As I was leaving work I saw a brand new Silver Gray M Roadster freshly inspected. I thought to myself being a self admitted car nut I have to drive this car. First of all I am not a big fan of convertibles nor the Z4. However BMW has done a good job of cleaning up the car and it does look good IMO and even better in the M trim.

As usual BMW has done a great job with the interior, this car has the Carbon Leather option which I think is similar to the JCW Leather dash. Nice and subtle yet it distinguishes it from the run of the mill Z4's. The steering wheel is perfect nice and thick with thumb grips. If I could put this on the S believe me it would be installed........I have to do some research. I've heard that some European magazines complained about it saying that it was "too thick" for their hands..........I guess they have small hands and you know what they say about small hands

I started her up and the tach lights lit up as usual. I drove the car for a few miles watching the tach lights disappear as the car warmed up. Finally the weather was awesome in Norcal so I dropped the top and enjoyed the ride. In typical BMW fashion the shifts were short and precise.......none of the SMG crap for me . The inline six is pure music under acceleration and who needs the stereo.......however this new system is now THX Certified.

Like the MINI this car goes where you point and the power to weight ratio on this car is awesome......I wish the MCS was like this. Come out of a corner and drop the hammer this car is amazing bordering on scary. In the right hands this car can be magic in the wrong hands.........ala Swedish deadbeat millionaire...........deadly.

Funny thing as I came to a stoplight a guy cruising along in a brand new boxter S literally came to a stop in the middle of the intersection just trying to get a better look. Light turned green and off I went.

If the roadster is this good the M Coupe is going to be awesome.......I guess you can say an M6 at half the cost. To my client who ordered his M Coupe last week...........I am soooooooooooooooooo jealous. You are going to have one hell of a car!

 

Price point, please?

 

I'll let him get specific, but for now, I wanna say it starts in the mid-$50k range.

 

A fully loaded M Roadster comes out at a $61K MSRP including the Gas Guzzler tax. The M Coupe around $63K however thats with a premium on the car.

Thinking about getting one?

 

No, but I do admire them! Too rich for my blood.

 

I think I'd rather have a Porsche Cayman S

 

I wish BMW had brought in the M variants of the Z4 at a cheaper pricepoint. This doesn't bode well for the next generation M3. I would have to speculate it will start around $55-60K and go up to nearly $70, ouch!

 

Good review I saw several at the BMW last week while getting serviced, showed the wife and she hated it. Front end way too big. Price was $60K loaded ...

The M Roadster IS a few tenths faster than the Boxster S in 0-60. There are several comparison tests out but the bottom line there was the P cars was a real sports car through the corners (you can't beat the mid-engined design) and basically the BIMMER has no soul (so to speak). Being a 0.2 secs quicker you could never notice it.

A Cayman is a totally different animal. It would eat the M roadster or coupe alive seeing how the RIng times are right on the heels of the 911S driven by the factory drivers. I've read that the Cayman is so hot that its pulling 911 drivers DOWN because whats the point of paying an extra $20K? Then again no point in dreaming of things unattainable

 

My mom has a Z4, so I can play with that when I visit her...that's fine by me!

 

You get all the nice toys

 

Its OK. I has that "pontiac" looks to me. Thanks Chris Bangle for ruining another great BMW car..

 

Speaking of Pontiacs... How sad it is when the Solstice and Pontiac Sky roadsters look much better than the BMW Z4 at a fraction of the cost?

Heck I can even order a Mallett edition Pontiac Solstice or Saturn Sky roadster, fitted with a 6.0L LS2 Corvette sourced V8 churning out 400HP and 400 pounds feet of torque for around $40K.

 

^^ yeh, that new sky looks pretty good...

But the M Roadster is in a class of its own. it's a car you'll probably keep
for a long time.... like a mcs.

 

And why would that be said? I guess we all should be proud of it, finally some decent looking American cars

 

I sat in the Saturn Sky red line at the new york auto show..... what a disappointment. I had high expectations from the pictures but it was a huge let down. There is no comparison between the bmw and the sky or solstice. :(

 

I have to admit I like the Boxster S, the 911, the M anything...... I just can't justify the cost right now..... I drive my Mini all the time and when it gets a chip or starts to look a little old I think character on the others I think money lost......( sold my last P car years ago) those cars 911s, etc, have to stand very tall to be "right" but I like our "pitbulls" they seem to get well more "character" Okay...... I'll admit it I'm in denial.....I would love to have any of those machines.... still can't justify it now.... I did read the review/comparison and I think while I would choose the "P" car they did a nice job on the M roadster.... I am no fan of Chris Bangle either....