BMW Z1 1989-1991

Click VOTE above the topic title to request this model for Forza Horizon.
Reply below to specify model year, body, trim, or other related info about the cars you’re requesting.

See the pinned info about car voting, where you can also find the index of links to other car model topics.


BMW Z1 1989-1991

BMW Z1




3 Likes

Cool design.

3 Likes

Yeah its very underrated

1991 BMW Z1

Country of Origin: Germany

Design Info: A two-seat convertible roadster with removable plastic body panels set onto a galvanized steel chassis, with doors that retract downward into the sills. The first concept car of the newly created BMW Technik division, the Z1 was designed first as a project to examine new technologies and innovative techniques. An integrated roll bar (around the windshield), a composite undertray which protected from corrosion, created rigidity, and acted as a diffuser, and BMW’s first multilink suspension were all new developments for the vehicle. Ulrich Bez and Harm Lagaay, both big names in Porsche engineering, were instrumental in the development and design of the Z1

Engine Info: The Z1 was powered by a 2.5 liter straight six, the M20B5, originally sourced from the E30 325i. As other M20 series engines, the M20B5 was produced with a cast iron block and aluminum head, and made 168 HP and 168 lb-ft of torque in the Z1.

Type/Competition: A 90’s sports car comparable to other sports cars of the era, including the Mazda Miata and its own successor, the Z3.

History: In 1985 BMW Technik GmbH was founded as a new research and development division for BMW to explore innovative technologies, in the vein of Kelly Johnson’s Skunk Works at Lockheed. The first major project, the Z1 was meant to explore materials science and structural engineering. In some ways similar to the Pontiac Fiero, the Z1’s construction would consist of a steel skeleton covered in plastic body panels.

The initial project caught enough attention to warrant further development, and in 1986 the project was revealed to the public, as well as the first road-going prototype. Production in earnest began in 1988 for the 1989 model year, and over the course of its production run 8,000 examples were built.

The lightweight body panels were durable and dent-resistant, such that director Ulrich Bez demonstrated by jumping onto a detached fender, showing how the panel deformed under his weight but sprung back to true immediately after. BMW suggested that customers might buy multiple sets of panels and interchange them occasionally to enjoy a different color of car.

Of course, other innovations aside, the most attention-grabbing feature of the Z1, the first BMW two-seat roadster since the 507, were the sliding doors. Similar in some respects to a different roadster of the 1950s, the American Kaiser Darrin, the Z1’s doors slid on runners into the car’s body, though unlike the Darrin downward instead of forward.

The “Z” in Z1 was short for “Zukunft”, German for “future”, and other Technik projects would use the letter, from the Z11 electric hatchback to the scissor-doored Z29, itself a lightweight sports car reminiscent of the Z1. However, the public approval of the Z1 lead to Z being a different sort of designation for the brand: A series of two-seat sports cars which remain significant and desirable over 30 years later.

Why it’s cool/unique/significant: Part technology demonstrator, part heritage sports car, the Z1 is a little weird. But it’s functional weird. Most secret project concept cars don’t get turned into production cars, even at the relatively low volume that the Z1 was built. Of course, the Z1’s innovations, especially its multilink suspension, changed the way BMW would build cars well beyond its own short run.

1 Like


BMW Z1

2 Likes

This would be a cool car to add! Would be nice if they added an L3 option to open the doors in freeroam :smiley:

1 Like

This is a very unique car, I think it would be a good edition to FH5.