BMW left a hole in its line up with the new Z4. The car is not too big, but it does put a wide enough gap between it and its predecessor, the Z3, to take it out of direct competition with like the small, lightweight Mazda MX-5. Not likely to leave a market wide open for other companies, BMW is rumored to be working on a Z2 model for featherweight fun.
The Z2 will be built on a modified Z4 platform, and unlike its bigger brother will only be offered with a choice of four cylinders engines with a maximum capacity of two liters. The base version will be a 1.8-liter with 150 hp, while a “M” version could be a turbocharged car with an output of around 300 hp. Like previously reported, a hybrid version is also in the works and a M version might also be a possibility.
The Z2 will be offered with BMW’s latest technologies, including active steering, dual clutch gearbox and active suspension. The price will be somewhere around the $30k area and the official debut will be made at the end of 2010, with sales to begin in 2011.
