August 17 is going to be a big day for BMW. Quite frankly, it’s also a big day for the rest of us because the car that we’ve all been waiting years to be unveiled may finally make its debut, at least judging by the look of the teaser photo that Bimmer unveiled in its Facebook page over the weekend. We don’t see much of it, but it is visible enough that we can see the model being a roadster of some sort. It might be a roofless version of the 8 Series. It might even be a new roadster iteration for the i8, possibly one with a Targa roof. We’re not hitching our bets on either model, though, because if this model is what we expect it to be, this is the BMW Z4 Concept.

We’re not jumping for joy this early, though, because BMW is known for its last-second swerves. But if you’ve been following news reports about the German automaker’s joint sports car development with Toyota, the old puzzle pieces are coming together to complete a rather interesting picture. For one, the size and shape of the sports car fit into what we believe the Z4 Concept is going to look like. Then there’s the scheduled debut, which has been set for August 17. That date also happens to be a few days before the 2017 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, the event that’s been reported as the stage where the new Z4 Concept will be unveiled. There’s only a little over two weeks to go, so either way, we won’t have to wait too long to find out what’s sitting in the shadows.

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It’s been a long time coming

It’s hard to believe that the current partnership between Toyota and BMW actually started in 2013. It’s been four years and yet we haven’t seen anything concrete come out of the collaboration. If the BMW Z4 Concept is going to make its debut at Pebble Beach, it would be the first time we see anything of great significance that’s related from the partnership. That’s enough reason to get excited about Pebble Beach. BMW also has a history of bringing some incredible machines at the event, so it wouldn’t be shocking to see the concept finally break cover there.

As far as the concept itself is concerned, I fully expect it to be as close to production-ready as any of the concepts we’ve seen this year. BMW, with Toyota’s help, has worked years developing its own sports car opposite Toyota’s returning Supra model, so at this point, it’s hard to imagine the German automaker from slow-rolling the production of the sports car. If anything, I think that the production version of the Z4 is already ready, and BMW is just waiting for the right time (or event) to showcase the car.

Regardless of when that’s going to be, some important details about the Z4 have been revealed, including the likelihood of the sports car getting a hybrid version on top of the gas-powered engine variants that we expect it to carry. Likewise, recent spy photos have revealed that the sports car will receive a long, sloping hood with a lowered nose, a bigger twin-kidney front filled, and headlights that are based on the company’s own recent aesthetic updates.

Give it a few more weeks and we’re finally going to get a good look at the BMW Z4 Concept, that is if this is the car that Bimmer is planning to unveil at the 2017 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. My one’s on it happening, but if it ends up being something else entirely, chalk that up again to another swerve from the German automaker.

References

Read our speculative review on the 2018 BMW Z4

Read our full review of the 2014 BMW Z4