- BMW unveiled the Idea Touring Coupe on the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este in Italy.
- The idea turns the Z4 roadster right into a two-door hardtop with a shooting-brake physique—a glance that has been dubbed “clown shoe” in earlier years.
- BMW is claimed to be pondering a restricted manufacturing run.
It is raining cats and canine on the eve of the 2023 Villa d’Este Concorso d’Eleganza in Cernobbio on the banks of Lake Como, however the foul climate doesn’t cease the paparazzi from zooming in on the metallic brown present automotive. Head on, the two-door fastback appears precisely just like the just lately facelifted Z4 roadster. However the quarter-front view exhibits a distinct animal altogether: modern and muscular, the restyled silhouette seems to be a crowd-stopper par excellence.
As a substitute of the normal canvas prime, the coupe sports activities an extended steel roof that fuses with a neatly sculptured, almost vertical hatch. Though it’s successfully a taking pictures brake, BMW selected to badge its newest creation Touring Coupe, thereby paying homage to the very first touring mannequin launched in 1971, which was based mostly on the 02 sequence. The bespoke paint has tiny glass fragments blended in for additional depth and luster.
Though the present automotive is totally redone from the B-pillar rearward, the well-balanced two-seater’s look continues to be of a chunk. Whereas the stubby rear finish of the Z4 is busy and cluttered, the tail of the coupe seems prettier and extra sensible.
The aspect view exhibits the trademark BMW Hofmeister kink, which, just like the body of the kidney grilles and the tailpipes, is completed in matte bronze. The slowly dropping roofline terminates in a full-width drag-cutting and downforce-enhancing spoiler, which along with the bulging hatch under creates a quick and livid look even within the parking zone.
The bulging rear fenders home 21-inch wheels shod with Pirelli P Zero tires. Up entrance, the idea rolls on 20-inchers. The muscular form means that this coupe may eat an M4 for breakfast, however engineering fitted the Euro market’s 340-hp model of the turbocharged 3.0-liter inline six, mated to an eight-speed automated transmission. The suspension is an unchanged carryover merchandise.
What’s It Like Inside?
Regardless of the quick rear overhang, the Touring Coupe simply eclipses the roadster for baggage house. On the debit aspect, we famous the tall loading lip, the comparatively slender cargo deck, and the substantial blind spots brought on by the ultra-wide C-pillars.
The reinforcing crossbeam mounted between the passenger cell and the cargo deck, which severely compromised the seat journey within the Z3 coupe, just isn’t a difficulty right here. As you’d count on, the cockpit is leather-trimmed from wall to wall. The tri-tone shade scheme blends a brownish grey with an ochre saddle tone within the middle and contrasting black accents. The supple cowskin was supplied by the famend furnishings firm Poltrona Frau, and the leather-based is braided collectively in a extremely elaborate trend that remembers the baseball sample used within the first Audi TT roadster. Good. The three customized luggage come courtesy of Schedoni—maker of bespoke Ferrari baggage units.
A Temporary Drive
We might have liked to place this particular Z4 by the paces, however there was no method BMW would allow us to go away the Villa d’Este premises on this handbuilt one-off. The problem was thus to discover a fairly lengthy straight, two corners tight sufficient to make the photographer completely happy, and sufficient house in between to really feel, hear, and digest the primary impressions of this very particular automotive. We are able to now let you know that the touring coupe does speed up, flip, and brake to order, however what makes all of the distinction is the added emotional worth it oozes out of each freshly polished pore. The cabin smells like a $5000 vintage chair, the ambiance shouts luxurious, and the exhaust sounds as if it by no means fought for regulatory approval.
Onlookers gave the automotive their unanimous thumbs up, however the agency’s board of administrators is much less satisfied. In any case, on this dawning EV period, this coupe’s solely power cell is the starter battery, and there’s no hybrid model in sight. To make issues worse, the remaining life span of the Z4 is a paltry three years, and when manufacturing ends there is no such thing as a substitute within the offing.
“The Proper Automobile on the Proper Time”
Feedback Domagoj Dukec, head of BMW model design: “We nonetheless really feel that that is the precise automotive on the proper time. The taking pictures brake stays a convincing synthesis of sportiness and magnificence. We’re going to monitor the response earlier than making a choice, and when doing so we will additionally think about the affect such a mannequin would have on the marque and our picture.”
The Z4 touring (undertaking identify California) was impressed by the very first Z3 coupe constructed between 1998 and 2002, which was dubbed “clown shoe” for its excessive proportions. The Z4 hardtop that adopted by no means attained icon standing. If it hadn’t been for the partnership with Toyota (to construct the Supra), the Z4 would have bitten the mud in 2018.
Sharing the funding with the Japanese enabled BMW to develop the presently out there fourth technology, and capability at Magna Steyr in Graz, Austria, the place the automotive is constructed, would allegedly allow a batch of 3000 to 5000 touring coupes on prime of the present allocations.
The query is, are sufficient markets enthusiastic about a brand new variant of a mannequin that is not precisely a sizzling vendor? Or would it not be wiser to proceed with a small batch of fifty to 100 of extremely bespoke limited-edition collector gadgets priced north of $150,000 apiece? Watch this house for the ultimate say, anticipated later this 12 months.
Contributing Editor
Though I used to be born the one son of an ornithologist and a postal clerk, it was clear from the start that birdwatching and stamp amassing weren’t my factor. Had I identified that God wished me to develop to six’8″, I additionally would have dominated out something to do with automobiles, that are in charge for a few slipped discs, a torn ligament, and that silly stooped posture behind the wheel. Whereas working as a keeper within the Aberdeen Zoo, smuggling low-cost cigarettes from Yugoslavia to Germany, and an embarrassing interlude with an novice drama group additionally didn’t yield success, driving and writing about automobiles turned a significantly better choice. And it nonetheless is now, a few years later, as I strategy my seventieth birthday. I really like each side of my job besides long-haul journey on awful airways, and I hope it exhibits.