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The 2009 BMW Z4 marks the second generation of the Z4 name and third of this recent line of two-seat roadsters James Bond debuted in his 1996 Z3. The 2009 Z4 is a totally new car, apart from the lower output of the two engines and a few miscellaneous pieces.The 2009 Z4 sports a retractable hard top, a departure from any previous two-seat BMW. The retractable hard top replaces the roadster and coupe versions of previous-generation (pre-2009) Z4 models with one car. The hard top retracts for the same open-air driving of a convertible, but closes with the press of a button to provide the advantages of better security, rigidity, rearward visibility, quiet and weather control of a coupe. The Z4 offers the driving character you expect from BMW and it will be familiar to any fan of the marquee. As with other cars getting bigger and laden with more luxury and features, the higher-optioned Z4s tend to feel more like Grand Touring machines than sports cars. In terms of pure sports car, we liked the sDrive30i with sport package. The performance and feel of balanced precision is there in every Z4, and the sDrive35i with dual-clutch gearbox gets close to the previous M Roadster as a track day tool. While some will choose a Z4 based solely on the badge and others solely on style, they will over time learn the real reasons, both objective and emotional, behind the car and why they want to keep it. Others will appreciate the performance and technology without regard to style, and yet others will shop merely because they've been waiting for a folding hardtop roadster from Munich. BMW accurately point out that the Z4 sDrive35i is about the same size and offers performance close to the Z8 of early this century, and it does so for about half the price. The Z4 is also far more practical, and yes, there is such a thing as a practical roadster. The Z4 competes primarily with the Audi TT, Mercedes-Benz SLK and Porsche Boxster; secondary consideration may go to the Nissan 350Z roadster, Infiniti G37, or Lotus Elise relative to your position on the luxury-sports continuum. The 2009 Z4 is offered in two models, the sDrive30i and sDrive35i. In current BMW nomenclature, sDrive refers to rear-wheel drive. However, there are no xDrive (all-wheel-drive) Z4s and no M model has been announced.
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