Test drive: BMW Z4 M40i ‘Handschalter’ turns heads for the right reasons

A FEW weeks ago, I wrote about what a disappointment finally getting to drive the new MG Cyberster EV proved to be after months of anticipation.

You might recall I mentioned how test driving the new BMW Z4 Roadster later that day only served to further highlight the flaws of its more expensive all-electric two-seater rival. Well, now it’s time to finish that tale.

It’s hard to look cool driving a convertible two-seater sports car. If you’re young, people think you’re a flashy tech bro or a rich kid out for a joyride in daddy’s pride and joy. If you’re middle-aged, you’ll attract snide comments about mid-life crisis.

Maybe if you’re 60 or over, people will look at you tooling around with the top down and think “fair play” as they consider the car you’ve clearly spent the kids’ inheritance on.

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Thus, if you fancy buying one of these things and your days of free bus travel are still on the relatively long finger, you’d better make damn sure to choose a two-seater toy that is so fun to drive you’ll actually forget to worry about what other people are thinking as you blast down the road with a big dumb grin on your grid.

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As detailed in my previous road test report, the MG Cyberster’s wonky, bleepy onboard tech, underwhelming performance and impractical ‘Lambo’ doors made it a chore to drive even for one afternoon.

By contrast, when my time with the BMW Z4 M40i (from £55,350 OTR) was through, I was sorry to have to extract myself from its cosy, leather-trimmed cockpit. About the only complaint I can remember having is that the pedal box was a little cramped for my size 10 feet, meaning that the side of my left foot was occasionally catching on the bulkhead when I dipped the clutch – happily, a niggle I was able to quickly adjust to.

Indeed, this three pedal problem only came up because I was driving a Z4 equipped with the optional ‘Handschalter’ (literally ‘handshifter’ in German) pack: £5,325 gets you a six-speed manual transmission, larger M Sport brakes and blacked-out BMW Individual high gloss ‘Shadow Line’ trim, the latter providing a nice contrast to the test car’s distinctive Frozen Deep Green paint job.

A petrol-powered, manual gearbox sports convertible is an increasingly rare bird in a world becoming ever-more focused on electric vehicles and increasingly unwieldy SUVs - BMW’s own hideous looking X series being a major offender in the latter category – so getting to drive the Z4 felt like a bit of a privilege in spite the aforementioned potential cringe factors.

Perhaps by way of apology for its SUV-based crimes against vehicular design, BMW has ensured that the current Z4 is actually quite a lovely car to look at from pretty much any angle: it’s long, sleek and well proportioned, with no stupid spoilers or splitters to spoil its lines. This is a car that turns heads, but for the right reasons: the Z4 tends to attract the attention of passers-by who are clearly taken by its looks, meaning they’re too busy admiring the car itself to pay much attention to who’s behind the wheel.

Admittedly, that’s less of a problem on a chilly late-September afternoon when you need to keep the top up, but having spent some time behind the wheel I’d actually be completely comfortable driving around town with the top down: it drops in under 10 seconds with a single button press, should you be feeling bold.

On the road, the Z4 is as happy tootling through a sleepy English village at 30mph in third gear as it is stretching its V6-powered legs at 60mph-plus on an A-road – though the latter is more fun, naturally. The car has a pleasingly notchy gear shift and a positive, predictable clutch pedal which makes for comfortable driving experience even when pressing on, and the M-spec steering and suspension set-up ensure you always feel engaged and in control through the twisty bits.

Despite being capable of sprinting from 0-62mph in 4.6 seconds en route to a maximum speed of 155mph, I found that the Z4 lived up to its ‘Roadster’ credentials as a car you’ll happily cruise from A to B in (or even A to Z, thanks to its GT-style comfort levels) rather than entering the traffic light grand prix.

The Google-enhanced BMW on-board tech is typically excellent and intuitive to navigate, with proper buttons and knobs for the climate control and radio that feel pointedly retro in their pure functionality.

Call it a mid-life crisis, but I would happily own a Z4 M40i if I had the means. It’s a ‘proper car’ in an age where such machines are becoming an endangered species, and if BMW have any sense, they will be looking at ways to develop an electric version of the Z4 which preserves its ‘ultimate driving machine’ experience for future generations of car lovers.

I don’t know how they are going to emulate the extra interactive enjoyment provided by a manual gearbox in an electric vehicle - but if anyone can figure that one out, it’s surely BMW’s M division…