To arrange a viewing, please request this in the Q&A section. You can click through to the seller's profile and use the 'Email Me' function to arrange a viewing privately, subject to the vendor’s availability. This car is located in Hampshire.