This is a car that definitely deserves a ‘most improved’ award.
Where the old Z4 was cramped, bone-shaking and rattly, the new one is spacious (though only for two, of course), cosseting and comfortable.
This time round I drove the top-of-the-range sDrive 35i. It comes with a twin-turbocharged, 306bhp 3.0 litre petrol engine (other units in the Z4 range are the 258bhp 3.0 litre and a 204bhp 2.5 litre, but there’s no diesel on offer as yet).
That’s a lot of power in any car; in a lightweight two-seater, it’s huge. Nought to 62mph comes up in 5.1 seconds and top speed is restricted to 155mph.
Despite its ferocious performance potential, it feels quite civilised. There’s a good traction control system fitted, which allows the rear end to squirm around under hard acceleration but stops it from swinging out or doing anything else that’s scary.
Reacting to one of the biggest criticisms of the previous generation Z4, BMW have engineered a variety of suspension settings for the car. Sport tightens everything up, making the ride firmer, while Sport Plus does the same but turns the traction control off.
Given that it’s January and cold and wet, I didn’t mess around with Sport Plus for too long, and I reckon the regular Sport mode would suffice for all but the most diehard of drivers.
For the most part I left it in Normal mode.
There’s still nary a trace of body roll through corners and the ride is comfortable enough to make long, regular commutes a prospect.
Although my general feeling is that small sports cars should have a manual transmission, the seven-speed dual-clutch automatic option is excellent. It costs an extra £1800 but it actually improves acceleration and fuel economy over the manual.
I’ve talked before about how one of BMW’s biggest advantages over competitors is the efficiency of their engines and the big twin turbo unit in the Z4 is no exception. I’d challenge anyone to find a mainstream car with over 300bhp that returns better than 31mpg on the combined cycle.
The Z4 range starts at £29,485 for the 23i, rising to a little over £38,000 for the all-bells-and-whistles version I drove.
One of the best things about the Z4 over rivals like Audi’s (also excellent) TT Roadster is its folding steel hood.
It’s at this time of year that having a steel roof starts to look like a masterstroke.
I know cloth hoods have almost as good acoustic and thermal insulating properties these days, but there’s something psychologically beneficial about having a proper steel roof over your head when the weather’s miserable.
It folds away in 20 seconds and, yes readers, I did go for a brief top-down blast despite the perishing conditions.
As long as you switch the heated seats on high and turn the heater up full whack, you can have the roof off no matter what the temperature though you do get some stares when the temperature’s within touching distance of zero degrees!