2006 BMW Z4 3.0si Coupe - Car and Driver
BMW's new Z4 3. 0si coupe is certainly that, grabbing your attention with a sloping, double-bubble roof that tapers to the rear like a teardrop in the wind. It looks primed for speed in a way that the awkward bread-van that was the old Z3 coupe never was. The darling of the 2005 Frankfurt auto show, BMW's 2-seat Z4 coupe went into production in May 2006. There are two flavors, the 330-hp M and the 255-hp 3. 0si. The latter is what we concern ourselves with here. Unlike Porsche with its Cayman and Boxster twins, BMW does not charge more for its Z4 coupe than its convertible. Prices for the 3. 0si coupe start at $40,795, a $2000 savings over the Z4 3. 0si ragtop and almost $10,000 less than the base Porsche Cayman. Raise the large rear hatch to access the cargo compartment and its 12 cubic feet of storage space (there's 10 cubic feet under a retractable cargo cover). Under the 3. 0si's immense hood is BMW's familiar N52 inline-six, of 2996cc displacement, variable intake valve lift, and variable intake and exhaust valve timing. The engine makes incredibly smooth power through a slick-shifting six-speed manual or a six-speed automatic. We expected our 3080-pound Z4 coupe's broad torque band and shorter final-drive ratio to equal quick acceleration, but our 3. 0si manual ran to 60 mph in 5. 5 seconds and hit the quarter-mile in 14. 0 seconds at 101 mph, no quicker than a 3. 0si. Source: www.caranddriver.com
