There has been a brief period in time when James Bond, the famous UK spy didn’t drive an Aston Martin anymore but instead switched to BMW for transportation, In Tomorrow Never Dies he got behind the wheel of a large, four-door BMW 750iL while in Goldeneye he did drive an Aston Martin DB5 briefly but the ‘gadget loaded car in this instance was a BMW Z3, still, the best was yet to come, in The World is not enough he drove an absolutely stunning BMW Z8, and that’s the car we’re discussing here.
Well, not really the screen used Bond BMW Z8, that would be a problem as the car got cut in half in the movie, but a similar-looking 2002 model currently listed at auction on BringATrailer, at the time of writing, with six days left, the bids have gone up to $135,000, which isn’t bad as the original MSRP back in the early 2000s was $128,000 already, making this the most expensive car from BMW at the time, but I’m sure the bids will continue to rise as previous sales of BMW Z8 went above the $200,000 mark, one specific Z8 even sold for as much as $296,000 in August 2021.
The BMW Z8 was actually the production version of the Z07 concept car unveiled in 1997 at the Tokyo Auto Salon, as an homage to the classic BMW 507 Roadster built between 1956 and 1959, a car that has become extremely valuable today, especially with celebrity ownership on some of these, none other than Elvis Presley owned a BMW 507, it is believed there are just 202 BMW 507 in the world today, a far cry from the number made of the Z8 between 2000 and 2003.
In 1998 BMW also presented the Z07 concept as a coupe, but that one didn’t get developed further, instead, BMW focussed on the Z8, internal code E52, as a high-end production roadster, available with a removable hardtop, but still a two-seater convertible, just like the 507 from the Fifties, with a little over 5,700 units leaving the BMW factory between 2000 and 2003, but that wasn’t the end for the Z8, Alpina took over from 2003 calling it the Alpina Roadster V8, actually the last BMW 28 left the assembly line in November 2002.
This makes this specific, Titanium Silver Metallic 2002 model, currently listed on BringATrailer, a car from the final production year, with just 24,000 miles on the clock, this 4.9-Liter V8 beauty comes with a 6-speed manual gearbox delivering about 400 hp to the rear wheels only, a car that requires some respect when driving in the rain with those massive 295/30 Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires on the rear wheels, which are custom 20-inch Style 101 Multi-spoke wheels, the car does come with the original wheels the seller states.
This 2002 BMW Z8 comes complete with the color-matched hardtop, a special stand to keep said hardtop safe in your garage, and even a cover to keep the dust off, other than that this specific Z8 has received a few non-factory modifications, like adjustable H&R sway bars, a Performance Package front strut bar, a UUC short-shift kit, an Audiovox MediaBridge, and Eisenmann mufflers … I’m sure that big V8 rumbles even louder now.
The seller does mention the front bumper has been resprayed in the correct Titanium Silver Metallic (354) shade, but that was done to close up the holes the previous seller had drilled in the bumper to fit a license plate, after that the entire car was wrapped in XPEL PPF, Paint Protection Film so this modern-day classic’s paint will remain in pristine condition for years to come.
This is my personal opinion, but think the BMW Z8 is the most beautiful, sensual looking modern BMW, sure she’s nearly 20 years old now, but you can hardly tell, this is a virtually timeless design, a classic look, inspired by a car from the Fifties, resurrected in the 2000s, but still amazing looking today. There are some impressive cars from BMW in their 2021 lineup, and some are even more expensive than this 20-year old topless beauty … but for me, none of the ‘new’ BMW even come close to the Z8, not now, not ever.
