There’s something rotten in the state of Bavaria when BMW’s M division is more keen to tune out crossovers than roadsters. While the previous-generation Z4 and the Z3 that preceded it both had M versions, the current Z4 has been conspicuously absent from the hall’s of the BMW performance division. That could all change if the bean-counters see a good business case for a Z4 M, but in the meantime we’re reportedly slated to get something even crazier: the V8-powered Z4 GT3.
The competition-spec model loses the folding roof in favor of a fixed one reinforced by a full roll cage. It also gets racing slicks and a much more aggressive aero package. But the fun part is the V8 engine from the outgoing M3, tuned to 480 horsepower and paired with a six-speed sequential gearbox.
Inside Line has it on good authority that the Z4 GT3 will soon be available to privateer racers in America, but it will, of course, be restricted to closed tracks. And considering it costs the equivalent of over $400,000 in Europe, it hardly fills the gap left by the absence of the street-legal Z4 M we’re still pining for.
autoblog
