By Classic Yorkshire correspondent Tony Lofthouse
When we moved to our current home on the outskirts of Bradford twenty-odd years ago I was intrigued by a neighbour’s rather odd looking German motor. It was a BMW Z3 M Coupe.
It’s fair to say this European coupe was given a bumpy start to life by the motoring press when it arrived from Bavaria in 1998.
Based on BMW’s Z3 Roadster of the day, its shooting brake styling with its fixed roof was a bold departure for the company.
Its concept consciously reflected one of BMW’s great sports cars from the thirties, the 328 Mille Miglia.
The new Coupe had an unusual design, partly down to its many shared parts with the Roadster, and for a time it’s very production was in doubt.
When the Coupe model arrived in showrooms it sadly attracted some embarrassing nicknames such as ‘clown shoe’ and ‘ugly duckling’, as well as comparisons drawn to the look of a bread van and a hearse!
The BMW board’s nervousness about the car’s merits seemed justified with stuttering early sales.
But, was this deserved? Its supporters, and there is a growing band today, loved its design, compact styling, flowing lines with its flared rear arches, four-pipes exhaust, sweet five-speed manual gearbox and its punchy performance.
Inside, the cabin offered plush leather trim, sporty seating, chrome-ringed gauges and good driving visibility.
When the Z3 M Coupe arrived in 1998 it sported a 3.2 litre BMW S50 straight-six engine giving 317 bhp. By 2001 the car got an upgrade with a then new 3.2L S54 engine producing 321 bhp and reaching 0 to 60 in 5.4 seconds.
The US launch involved a less powerful S52 unit to meet their more stringent emission standards.
In Europe the newer engine proved gutsy and reliable and the S54 success would see it stay in production until 2006.
Whilst critics had their say about the Coupe’s looks you couldn’t question its muscular performance, though some picked up on the car being a bit softly sprung at the rear.
Between 1998 and 2002 just 6,291 Z3 M Coupes were produced worldwide with 990 making it to the UK.
Today, there are less than 500 still on our roads, yet the appeal of owning one of these M-powered rarities seems to be quickly pushing up second-hand prices.
Checking through motoring websites, prices range from £20,000 for an early high mileage S50 engine model to £45,000 for a low mileage 2001 S54 example. The latter are rarer with only 1,112 made for all markets.
There is no doubt this is a car that divides opinions and indeed my indifference to the early model I first saw has given way to some admiration for this sporty and pacy German cruiser.
Maybe this clown could yet have the last laugh!