The E89 was the first BMW automobile to be completely designed by two female designers, Juliane Blasi (exterior) and Nadya Arnaout, in 2006. The Z4 (E89) was officially announced on 13 December 2008 and was unveiled at the 2009 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, alongside the MINI Convertible. The Z4 (E89) was then launched in markets in May 2009.
A total of €130 million was spent from 2007 to 2009 in expansion of the Regensburg plant for production of the Z4 (E89). The E89 was produced in the BMW's Regensburg plant alongside the E93 3 Series convertible, making it the third Z series car to be manufactured in Germany since the Z1 and Z8.
The E89 Z4 was the first Z Series model to use a retractable hardtop roof, which meant there were no longer separate roadster and coupé versions of the car. There was no Z4 M model for the E89 generation. The E89 Z4 was offered with the base level sDrive or optional M Sport trim. An optional Design Pure Impulse package was also offered. The 2013 facelift introduced the Design Pure Traction and Pure Fusion Design packages.
The E89 Z4 came standard with BMW EfficientDynamics technologies, such as regenerative braking and electric power steering. Models also feature an electric parking brake, engine start-stop system, directional headlights, and a driving mode selector with Comfort, Sport, and Sport+ modes.
Available transmissions included 6-speed manual, 6-speed automatic, 8-speed automatic, and 7-speed dual-clutch options. The Z4 sDrive35is was only available with a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission (DCT) in the M Sport trim. This model uses an upgraded version of the N54 engine shared with the 1 Series M Coupé. Since the summer of 2013, all Z4 models met Euro 6 (EU6) exhaust emission standards. No diesel or all-wheel drive (xDrive) models were offered for the E89 Z4.
The Zagato Coupé was a concept car based on the Z4 (E89) developed in collaboration with Italian design house Zagato. It was unveiled at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este on 25 May 2012. The Zagato Roadster was the roadster version of the Zagato Coupé and was introduced at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance on 19 August 2012.
In 2011, the six-cylinder sDrive23i and sDrive30i models were replaced by turbocharged four-cylinder sDrive20i and sDrive28i models. For the US market, only the sDrive28i was launched. In 2012, the roof mechanism could be operated at speeds up to 40 km/h (25 mph). The Z4 facelift models were introduced in March 2013, bringing redesigned headlights, interior changes, and the introduction of the sDrive18i model.
The E89 Z4 comes with electronic stability control, cornering brake control, emergency brake assist, rollover hoops, and airbags for the driver and passenger. The 2015 Z4 18i received three stars overall in its Euro NCAP test.
The BMW Z4 (E89) received the 2009 International Design Excellence Award (IDEA), the 2009 Eyes on Design Award for best production vehicle, the 2009 Red Dot Design Award, and the Scottish Drop Top of the Year 2009.
The BMW Z4 GT3 was an FIA GT3-specification model available to private teams. It is powered by the P65B44 V8 engine based on the production engine used in the E92 M3. The Z4 GT3 won the Dubai 24 Hour GT3 endurance event in its 2010 debut season and finished second at the 2011 24 Hours of Spa event by the Need For Speed Team Schubert. It achieved several victories in the FIA GT3 Championship and Blancpain Endurance Series. In the 2011 Super GT season, Nobuteru Taniguchi and Taku Bamba won the GT300 class in a Z4 GT3. Tatsuya Kataoka and Nobuteru Taniguchi repeated this in 2014. In 2013, the Z4 GT3 finished second at the 24 Hours of Nürburgring. In 2015, the Z4 GT3 finished first at the 2015 24 Hours of Spa. In 2016, the Z4 GT3 was replaced by the M6 GT3.
The BMW Z4 GTE competed in the GT class of the 2013 American Le Mans Series, the GT Le Mans class of the 2014-2015 United SportsCar Championship and the 2014-2015 European Le Mans Series. It is also powered by the P65B44 V8 engine. Turner Motorsport won the inaugural 2014 Tudor United SportsCar GT-Daytona Championship with an altered version of the Z4 GT3.
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