The BMW Z1 was a two-seat sports cabriolet concept from BMW, developed by BMW Technik GmbH on behalf of the BMW board and presented as a design study in the summer of 1986 in Munich. Four different prototypes were built during its development process, the first being a 1:1 scale model. The car was intended as an alternative product detached from BMW's then-current model range, conceived to answer a desire for "freedom on four wheels," driving enjoyment, and performance.
Aside from the traditional kidney-shaped front air intake, reminiscent of the earlier M1 coupe, the Z1 bore little visual resemblance to other BMW models. It was a compact, modern open two-seater with a wheelbase of 240 cm and an overall length of just under 4 meters in concept form. Its 2.5-liter inline six-cylinder engine was mounted behind the front axle to improve weight distribution, a layout BMW described as a front-mid-engine configuration. Drive went to the rear wheels, which had a slightly wider track than the front but shared the same 205/55 VR 15 tires as the front axle; BMW stated the car was capable of lateral acceleration exceeding 0.92 g, said to be more than any production car at the time.
The concept featured a load-bearing, corrosion-free sheet-metal structure clad in a plastic outer skin. Its most distinctive feature was a retractable door design: the doors dropped down into the sills rather than swinging open, requiring high door sills to accommodate the upper body sections, with the windows retracting electrically in tandem. This allowed easy entry and exit even in tight parking spaces, and the car could be driven with the doors lowered, though this became impractical at highway speeds. The windscreen frame doubled as a rollover structure, an airflow element, and a handhold for entering and exiting the car. Chassis components were drawn from BMW's production parts inventory. A 0 to 100 km/h acceleration time of 7 seconds was quoted for the concept, and a four-wheel-drive version was also discussed at the time.
After a year of detail development, BMW's leadership decided to put the Z1 into production. The production version, with a wheelbase extended to 245 cm and further refinements, was unveiled at the Frankfurt IAA show in 1987, with production beginning that October. Despite a high price of DM 86,000, the car was soon sold out for four years in advance, creating a grey market with inflated resale prices. Enthusiasm cooled after March 1989, when the roomier, more luxurious, and more powerful Mercedes-Benz 300 SL was launched for only 3,000 Marks more. Production capacity was later increased to 18 Z1 units per day, though this expansion came late. Production was wound down starting in November 1990, with output ending in June 1991 after around 8,000 units were built.
