BMW will unveil the all-new Z4 roadster at the Detroit Auto Show next month, but there’s no need to wait for the show in Motown to see the car in non-spyshot form, as all the Euro-spec details were officially released when the clock struck midnight in Munich. We’re into the new bodywork, which is pretty voluptuous compared to the preceding model, with a hint of 507 lineage evident in the car’s lines. Follow the jump for the rest of the skinny.
Up front, wide double-kidney grilles establish an aggressive face. Out back, the tail is cleaner and more elegant than the current car’s, featuring simpler, wraparound taillamps with attractive lighting effects. The biggest change of all, of course, can be found in the roofline. As was the case in the 3 Series, the soft top has been retired in favor of a retractable metal roof. There’s a subtle “double-bubble” effect evident when it’s in place, and its use reportedly improves outward visibility with the top up. 20 seconds is how long you need to wait for it to raise or stow.

European models have three engine selections, and the Z4 employs BMW’s ridiculous new naming scheme, as first seen on the X6. The Z4 sDrive23i is probably Euro-only, powered by a 2.5L inline-6 making 204 horses via a six-speed manual or automatic. Next up is the Z4 sDrive30i, which features the normally-aspirated 3.0L I6 we’re all familiar with. Here, it makes 258 horsepower and 228 lb-ft of torque. That’s enough to get it to 62 mph in 5.8 seconds (with the stick). Fun times. the sDrive30i also comes with either a 6-speed manual or automatic. Those of you looking for the ass-kicker Z4 want the sDrive35i, which gets the excellent twin-turbo 3.0L and 306 horsepower. 0-62 takes 5.2 seconds with the manual tranny, but you shave a tenth off that if you opt for the 7-speed dual-clutch gearbox.

Inside, the cabin is refreshingly simple with attractive wood accents, slick-looking new HVAC controls and a straightforward cockpit layout. iDrive has now made its way into the Z4, but it’s the new, allegedly more intuitive version that was first introduced in the new 7 Series. The LCD display sinks into the instrument panel when not in use.

So, best Z3/Z4 yet? Probably. We’ll crawl all over it next month in Detroit, after which we’ll be impatiently awaiting some real seat time, which ought to be a kick.

It looks like the rest of the Alfa Romeo 8C Competiziones are starting to get into customer hands since that first one was delivered to James Glickenhaus. Last weekend at Motor4Toys we just missed a red one, but it happened to show up this morning at our weekly gathering in Irvine, California. The car drew a huge crowd, who universally praised it for its voluptuous good looks and gorgeous red paint job. The owner drove in and parked, revving it a bit to treat the onlookers. Although we’ve had the great pleasure of seeing the car in person a few times already, it is still stunning. And it was fun to watch the others seeing it for the first time. This is truly mobile art. Drew and Jonathon happened to be at the show this morning as well and are trying to convince the owner to let them take it for a spin. Hopefully they get their wish, but until then, check out the gallery to see some of my pics along with Drew’s typical photographic magic.

Just about a week ago, Honda announced that it was dropping out of Formula 1, but in subsequent reports Honda confirmed that it was not planning to pull support from other motorsports endeavors. That doesn’t quite seem to be the case. Yesterday, Honda announced that it will be removing factory support from AMA road racing. The only Honda factory rider already contracted for the ‘09 season is Neil Hodgson. Jake Zemke, winner of last year’s AMA Formula Xtreme Championship, now seems likely to race for the Erion Honda team, which Honda will still be offering support to, along with the Corona Honda team. Motocross and Supercross will not be affected by Honda’s decision.

Honda cites the “current global economic situation and its impact on Honda” for the change, but we wonder if the ongoing dominance of Mat Mladin and Ben Spies’ Suzukis may have made AMA Superbike an easy series to drop — a move last made by Ducati in 2006. We’re also left wondering if the ongoing conflict with Daytona Motorsports Group, the new management for AMA Pro Racing, had anything to do with the withdrawl. In any case, we won’t be seeing any Honda Factory teams in AMA road racing for 2009.

[Source: Honda]

After releasing photos and information on its new Z4 roadster yesterday, we now have a pair of videos showing the Z4 in action. In the first clip BMW Automobile design head Adrian van Hooydonk and exterior design head Anders Warming discuss the new design. The operative word in the new Z4’s design appears to be “Joy” although how joyous this car will be remains to be seen. Certainly the new look should make observers a lot happier than old one but ultimately any car is about the driving experience.

Shortly after the LA Auto Show debut of the 2010 Ford Mustang, the automaker announced that Mattel would be releasing its own replica of the new model as part of its Hot Wheels lineup. Somehow in all the running around after the reveal in LA, we missed out on picking up an example and Ford didn’t have any press photos available. Fortunately Ford’s Dan Jarvis came to the rescue and provided Autoblog with one of the toys for a photo shoot. As you can see, the team at Hot Wheels has made the usual array of tweaks in order to minimize the aerodynamic drag of the new car and maximize fuel efficiency. The exterior mirrors have been removed and the grille has been blanked off to force air flow around the car. The biggest change, however, was deleting the powertrain. Normally, this might be a problem, but like other Hot Wheels editions, this car derives its propulsive force from external sources.