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The BMW Z4 is a rear-wheel drive sports car that began its life back in 2002 before receiving its second generation in 2008. It is offered in both coupe and roadster forms. The current model Z4 is powered by a choice of two engines. The first is a 3.0L I-6 producing 255hp and 220 lb-ft of torque, while the second is a 3.0L twin turbo I-6 producing 300hp and 300 lb-ft of torque. These engines are mated to a six-speed manual, a six-speed automatic, or a seven-speed automatic transmission. 2009 BMW Z4 by AC Schnitzer
  The Z4 is BMW’s newest roadster, and the German tuner AC Schnitzer have just released the first wheel and tire combination for the future bimmer. The tuners are currently working on performance enhancements, suspension set-ups, interior accessories and aero parts. Press release after the jump. Full story Tuned 2010 BMW Z4
 It didn’t take long, did it? We present to you the first tuned version of the 2010 BMW Z4 Roadster! The car we spotted features beautiful plus sized Hartge wheels and pair of carbon fiber front splitters at the extremes of the front bumper that accentuate the new bimmers stretched front end. 2009 BMW Z4 U.S. pricing announced
BMW USA today announced pricing on the 2009 Z4: the base version Z4 sDrive30i has a base price of $46,575, while the sDrive35i starts at $51,650. Of course that’s not the whole story. Anyone who’s ever bought a BMW knows the option list can be long, complicated, and most of all, expensive. So we have the full breakdown after the jump. Both models are using the same 3.0-liter inline-six cylinder engine. The sDrive30i has 255 hp, and the sDrive35i uses twin-turbos (one turbo designated for three cylinders each) to upgrade to 300 hp. All variants of the new BMW Z4 come as standard with a 6-speed manual gearbox. Full story
BMW Z4, ’An Expression of Joy’
The new 2009 BMW Z4 is about to hit the showroom, so for those of you who missed the Z4 promotional stunt, here is how Robin Rhode decided to showcases the new BMW Z4...as a giant paint brush. The German automaker also released an iPhone app that lets you be the artist.
BMW cancels Z4M
We are big fans of BMW’s superfast Z4 M roadster, but we must have been the only ones. While BMW is scaling back on engine size for the M3 and M5, plans for an M version of the new Z4 have been killed off. According to a BMW spokesman, "Given the current economic crisis there is no business case for a full-on M version of the Z4." He said that BMW will offer a M Sport package that will include a body kit, large alloy wheels, tuned suspension and an M-branded steering wheel. The twin-turbo 3.0-liter inline six engine’s output can also be upgraded to from 300 to 326 hp. That’s not too bad considering the first generation Z4 M’s engine made 338 hp.
Z4 App for iPhone and iPod touch
As part of their latest marketing campaign, the programmers at BMW have released an interactive application designed specifically for the iPhone and iPod Touch promoting their new Z4 roadster. The BMW will compete with future Porsche Boxsters and Mercedes-Benz SLK convertibles. The app is inspired by BMW’s “An Expression of Joy” campaign and lets you build a Z4 and then drive around on a blank canvas using the Z4’s tires as paintbrushes. There is also a section that elaborates on the history of BMW’s art cars of the past. The application is available to download on iTunes for free.
BMW Z4 video from Geneva
We didn’t have our full production team in Geneva to be able to do an in-depth video on the new BMW Z4 roadster, so we’ll let BMW do it for us. Yes, this is a little promotion heavy, but it does actually have some good info for BMW fans.
New BMW Z4 caught in U.S.
Looks like this BMW Z4 wanted to go and find its family roots. This car was caught near BMW’s Spartanburg, South Carolina, which was the home of the first generation Z4. It doesn’t make much sense for this car to have its BMW badged masked. The car has already premiered, and it should be in showrooms by May. Either way, it’s nice to see the Z4 on U.S. soil.
BMW Z4 with 550hp M5 engine
There’s still some fun to be had in the old BMW Z4. German tuner Hartge used the good ’ol American tradition of stuffing little cars with engines of their big brothers and transplanted the BMW M5’s V10 into a Z4.  If that wasn’t enough, Hartge upgraded the 5.0-liter engine from 507 hp to 550 hp. That’s not bad considering the M Roadster comes with 330 hp. All this extra power comes at a price, about $137,700 at current rates.
Video: BMW Z4 prototyping
BMW released a behind the scenes video of the development of the new Z4 Roadster. If you’ve brushed up on your German lately, then you might get more out of this video. For the rest of us, there are a few subtitles and some good insight on how BMW tests its cars.
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