The BMW Z3 M Coupe is an Epic Car

It’s been 26 years since the production of the first and last-ever BMW Z3 began at BMW’s plant in Spartanburg (USA), with this compact roadster becoming the brand’s first to be produced exclusively outside Germany. BMW made a beast from the BMW Z3, and it was named the BMW Z3 M Coupe.

It is easy to note that it has a very successful history, and one of the numbers witnessing to this is the total amount of the produced units that equals to 297,087. The first person to drive a BMW Z3 model was the renowned James Bond in ‘Golden Eye,’ one of the movies that represents the Agent 007 as the hero.

Thus, by the beginning of 1996, the entire annual output of the Z3 – fifteen thousand copies – had been sold. Certainly, the BMW Z3 was the worthy follower in the small size of the legendary BMW 507 from the 1950s and continued the story begun by the BMW Z1. The latter was the first prototype developed by the BMW Technik research and development department and the ‘Z’ in the model name stands for the German word Zukunft, which translates as Future.

The design of the BMW Z3 is characterized by clear and powerful forms with references to the tradition of the brand, for instance, the side vents reminiscent of BMW 507.

April 1997 also marked the release of the equally famous 2. The 8 liter six-cylinder engine producing 193 hp (M52B28) was also offered and, in addition, BMW M brought out the Z3 Roadster M with the 3. M3 model with a 2-liter S50B32 engine with the power of 321 horsepower. Hence, with the same engine as in BMW M3 (E36), the Z3 became a sporty car that could give tough competition to other sports cars of its time.

By the end of 1999, BMW Z3 had already sold about 170,000 units and the car was slightly restyled with more masculine rear part, new rear lights, and the front had new headlights with chrome ring.

Newcomers in this study were mechanically the 1. The M43B19 9-liter engine that produces 117 horsepower and the 2. This engine is a 2.0-litre (M52B20) six-cylinder engine generating 150 horsepower. A 2. The 2-liter (M52B22) six-cylinder engine with the maximum output of 170 bhp became also available in the range. At the top of the range was the 3. 0-liter six-cylinder engine (M52B30) with 231 HP and the M version (S54B32) with 325 HP.

Whenever one wants to discuss the history of the BMW Z3 one cannot ignore the special chapter that is associated with the coupé version of the car which was introduced to the market in the summer of 1998.

The particular style of the rear part resembled BMW 328 Touring Coupe, the car that Huschke von Hanstein and Walter Bäumer used to win Mille Miglia race in 1940, which was one of the most crucial victories of the brand between the wars.

The BMW Z3 Coupe was only available with six-cylinder engines: This one is the Z3 Coupe 2. Developed 193 hp, the 3. It had 231 hp and the M versions had 321 and 325 hp respectively. The BMW Z3 M Coupe was also used as the Safety Car in the MotoGP season of year 2000.

The BMW Z3 Coupe range also included a one-off model, the “Millenium Edition”, created on behalf of Germany’s “Auto Motor und Sport” magazine and awarded by lottery to one of its readers. Another unique model was the BMW Z3 M V12 version! It was equipped with a 326 hp V12 engine and was produced to test another way of delivering exceptional performance. The longitudinal engine arrangement also allowed the use of a 12-cylinder power plant in such a compact model.

More common were the Sport Edition versions, which can be found on BMW Z3 1.9i, 2.2i, and 3.0i engines. This special version was equipped with 17-inch wheels in Style 42 or Style 78 design, ground clearance lowered by 15 mm compared to a normal Z3, self-locking rear axle differential, and interior with sports seats and M details.

Today, the BMW Z3 Coupe is a car with cult status, with around 18,000 built!