Wednesday, July 15, 2009

BMW Z1 was ahead of its time and still not successful then, but desirable today

When BMW started to build the Z1, it was quite a revolutionary car. Initially thought as a engineering showcase, BMW actually decided to manufacture the car and built 8'000 of them between 1989 and 1991.
The car showed a series of innovations:
The Z1 had a front-mid-engine, was kept together by a stainless steel chassis, used many fiberglass components and was said to be easy to repair. The doors slided into the lower side walls and disappeared so that you could drive very "open". An advanced aerodynamics and the intelligent roof construction seen already on the E30 convertible complete the picture.
The engine came directly from the 325i, good performance and easy maintenance come with it. The car was delivered in only four different colors initially: Red, yellow, green and black. Two other colors were added over time.
The car was actually quite heavy with 1'250 kg and the engine delivered 170 HP. With this performance was okay, but not mind boggling.
So why should you care about this car today? It's a "youngtimer" and will be an "oldtimer" in about 10 years. Given it has only been built in a small quantity it's quite rare. It's design is very special and head turning. It is fairly easy to maintain and own. Prices are in the range of 25'000 to 35'000 Euro for a good one, mileage is under 75'000 km for most cars. There's enough choice today. It probably will hold its value quite well and it will always be fun to drive. So, here's a future classic that is affordable today and can be maintained without huge financial means. Go for it if you like it!

No comments: