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BMW Z4 spied (2009)

By Ben Pulman

Spy shots

02 May 2008 11:25

The next BMW Z4 will have a folding hard-top. Snapped here testing in Germany the next-generation will also feature BMW’s Efficient Dynamics technology, twin-turbo engines, the M3’s V8 and possibly even diesel power

Hold on a minute. This new roof for the BMW Z4, tell me about it.

Check out our shots of the BMW Z4’s rear haunches and you can see two different shut lines. The inner lines, running on from the rear windscreen are fake, just black tape used as a disguise. The lines you’re after, highlighted in yellow in our picture (bottom right) is the tell-tale sign of the folding metal roof.

The whole rear sections pivots and lifts up to allow the boot to fold under it, though it’s not clear whether this roof will be a two- or three-part unit. What we do know is that this origami roof will rob the Z4 of what little boot space it had.

But what about my soft top dreams, and the brawny roadster?

As with the BMW 3-series a folding hard-top and a more traditional coupe line-up is on the card. With the 3-series BMW banked on convertible buyers not caring about the extra weight penalty. As long as the car looked good, BMW presumed, buyers would be happy. The company was right.

The new Z4 follows the same philosophy, though the latest rumours to fly out of Germany reckon that a soft-top will also be an option. That might sound excessive but Mazda offers folding hard- and soft-top versions of its MX-5. The coupe meanwhile is expected to become a proper driver’s car to challenge the Porsche Cayman.