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The final purpose-built sports car in the BMW line-up – styled by an Australian – will depart the local range in the coming months.
BMW is calling last drinks on its Z4 roadster in Australia – the only standalone sports car left in its line-up – as production prepares to end in Europe this month.
It will leave the German car giant with the 2 Series, 4 Series, and 8 Series as its sole remaining two-door cars – the latter pair available as convertibles – all of which are based on a sedan platform.
Production is expected to wrap up this month, March 2026, for all markets that sell the Z4, except the US – but including Australia.
It ceases assembly at a similar time to its Toyota GR Supra twin under the skin, which is built on the same production line in Austria, run by the company that also builds the G-Class 4WD for Mercedes-Benz.
The latest-generation 'G29' Z4, styled by Australian designer Calvin Luk, has not been as popular as its predecessors, clocking up just 761 sales locally since its local introduction in mid-2019.
In contrast, the prior two generations – launched in 2003 and 2009, respectively – recorded a combined 3179 deliveries over their 13 years in local showrooms, plus a further 2573 examples of the Z4's predecessor, the Z3, sold from 1997 to 2002.
Just 52 Z4s were reported as sold in Australia last year, 19 of which were the high-performance, six-cylinder M40i, and the remainder the entry-level sDrive20i four-cylinder.
Toyota reported 182 sales of the cheaper, six-cylinder-only GR Supra last year.
A Final Edition package revealed for the Z4 in Europe, with black exterior trim, red brake calipers, and available Frozen Matt Black paint, won't be offered locally.
Also skipped for the Australian market is a manual transmission option for the M40i, after a three-pedal version of the sDrive20i offered earlier in the Z4's life attracted just two sales in two years – one of which was to BMW Australia head office for media evaluation.
It is the decline of the sports-car market – for BMW as well as rival brands – that has likely kept the German car giant from commissioning a new generation of the Z4 to replace today's model.
It has left the door open for an electric sports car using technology and electronics from its latest 'Neue Klasse' iX3 and i3 models, though the market for battery-powered two-door cars is niche.
Joachim Post, BMW board member for development, told Australian media at the Munich motor show last year that an electric BMW sports car is "feasible".
"The philosophy of BMW also has been in the past to… we say baukasten, and that means that we have communal parts for different types of cars and different segments," the executive said.
"Electronic control units, for example, a battery cell, all the things are the same, but integrated into a different package. So for us at BMW, it's always core to think in that way, how we can develop a component and we can scale it in every one of our cars.
"That's why we can be so fast to [spread] this new technology [across the line-up] in two years, in 40 derivatives – that gives you the possibility to make scaling combinations to make that feasible to run, from a business case [perspective].
"We will see what's coming up for future."
BMW is also slated to end production of the 8 Series range in the coming months, with no replacement in sight.
The BMW Australia website only lists 840i six-cylinder and M8 twin-turbo V8 versions of the 8 Series Coupe two-door and Gran Coupe four-door, with the 8 Series Convertible, as well as M850i V8 versions of all body styles, removed.
Reports online differ on whether a new generation of the petrol-powered 4 Series is planned, but an electric version is widely thought to be in the works for 2028 or 2029.
The future of the 2 Series Coupe beyond the end of the decade is unclear.
Alex Misoyannis has been writing about cars since 2017, when he started his own website, Redline. He contributed for Drive in 2018, before joining CarAdvice in 2019, becoming a regular contributing journalist within the news team in 2020. Cars have played a central role throughout Alex’s life, from flicking through car magazines at a young age, to growing up around performance vehicles in a car-loving family. Highly Commended - Young Writer of the Year 2024 (Under 30) Rising Star Journalist, 2024 Winner Scoop of The Year - 2024 Winner
