yes,it wasdevelopedtogetherwiththeToyotaSupra,essentiallybeingtheBoxstertoits
Cayman,sotospeak,buttheyaren’tthatclose.TheZ4bringsforwarda lotofwhatBMW
havelearnedoverthepastfewyearsandit showsinthewayit drives.
Theinteriorispackedwithverymodernusableequipmentthatcanandwillbeusedevery
day,includingthelikesofa USBportandinductivewirelesscharginginthecentreconsole,
aswellasa USBType-Cportunderthearm-rest.High-qualitytrim,premiumupholstery,
contraststitching,anda mixoflightweighttrimelementsshowthatwhileitssolid,premium
feelwasa priority,itsweightwashigherupthere.Theuseofbuttonsandknobsonthecentre
consolespeaksvolumesabouttheirpracticality.Touchcontrolsmaybetrending,buttheir
easeofusedoesn’tmakea caseforitself.Thatsaid,thereisa centretouchscreenwhichgives
easyaccesstoa slewofvehiclefunctions,includingBluetoothconnectivity,telephony,
navigation,andmedia.Thespeakerset-upalsomakesitselffelt.Thepairingoffronttweeters,
sideandrearloudspeakersmakesforsurround-soundaudioperformance,topupordown.
Amongthemanyelementsthatcaughtmyeyewerealsoa fewwhichalsotriggeredwide
smiles.Chiefamongthosewasthe
Msteeringwheel,vastlysimilarto
theoneintheM5withitschunky
sizeandplushfeel.The
proportionsoftheZ4,including
itslongbonnetwithpowerbulges,
makeit easytojudgeitsposition
ontheroad.Thecabinhasmore
roomthanearlierandwhilethere
arespecificstoragespacesfor
phones,keys,andcups,the
narrowdoor-pocketsand
concealedstorageunderthearm-
restcanonlyholdsomuch.The
onlysaviouristhelittleshelf
behindtheseats—remember,thereareonlytwo—andthecargonettokeeplargerobjects,suchaswater
bottlesandsmallbags,inplace.The281-litrebootisalsoenoughfora few
largerbags,but,let’sbehonest,thisisn’tthecarforweekendgetawayfor
two,unlessyouhaveyourbutlerfollowyouinyourfour-doorchoiceofride
witha voluminousboot.
That’snotwhattheZ4isfor.Thedriverappealliesinitsstylingandin
itsspiriteddrivingdynamics.Itisa BMWsportscarand,atRs78.9lakh
plustax,it ismeanttotakeonlittlebehemothssuchasthePorsche 718
BoxsterandMercedes-AMGSLChead-onandkeepthepunchesrolling.
Yet,that’snotexactlyhowit goesaboutitsbusiness.WheretheBoxster’s
excitementisturneduptoSpringBreaklevels,theZ4ismorecurtains-
drawnandcandle-lightinComfort,anda frivolousrompinSport.Itcando
both,butit hasa differentairaboutitself.
TheheartofthematteristhesignatureBMWstraight-sixpetrolengine,Road Test | BMW Z4 M40i
90 CAR INDIA^ August 2019 http://www.carindia.in