The engine under that beautiful, long bonnet is a fine TwinPower Turbo straight-six unit mounted longitudinally. The 3.0-litre turbocharged motor also makes use of Double-VANOS and High Precision Injection to deliver 306 PS at 5,800 RPM and a considerable 400 Nm of torque way down from 1,300 RPM and all the way up to 5,000. However, it’s the free-revving nature of the engine that makes it such a fun companion in the whole drive experience. If you recollect, the older Z4 3.0i made 255 PS from a naturally aspirated 3.0-litre straight six; revving free and staying on the power pretty much all across the rev range. The 35i is similar, but with the turbo backing it up when necessary and adding increased shove to the whole feel of things.
The seven-speed Sport automatic transmission, as you would expect, drives the rear wheels and I actually found it holding on to the gears a bit longer than other family-oriented Bimmers. That allows for good acceleration and sprightly performance. However, in traffic, I found myself not really able to feather the throttle as the response wasn’t as precise as I expected. However, once on the open road, the Z4 can be let loose to run wild and free.
Put your foot down and the engine doesn’t think twice before unleashing all it holds within. The prop shaft happily greets the rear axle with buckets of twist and off we go! 0-100 km/h came up in 6.6 seconds and it went on to just over 230 km/h before running out of road. The 250 km/h limited top whack is there for the taking, without a doubt. The soundtrack accompanying this brisk gain of pace is having your cake and eating it too. The snarl from the exhaust forces a quick smile, even a smirk, and that kick-in-the-pants feeling is alive and, well, kicking. Then there’s that moment you lift off. You’re still greeted with what sounds like the delicate rumble of distant thunder.
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