Modern Classic: 1995 BMW Z3
BMW introduced the Z3 convertible in 1995 with its long bonnet and small boot. Photos: BMW
When the BMW Z3 came out in late 1995 I was obsessed with it; the long bonnet, low slung styling and futuristic front lights with its little boot (big enough for a lunch box) and tiny rear lights, made it very endearing for some.
And thanks to it being the key car of the Bond movie GoldenEye before its release, the Z3 chalked up 15,000 advance orders.
The Bond car had a few features that didn’t make it through to production models including stinger missiles (hidden between the headlights), an emergency parachute braking system, passenger ejector seat, self destructor system, and a radar scanning systems. Who knows, in our current world, these may be standard features on 2025 BMW models!
The BMW Z3 starred in the Bond film, GoldenEye, sparking pre-orders. Photo: IMDb
For me too the Z3 was one of the first luxury sports cars that I began to think I may actually own. Several of my colleagues at my first company out of university had them. Then my boss got one, a sexy blue 1.9-litre that I got to drive one.
Then her GM offered me his grey one “cheaply” when he got an overseas assignment. I made the mistake of test driving, taking the roof off on a sunny day and then the bug bit hard. Although I didn’t end up securing it (car purchases needed a bank balance and that I did not have) made me keen on BMWs and soon I would own a second-hand BMW 318i.
To be honest, the first Z3 was a miss mash of BMW parts. It had the E36 3 Series platform and the rear semi-trailing arm suspension of the previous E30 3 Series. Work on the roadster started in 1991 and first videos went public in June 1995, with official production kicking off in September 1995. It would be joined by a whacky Batman-style coupe in 1998.
The BMW Z3 convertible was joined by the coupe (left).
The Z3 became the first Beemer to be manufactured outside Germany with production being in Greer, South California. First models had the 1.8-litre “poser” 85kW with a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic and a slightly perkier 103kW 1.9-litre (which also featured in the BMW 318is at the time).
An in-line 2.8-litre six with 141kW also debuted which gave the Z3 some shove and then a hotter up 179kW “M” version. In 1999 a 110kW in-line six was also added.
The mid-cycle facelift in 1999 saw some minor styling changes but also the 2-litre engine going to 2.2 litres (125kW) and the 2.8-litre going to 3-litres (170kW). The base 1.8-litre was dropped and 1.9-litre with 87kW engine became the starter. The M model jumped to a massive (at the time) 235kW, but interestingly didn’t get the cosmetic facelift changes of the other models.
The Z3M, especially in coupe form, was a mean car. It featured a wider rear track, larger brakes and a limited slip differential. It also got “Roadstar” wheels and quad exhausts. Inside it got extra gauges in the centre console measuring volts and oil capacity. Inside it had special M seats. A low kilometre one of these has collectable status today.
In 1999, BMW launched the Z3 M V12 (above) with special sports seats.
The Z3 phased out in 2002 for the incoming Z4. The Z4 with its flame-like surfaces never hit the sweet spot for me like the Z3. The Z3 ushered in a new era for BMW of lightweight fun, which Mazda captured in 1989 (and still does today) with the MX-5.
BMW Z3’s do appear on TradeMe auctions in New Zealand with currently more than 10 examples. All are mostly imports priced around $5000 although I did spot a New Zealand-new example.
Most Z3’s were Sunday drives and will be well looked after. Although look out for scrappier multi-owner examples and go for an original 2.8-litre, one of the facelift 3.0 models. Or an M if you can find one!
