BMW USED CARS

Seduction, BMW tells us, is the name of the game in the modern roadster market. Demographic evidence and customer confessions suggest that hardly anyone actually needs a wind-in-the-hair car with a small trunk and just two seats, so people have a lot of time to stroke their chins, consult the position of the planets and think about the purchase. We aren't talking corn harvesters or fire trucks here. Buyers have to fall in love.

"The roadster market has always been volatile," BMW's Klaus Borgman told us at the launch of the new Z4 near Alicante, Spain. "Roadsters are an emotional purchase," he said, "so sales depend on what's offered at the time. It's the concept that decides."

And this year BMW has decided to broaden the concept by restyling the Z4 and offering a little more space and luxury, along with an all-season retractable hardtop — thereby replacing the previous Z4 Coupe and Roadster with a single, do-everything model.

This year's Z4 has been redesigned for 2009. The previous generation's creases have been smoothed out, and a newly redesigned rear end addresses the complaints about the previous generation's design. The biggest difference from last year is the absence of a cloth soft-top. BMW did away with the separate coupe and convertible and now only offers a power-folding hard top.

The 2009 BMW Z4 roadster is available in two trims, sDrive30i and sDrive35i. The 30i comes with a 3.0L inline-6-cylinder engine that makes 255 hp and 220 lb-feet of torque, while the 35i comes with a twin-turbocharged version of the same engine, making 300 hp and 300 lb-feet of torque. Both engines are mated to a 6-speed manual transmission, and a 6-speed Steptronic dual-clutch transmission with steering wheel shift paddles is optional.

After a lengthy and successful run, the first generation Z4 will bow out this winter to make way for a new and improved model for 2009. Completely redesigned the new Z4 will be available with two engines and several transmission choices.
The Z4 sDrive35i will make use of BMW’s fabulous twin-turbo 3.0-liter inline-six powerplant, which boasts 300hp and 300 ft-lbs of torque, and the sDrive30i will come equipped with a naturally aspirated 3.0-liter inline-six (the same one found in the 328) that produces a respectable 255hp and 220 ft-lbs of torque.
Both vehicles come standard with a six-speed manual transmission and each have different optional transmissions: the sDrive30i an optional six-speed automatic and the sDrive35i with the seven-speed double-clutch system first offered on the M3!
Acceleration wise, the sDrive30i will hit 60 mph in 5.6 seconds (or 6.0 seconds with the automatic) whereas the sDrive35i will blast to 60 mph in 5.1 seconds (or an even more impressive 5.0 seconds with the double-clutch transmission).

BMW has well and truly jumped on
the bandwagon with the latest Z4. The SLK might have had a folding hard-top
since its launch in 1996, but BMW was late joining the party. The 3-Series
Convertible only got one in the latest generation and now the Z has finally
gained it as well.

The bare figures are this: the
roof lowers and raises in 20 seconds, prices start at £28,645 for the 23i and
get to £37,060 for the 35i that we've just driven. Oh, and it'll do 0-62mph in
5.1 seconds with the dual clutch gearbox fitted.

The BMW Z4 is a rear-wheel drive sports car by the German automaker BMW. Replacing the Z3, first-generation production started in 2002 at BMW's Spartanburg, South Carolina plant, with both roadster and coupe forms produced. Starting with the 2009 model year, the second-generation Z4 is built at BMW's Regensburg, Germany plant as a retractable hardtop roadster.

The Z4 offers a choice of four straight-six engines: 2.2 L, 2.5 L, 3.0 L, and 3.2 L. All are variants of the BMW M54 engine. In the European market, a 2.0 L straight-4 is also offered.