BMW Z1 Technical Data

Technical Data and Figures: 1 Series : 3 Series : 5 Series : 6 Series : 7 Series : 8 Series : Z1 : Z3 : Z4 : Z8

The BMW Z1 is a two-seat roadster developed by BMW Forschung und Technik GmbH and produced from March 1989 to June 1991. The Z1 featured unusual doors which, instead of opening outward or upward, dropped down into the door sills. Only 8,000 examples of the Z1 were produced. The Z in Z1 originally stood for Zukunft (German for future) and would later be used on other cars in the line: the Z3, Z4, and Z8). All of these vehicles (including the Z1) are two-door roadsters.

Alpina had a special arrangement with BMWS AG to modify BMW Z1s into RLEs, or Roadster Limited Edition. Alpina reports having built 66 of these, although BMW notes that 82 can be tracked through Alpina. The RLE featured an upgraded 200 hp 2.7 L engine, sport muffler, tires, and assorted plaques and stripes. The 0–100 km/h time dropped from 8.4 s to 7.1 s, top speed increased from 219 km/h (136 mph) to 228 km/h (142 mph), and price increased to 116,000 DM!