Teased: BMW Zagato roadster

Three months ago BMW used the Villa D’Este Concours to whip the covers off its stunning Zagato Coupe, and now comes the second collaborative effort between the Bavarian manufacturer and Italian styling house.

Pictured alongside in this shadowy teaser image is a roadster derivative of the BMW Zagato Coupe, and it’s due to take its bows at this weekend’s Pebble Beach Concours D’Elegance in California.

The pic doesn’t give away too much, but expect the drop-top to feature much of the same striking design language that distinguished the chiselled Zagato Coupe concept.

Also being showcased at the Californian exotic auto extravaganza are the facelifted BMW 7 Series, along with the ballistic Alpina B7 and the 6 Series Gran Coupe.

Three historic racecars – a 1975 BMW 3.5 CSL, 1980 BMW M1 Procar and 1986 BMW-March GTP – will also compete in the Monterey Motorsports Reunion.

The full significance of the BMW Zagato roadster isn’t as yet evident, but it’s reasonable to expect that it previews many of the styling elements that will feature on the next-gen Z4.

The second-generation (E89) Z4 has now been around for almost four years, so a replacement model is likely to be about 18 months to two years away.

Getting back to the Pebble Beach-bound roadster concept, it’s expected to replicate the Zagato Coupe’s Z inserts in its trademark kidney-shaped radiator grille, and many of its body panels are similarly handcrafted from aluminium.

We expect the cabin to be largely as per the Z4, just as the Zagato Coupe’s interior was nearly identical to the one that is found in the standard Z4 coupe – although the seats, dash and the door panels were upholstered in grey leather with red accents and Zagato’s signature “Z” emblem prominently stitched in red into both headrests.

We’ll be able to tell you more following the roadster’s unveiling this weekend…

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