BMW Z4 2019 review
- Price N/A
What we like
- That cracking engine
- Super, but snappy, dynamics
- As practical as two-seat convertibles get
What we don't
- Almost boring at city speeds
- Feels cramped in the cabin
- It's time to put three-year warranties to sleep
You know what I love the most about roadsters? That they're so unapologetically useless at doing anything other than performing the one simple task they've been designed for. And that is putting a smile on a driver's face.
It's a single-minded focus on fun that's impossible not to love, and it means that (just like pizza) even the not-so-good ones are still pretty good.
Happily, though, the all-new BMW Z4 isn't one of the not-so-good ones. In fact, in the M40i guise we've tested here, it's brilliant.
Verdict
If you're one of those people who feel like convertibles can't be real performance cars, then I beg you to spend some time behind the wheel of the Z4 M40i. It's an M car in all but name, only with the added benefit of letting the sun shine in at the touch of a button.
Is BMW's new Z4 your kind of open top fun? Tell us what you think in the comments section below.
BMW Z4 2019 review
What we like
- That cracking engine
- Super, but snappy, dynamics
- As practical as two-seat convertibles get
What we don't
- Almost boring at city speeds
- Feels cramped in the cabin
- It's time to put three-year warranties to sleep
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Crossheads
There are no Australian specifics available, so we'll look to Europe for a bit of a guide. There, the cheapest of the three-strong Z4 range - the sDrive20i - will start from around 45,000 euros, stepping up to around 55,000 euros for the sDrive30i, and topping out at around 75,000 euros for the M40i version we've tested here.
Now, a straight currency conversion (which ignores crucial stuff like Australia's LCT) puts the Z4 range in a $70,000 to $120,000 window, which feels about right.
No matter where you land in the engine line-up, the Z4 range should arrive pretty well-equipped inside and out, with LED headlights, keyless entry and start, powered everything, twin-zone climate control and a 10.25-inch multimedia screen in the centre of the dash.
Step up to the M40i from either of the two sDrive models, and not only do your alloy wheels grow from 17 to 18 inches, but your standard performance kit improves considerably, with sports suspension with variable dampers, M Sport brakes and an electronic M Sport differential all making an appearance.
The safety kit across the range is first class, too, but we'll circle back to that under the Safety sub-heading.
Much like every convertible ever, the Z4 looks better with the soft-top roof open and the front windows down. But it does look very, very striking: a less busy, more mature version of BMW Z cars of old, and one that looks even better in the M40i guise we've tested here.
The roadster formula hasn't been messed with by the Z4's Aussie designer Calvin Luk much, but it still works; a bonnet long enough to play football on, a pair of rear wheels pushed as far back as possible, and with the shortest possible rear overhang you can get away with.
Front-on, the deeply lined bonnet and the combination of that bold BMW kidney grille and a heap of plastic meshing gives the M40i a wide and powerful road stance. From the rear, twin trapezoid exhaust tips sit above a boot and light set-up that's at once rounded and angular, and it's a fine looking thing to follow.
It must be said, it doesn’t carry the same mean-mugging stature as a full-blown M car, but it’s all the better for it. It looks athletic rather than angry, lithe over leering. And like it’ll be plenty of fun.
Inside, the admittedly cramped quarters are handsomely styled, with fine materials and plenty of technology.
Um, it’s not really. This is a two-seat convertible, so our hopes weren’t exactly sky high, but even with just two passengers aboard the cabin can feel cramped.
It took me a while to put my finger on it (or more accurately, bump my elbow against it), but its because there’s not enough cat-swinging space in the driver’s seat. So when in my ideal (but admittedly short-legged) driving position, I found my elbows would knock against the door panels when I really turned the steering wheel in anger.
Which is weird, because everything else is so perfectly considered. The convertible roof, for example, which will open or drop in 10 seconds and at speeds of up to 50km/h, doesn’t store in the boot, but rather origami-folds itself into a dedicated space behind the two front seats. It means the surprisingly useable 281 litres on offer from the boot remains the same whether the roof is up or down. Compare that with the (much cheaper) MX-5’s 130 litres.
Expect two cupholders up front, as well as a wireless phone charging pad and USB port hidden in a flip-top storage bin in front of the gearshift. A second, port hole-style bin lives behind the front seats, as well as a pair of storage nets to stop things flinging around the cabin (or out the open roof) when you’re diving angry.
There is a pair of four-cylinder, 2.0-litre engines on offer (the 145kW sDrive20i and 190kW sDrive30i), but we are yet to drive them.
So this score is reserved for the utterly brilliant turbocharged 3.0-litre, six-cylinder engine nestled inside the M40i version. It was an epic unit when we experienced it in the (jointly developed) Toyota Supra, and it is no less exciting here in the BMW Z4.
The Z4’s biggest engine will produce 250kW from 5000rpm and 500Nm from 1600rpm, and that is plenty in a car this size. Enough, in fact, to knock off the sprint from 0-100km/h in just 4.6 seconds, and to push on to a top speed of 250km/h.
It’s paired with an eight-speed 'Steptronic' transmission, and it fires power to the Z4’s rear wheels.
BMW is promising a perfect 50/50 weight distribution, and is very excited about the fact this new Z4 is shorter in wheelbase and wider in track than its predecessor.
BMW reckons the M40i version of the Z4 will sip 7.4L/100km on the combined cycle, and emit 168g/km of CO2. That means the 52-litre fuel tank should produce a circa-700km range.
Yes, yes; we’ve heard all your convertible jibes before. But if the very good Mazda MX-5 hasn’t yet fully blown away those tired old cobwebs, BMW’s booming Z4 M40i will more than finish the job.
Remember, this is a car that’s quicker around the Nurburgring than the brutally quick M2, and performance credentials don’t come much more solid than that.
It’s partly, but not entirely, down to that cracking engine, which is damn near faultless in the way it delivers its power, partnering perfectly with the quick-thinking eight-speed automatic, and even quicker thinking paddle shifters, when you’re barreling into or out of a corner.
But the Z4 is more than just a clever engine; the chassis is absolutely fantastic, feeling at once light and responsive but constantly connected to what’s going on below the tyres. And that last bit is important; the Z4 can be pretty damn snappy in the right circumstances, but such is the constant communication, you know the second the rear tyres give up their grip.
Even still, there was more than one moment that it was the traction control, and not the driver's reaction, that pulled the Z4 back into line.
The Z4 happily straddles the comfort/crazy divide, too. It's utterly benign in the city (not to mention near silent, with barely a hint of a rumble from the exhaust), but engaging the M40i's sportier settings will see it shift character, firming up the important bits and adding some touchy sensitivity to the accelerator and gearbox.
The only downside, then, is that it's not a car you want to leave in Sport when tootling around the city. It becomes a little too uncomfortable, the accelerator and gearbox both working too hard at low speeds to be comfortable. And as as result, it sails a little too close to boring at city speeds.
Again, Australian specifics are still being worked out ahead of its early 2019 launch date, but here’s what we know so far.
We know, for example, that there will be the usual collection of airbags and traction and braking systems, and that more advanced safety tech like active cruise with stop and go function, AEB with pedestrian recognition, lane change and lane departure warnings, parking sensors and the very cool 'Reversing Assistant' - which remembers the last 50 metres of road in real time, so if you pull into a tight parking garage or meet someone on a narrow country road, and you don't feel comfortable reversing, the car will take over the steering for you, with the driver responsible only for braking and accelerating - are either standard or optional in overseas models.
Expect BMW's three-year/unlimited-kilometre to apply here, and with a "condition-based servicing" schedule that means you're car will tell you when work is required.
BMW does allow you to prepay your service costs at the time of purchase (so you can roll them into your finance deal or lease), but those costs are yet to be confirmed.
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