BMW have revealed their bold take for what the third-generation BMW Z4 sports car should look like – in concept form at least.
The BMW Concept Z4 features multiple classic design cues from its predecessors such as a long wheelbase, low-slung noes, stretched silhouette and a compact rear end.
The concept flaunts a shorter bonnet and ‘crisp overhangs’ that place the driver’s seat closer to the centre of the car than previous BMW roadsters.
The new roaster concept is the first vehicle to feature BMW’s new ‘shark nose’ front end, establishing feature lines that run down the length of the vehicle.
Side vents - or as ‘Air Breathers’ as BMW like you to call them – positioned behind the front wheels funnel air out of the wheel archers and down the side of the roadster.
The outline of the body follows a ‘wedge shape’ for dynamic effect with two large domes stretching rearward behind the cabin and driver’s headrest with integrated rollover bar protection.
“The BMW Concept Z4 expresses the new BMW design language from all perspectives and in all details,” said Adrian van Hooydonk, Senior Vice President of BMW Group Design.
“From the dynamic-looking front to the striking flanks to the clean-cut tail end: a few lines and the subtle interplay between surfaces are enough to generate a sense of power and emotion.”
The driver’s seat, door trim panels, instrument cluster and centre stack are finished entirely in black to reinforce the Z4’s purpose – a total focus on the driving experience.
The fully-digital instrument cluster and central information display are positioned at almost the same height and closer together than previous models to act as a single, cohesive unit.
Presented in Energetic Orange exterior pain and 20-inch light-weight alloy wheels, the Concept Z4 roadster is without doubt the most striking Z car BMW have ever produced.
No official announcement has been made on what might sit beneath the new low-slung bonnet, but Autocar UK understand that the production Z4 will initially be offered with a choice of two petrol engines – a turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder producing around 170kW and a turbocharged 3.0-litre in-line-six that could put out as much as 265kW.
A fully-fledged M version fitted with the same 317kW turbocharged six-cylinder you’d find in the M3 is also rumored, but once again, nothing official has been revealed. However, one thing we can guarantee is that all models will be rear-wheel-drive, like any two-seat sports car should be.
The new-generation BMW convertible is the result of a joint engineering programme with Toyota, who will use the same platform to build the new Toyota Supra, expected to be released next year.
Production of the new BMW Z4 and Toyota Supra is scheduled to start in early 2018 – and we hope the Z4 Concept’s newfound flair and exterior looks are translated directly to the road-going version.
Until then, we’ll just have to wait.
