They Killed The Last Fun Convertible. And Nobody's Coming To Save It.

[00:01] we're talking about the end of something special. Not the BMW Supra, but the BMW Z4 just rolled off the production line for the last time at Magna's plant in Graz, Austria. And with it, one of the most underrated sports car families in

[00:15] automotive history is officially on life support. We're talking about where it came from, what made it great, why it's gone, and what its death means for every person out there who just wants to drive something fun with the wind in their

[00:27] hair without spending Porsche money. To understand why this stings, you have to subscribe so we can hit 2 mil subs at the end of this year, and let's go. It's the end of this year, and let's go. It's 1991 and BMW drops the Z1 or Z1. Nobody

[00:42] asked for it, nobody really needed it, but BMW built it anyway cuz BMW don't care, just like a honey badger. And they gave it doors that literally slid down into the sills. So sick. Not up, not out, down into the car while you were

[00:56] driving. That's not engineering, that is totally a flex. That's a company saying, "We could have built something boring, but we didn't because why would we? We're BMW." Now, the shame they only built 8,000 of these things. It became

[01:10] an instant collector's item. Then came the Z3. 1995, yes, the world got introduced to it through a little movie called GoldenEye. Ever heard of it? James Bond pulls up in a silver Z3 and the whole

[01:24] planet immediately wants one. It was sleek, it was lightweight, it was M spec, it made 325 horses out of a straight inline six. BMW also made a Z3 coupe. It was also nicknamed the clown shoe, one of my favorites. It's weird,

[01:39] stubby, it's little shooting brake that looked like a clown car designed by someone who has actual taste. And it became a cult classic almost overnight. Low production numbers, unique proportions, people loved it. But then

[01:52] BMW did something nobody expected. They made the Z lineup beautiful. Yes, right before the dot com boom boom in 1999, the Z8 stop everything. We need to talk about this car ladies and gents cuz the Z8, arguably the most gorgeous thing BMW

[02:08] has ever made, retro inspired long hood short rear deck. It looked like a 507 reborn in the modern era. Hand-built aluminum chassis, limited production, and they put the M5's engine in it, the legendary E39 M5, a 4 [music] L V8

[02:24] pumping out around 400 horses. Bond drove a Z3 in GoldenEye, sure, but then they leveled up. Pierce Brosnan's 007 gets a Z8 in The World Is Not Enough, and it gets cut in half by a helicopter, which somehow only made people want it

[02:40] more. Today, a clean Z8 can run you 200 to 500,000 dollars. Some sell for even more. They made around 5,700 of these beauties. It's one of those cars that beauties. It's one of those cars that appreciated so hard, so fast, the actual

[02:55] familiar? Yeah, because then the Z4 arrives. It's 2003, first gen Z4, the E85. Not the gas, the actual car. Designed by Chris

[03:08] Bangle. Love him or hate him, and a lot of people hate him, including your boy. were kind of polarizing. The man made very bold cars. The Z4 had

[03:20] character, creased body work, aggressive lines. It wasn't trying to be a Z8. It wasn't trying to be anything except itself. You can learn a lesson from that, I think. It also came as a coupe, the Z4 M coupe, which again looks a

[03:34] is now worth a lot more than people expected. BMW just has this thing for making weird coupe versions of roadsters that become collector items. So, take notes. Then, 2009, you get the second gen, the E89. Smoother design,

[03:49] retractable hardtop, which your boy loves. More refined, less raw, more GT. loves. More refined, less raw, more GT. Still a great car. Then, in 2018, dropped the third gen, the G29. And this one, well, it was different.

[04:04] Now, we got to talk about the Supra connection, cuz you know that I'm giving [music] away my Fast & Furious inspired Mark V. And I absolutely love that car. Because before we keep going, quick break, because this is actually insane

[04:17] and I have to mention it. There are days left and we are giving away, yes, that Fast & Furious Mark V Supra or a Rockstar Shelby GT350 plus $100,000 in cold hard cash. So, you go to winthisidealcar.com.

[04:33] comment and get entered because there's days left and there's real winners. And right now, you can get entered for just 99 cents, which will get you 15,000 entries to win both cars plus the $100,000. Click the link in the pinned

[04:47] first comment and good skill. Okay, let's talk about the biggest problem. Because here's what the death of the Z4 actually represents. It's not really unfortunate [music] pattern. Look at what's happening to

[05:02] open-top sports cars, like the Porsche Boxster. Beautiful, brilliant car. I love it. Starts at $70,000. The Mercedes SL, closer to $130,000. The Corvette, they moved away from the traditional roadster format. The Alfa

[05:16] Romeo Spider, gone for years. The Honda S2000, RIP. It's been dead since 2009. And a clean one now costs more than a brand new performance car. And the Z4, even before it was discontinued, it was pushing 60K loaded. That's not a fun

[05:33] weekend car for most people. That's a mortgage decision. The affordable, attainable drop-top sports car is functionally extinct. Except for one. Yes, we all know the Miata is the answer. And the Mazda MX-5 Miata, it

[05:48] grand, it still has a manual transmission, it still has a fabric soft top, and it still handles like it wants to make you happy. And it's alone. Yes, think about it. In a world where BMW, Porsche, Mercedes, Alfa, Honda, all of

[06:01] or priced them into a different stratosphere, Mazda is out here just rear-wheel drive, no drama, just straight pleasure. The Miata is not the

[06:14] most powerful car, it's not the fastest, it's not the most prestigious, but right now, this year, it might be the most important sports car in the world because it's the only one that actually says a regular person who loves driving

[06:27] should be able to afford this. That's a sentence BMW used to believe in. The Z3 started at $28,000 in 1996. Adjusted for inflation, that's $58,000 today. Okay, not cheap, but the Z4 in 4M trim, that's

[06:42] pushing 70K. The audience that made the Z4 lineup matter in the first place is Z4 lineup matter in the first place is being quietly priced out. So, what comes next? I mean, what happens to the Z badge? BMW isn't talking. Munich has

[06:54] said nothing official about a successor. Given the market right now, EVs, SUVs, crossovers eating everything, it would be easy for them to say, "Well, just let it sleep." But here's the interesting wrinkle. Toyota is already working on

[07:09] the next Supra. The partnership between the two companies isn't necessarily dead. And if Toyota needs a platform for a next-gen sports car, BMW has every reason to say, "Yes." Could we see a new Z? Well, maybe with an EV? BMW has the i

[07:24] brand, and they know how to make performance EVs. A lightweight electric roadster built on a new platform co-developed with Toyota, that's not crazy. That's actually kind of exciting. But it's not confirmed, it's not

[07:37] announced. Right now, it's just hope. Look, the BMW Z4 wasn't perfect, but neither am I. It was expensive. It was something criticized for being more grand tour than sports car. [music] So, that's why you get the Supra. It's a

[07:50] though disappeared into the third generation. BMW took forever to offer a manual, but it was alive. It had character. You could put the top down, take an on-ramp fast, and feel

[08:03] something. Those cars, well, they still exist. Go find a clean Z4 M40i with a manual before the market catches up. Go find an E86 M Coupe >> [snorts] >> man, well, congratulations and don't

[08:17] hesitate. The Z4 is gone. The convertible sports car market is shrinking. The Miata is holding the line alone. Drive while you still can. the year. Drop a comment telling me about the Z car that you want to own.

[08:31] free, 100 free entries, days left for this Supra or a Shelby GT350 plus $100,000 cash, linked in the pinned first comment. I'm Brad Danger. This is vids over here, and promise me one thing. Keep living the ideal lifestyle.