Tuesday 29th April 2008

New BMW Z4 At The 'Ring

New roadster filmed testing at the Nurburgring

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New car has folding metal roof

The new BMW Z4 has been filmed testing around the Nurburgring.

Although the car is wearing camouflage the shape can be clearly seen and it has a similar silhouette to the current car.

The car is getting a folding metal roof for the first time and will grow in both size and price.

This means that it will be heavier, although BMW will give it more power to compensate.

The new car is expected to arrive in 2010 and is likely to have styling similar to that of the CS concept, with a wider grille and larger intakes at the front and LED lights at the back.

There will be both twin-turbo and normally-aspirated straight six engines, as well as a base four-cylinder unit, and the flagship M-car will get a brand new turbo six with around 350bhp.

See the new car at the ‘Ring here:

[Mark-C]

Why oh why do cars keep having to get larger and heavier?

[900T-R]

So they can position a 1-series based Z2 underneath it?

[bob1179]

Is this going to be called the 'Z4' or will it be the 'Z5' as it's replacing the previous model (as the last one was the 'Z3')?

I'd like to get a proper a look at the new car, for as much as I have tried, I really don't get on with the looks of the current one.

[nrayner]

>This means that it will be heavier, although BMW will give it more power to compensate.

Don't these ppl have strategists looking at increasing fuel prices, green awareness, motoring taxes see the Colin Chapman argument as a real winner going forward ?

It maybe just us in Blighty suffering particularly at the moment, but it must start becoming an issue for Merkins, and across Yerp ?

I'm pretty sure I'm going to see the need to change to something that's perceived to be better for the green agenda in the future.

[DamoLLb]

Its needs to be heavier, i dont think hairdressers or bimbos enjoy a stripped out motor........a roll cage may serve them well however!

[900T-R]

DamoLLb said:

Its needs to be heavier, i dont think hairdressers or bimbos enjoy a stripped out motor........

Current Z4 isn't exactly 'stripped out' though... neither were the Z3s for that matter, if you disregard the lack of traction control in early S50 M Roadsters/Coupés...

[bradmitchell]

Birds car.

[Fondue]

Lets just hope they make a lighter, fixed top coupe version as not all of us want a convertible, thanks.

[timewatch]

Mark-C said:

Why oh why do cars keep having to get larger and heavier?

You are so right, great post !

TW>>>

[bikemonster]

Mark-C said:

Why oh why do cars keep having to get larger and heavier?

So that the marketing types can point out how much "more" the new car is.

When last did you see an advert/commercial crowing about how much less/smaller/lighter a new anything, let alone a new car, was.

More...it's the new more. (Only more so.)

[900T-R]

bikemonster said:

When last did you see an advert/commercial crowing about how much less/smaller/lighter a new anything, let alone a new car, was.

Mazda 2.

[E38]

Folding roof? Turbo six?

Where has the real BMW gone?

[NobleLord]

New Z4M with 350bhp??? Why! I've got that sort of power in my current Z4M... surely, if the car's going to get heavier, the new one needs to be topping the 400bhp mark to entice owners like me back to the cashpoint???

NL

[Gizmo535]

Never mind how big and heavy it's going to be...

A TURBO M-CAR? Wrong. M-cars are about big, highly tuned normally aspirated engines, with the corresponding delicacy and brute force that implies. You'd never have had a turbocharged TVR, it would have been heresy.

[Panayiotis]

I for one don't like the fact that BMW is going turbo all over the shop. I can understand it on a few models, but it seems that BMW have given up on their NA technology and are relying on turbo's. What next, Honda getting rid of VTEC engines that rev to 10,000rpm and replace them with turbo's revving to 6k?

[havoc]

Mark-C said:

Why oh why do cars keep having to get larger and heavier?

First post hits the nail on the head!

These manufacturers are coming out with all these 'lightweight' concepts now, but they're still releasing ever-heavier new models! Smoke and mirrors?!?

[steve-p]

Gizmo535 said:

You'd never have had a turbocharged TVR, it would have been heresy.

Like the TVR 3000M Turbo, or the supercharged TVR SX350

[Chris_S]

Heavier and turbo? If so, forget it. Sounds like BMW have lost it :-(

[flattotheboards]

bikemonster said:

Mark-C said:

Why oh why do cars keep having to get larger and heavier?

So that the marketing types can point out how much "more" the new car is.

When last did you see an advert/commercial crowing about how much less/smaller/lighter a new anything, let alone a new car, was.

More...it's the new more. (Only more so.)

If people wernt so stupid and realised that bigger heavier cars cause more pollution and decrease your fuel consumption than smaller versions then there would be less demand to make cars bigger and heavier.

[Whiters]

bikemonster said:

More...it's the new more. (Only more so.)

How true. Every new car bigger and heavier than the last, but when was the last time anybody bragged about how heavy their car is? Why not just make a new car that complies with increasing safety legislation but uses weight saving materials intelligently, and therefore doesn't need increases in power to compensate? Or if it does have an increase in power, there's actually a benefit!

As previous poster said, Mazda did it with the 2 - what's wrong with everyone else?