2014 BMW Z2 Roadster
Rumors of a smaller roadster known as the BMW Z2, which aims to capture the spirit of the departed BMW Z3,
have been swirling for several years, but nothing ever happened. Well,
Autocar has resurrected the rumors and we now have a little bit of
unconfirmed information on this potential model. It looks like it is the
real deal, but you’ll have to be the judge.
While
the Z4 is slowly transitioning into a GT car, the rumored Z2 will be an
open-top, entry-level roadster that gives the opportunity for roadster
fans to buy one without shelling a small fortune, an aspect that made
the Mazda MX-5 Miata legendary.
While BMW is bound to
call this car a "Z3 successor," the omission of RWD alone isn’t
deserving of that description. Let’s see what BMW has in store for us in
this exciting project they may undertake.
Exterior and Interior
Expected to sit on the ULK platform underpinning nearly
23 Bimmers and Minis, the design is rumored to be inspired by the
Concept Active Tourer with a chopped top and a sleeker lines. An idea of
how small the BMW Z2 is rumored to be is well depicted in an image of a
Mini Cooper Roadster, sans the retro design.
Engine
Under the hood, BMW plans to offer the same engine
lineup that powers the Mini Cooper Roadster, including the 1.6-liter
turbo engine that produces 184 horsepower. Unfortunately, the Z2 will
carry BMW’s
new front-wheel-drive system as standard, so some roadster enthusiasts
may be disappointed. On the plus side, there will be a top-of-the-range
2.0-liter 4-pot turbo engine that pumps nearly 300-horsepower to all the
four wheels.
Competition
Rumors say that the future Z2 will target models like
the Mazda MX-5 Miata, but we certainly do not see the possibility of the
Mazda overtaking this roadster. The Mazda MX-5 Miata is a heavier model
with a lot less power under its bloated hood. However, the machine set
to power the Z2 is still not 100-percent known so we can’t be sure
exactly which vehicle will be set to take on the Z2.
When Can I Get One?
Rumors originally said that we would see the Z2 in the
2013 model year, but that obviously didn’t happen. With the base engine
an d chassis already produced, we can safely say that seeing the Z2 in
the 2014 or 2015 model year is reasonable. The 300-horsepower, 2.0-liter
engine may come later.
Expect the price to be around the $25,000, which is quite competitive in Bimmer terms.
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