1990 BMW Z1 Roadster

In 1985, upper management at BMW tasked BMW Technik GmbH to build a two-seat sports roadster. This roadster, the Z1, was the first produced to be developed by BMW Technik GmbH, with hopes of revitalizing the company image as well as demonstrating that BMW was a leader in innovation.

Harm Lagaay was hired by BMW from Ford of Europe as design chief to work alongside Ulrich Bez, head of the new division. After just one year, a fully operational prototype had been developed. Must of the vehicle's componentry was sourced from the BMW 3-Series, including its engine, interior, drivetrain, and front suspension. The engine was placed in the front, and set far towards the center of the car in hopes of achieving a near-perfect weight distribution. The rear suspension foreshadowed the multi-link design that was to appear on the next-generation 3-Series. It featured a unique ground-effect system and a body with electromechanical doors that dropped into the sills for easy entrance and exit by simply touching a button. The entire steel inner structure was coated with zinc to resist corrosion. The base unit construction was covered with demountable injection-moulded thermoplastic body panels that were also capable of resisting impacts of 5 mph. Four colors were available. The panels, which were recyclable, could be interchanged if the owner desired to change the color of their car.

BMW introduced the production version at the 1987 Frankfurt Auto Show with the intention of building 5,000 units no a special production line in its Munich facility. In 1988, production began slowly, with just 58 examples built that year. Customer deliveries did not begin until March of 1989. In the end, BMW built 8,000 Z1s, plus 12 pre-production examples, by the time production ceased in the summer of 1991.

This particular example was ordered new by BMW of Milano, Italy, and was finished in Toprot over a two-tone gray and camouflage interior. It was given the optional lightweight alloy wheels, emergency spare tire and the radio delete option. It left the BMW factory in February of 1990 and was delivered to the showroom where it stayed for more than two decades.

The current caretaker is the car's second owner.

By Daniel Vaughan | Nov 2016