BMW Z4 M 2006 Review

BMW Z4 M

7-day Test

BMW has a deserved reputation for building engaging Z roadsters and an even better one for making great M performance cars. So when the two come together you know things are going to get interesting.

BMW's straight-six is one of the greatest engines on the streets today. The 3.0-litre pumps out 195kW and a grunty 315Nm of torque. Plonked inside the 1410kg Z4 Roadster was a guarantee of terrific performance (See CarPoint's Z4 Roadster 7-day test here ). But when the mighty M division got their hands on the Z4 things went ballistic.

In went the legendary M3-sourced 252kW/365Nm in-line six. It's a lovely free revving unit with both power and torque peaking fairly high up in the rev band at 7900 and 4900rpm respectively. It's not only sporty but flexible too and excellent for the daily grind or a weekend of track activities. Stuffing it inside the Z4 totally transforms the car.

The Z4 M comes with a conventional six-speed manual, not the much-maligned SMG sequential unit. Its omission could be seen as tacit acceptance by BMW that the stick shift is just plain better.

The cabin is stark and minimalistic in appearance but is comfortable and includes a leather-wrapped chunky steering wheel and power heated seats. CarPoint's test car had the underwhelming no-cost optional black leather 'carbon structure' trim in place of wood or aluminium accents. The boot is predictably small even in the absence of a spare wheel.

At a shade under $130K the Z4 M is keenly priced considering you get satellite navigation, TV, parking sensors, CD stacker, cruise control and a trip computer.

To complement the hard-charging engine BMW has tweaked the suspension and added bigger brakes -- 345mm (front) and 328mm (rear) ventilated discs -- to complete the story. The vague electric power steering from the donor car has been chucked too. In its place is a more conventional hydraulic system which aids feel and response.

The chassis is stiff and the ride can be bone jarringly hard. But the Z4 M is a fine handling car and the fabulous brakes are more than up to the job. In short this is a car for drivers who love to drive hard.

Our petrol consumption for the week was 11.8lt/100km which compares well to the 10.9lt/100km for the automatic Z4 3.0si -- especially considering the harder driving the M version encourages.

The roadster is perfectly at home in challenging twisty roads and once you're on the straight you will hit 100km/h in 5.0secs. Academically BMW has limited the top speed to 250km/h but no matter the car's usable power is more than invigorating.