A borrowed M3 V8 at first, a bored-out 4.4-litre engine from August 2010, and a long run of endurance results for private teams.
The BMW Z4 GT3 is a customer racing car that BMW Motorsport built to FIA GT3 rules on the E89 Z4 road car. Shown in March 2010, it first used a 4.0-litre V8 from the M3 before a bored-out 4.4-litre engine arrived in August 2010.
BMW Motorsport built the Z4 GT3 for customer teams to race under the FIA GT3 rules, and it was shown to the public in early March 2010. It was based on the E89 generation of the Z4 and launched with a naturally aspirated 4.0-litre V8 taken from the BMW M3. That engine lacked power against its rivals, so BMW homologated a larger version only a few months later.
What was the BMW Z4 GT3 built on?
The car started as a BMW Z4 (E89) road car. Its steel body was built at the Regensburg plant on the same assembly line as the body of the road-going Z4, and the team then converted it by hand. A safety cell of high-strength precision steel tubing was welded into the structure.
Carbon-fibre-reinforced plastic covers the front and rear aprons, the bonnet, the roof, the wings and the rear wing, along with other components. The lightweight construction brings the racing car to approximately 1,190 kilograms (2,624 lb). Building one complete car takes around 700 working hours.
Built on a road Z4 body, the GT3 went from a 4.0-litre M3 engine to a bored-out 4.4 litres within months.
How much power did the original engine make?
The racing engine's code is P65, and its basic features follow the S65. Until July 2010 it was a naturally aspirated 4.0-litre V8 from the BMW M3 (E90/E92/E93), and a similar version of the same engine was used in the BMW M3 GT. In the Z4 GT3 the unit delivered about 353 kW (480 PS; 473 hp) at 8,300 rpm.
Torque peaked at 460 Nm (339 lb ft) at 5,500 rpm, with the rev limit at 8,500 rpm. Against rival models the car was short of power, a weakness that hurt on fast track sections. That disadvantage led BMW to develop the larger engine.
Why did BMW move to a 4.4-litre engine?
In August 2010 BMW homologated a version of the engine enlarged to just under 4.4 litres (268.5 cu in). It came from the road-legal BMW M3 GTS. In the Z4 GT3 this engine's output is about 379 kW (515 PS; 508 hp) at 8,300 rpm, but each series sets its own air restrictor, which changes the figure.
Peak torque is approximately 515 Nm (380 lb ft) at 5,500 rpm, and the rev limit rises to 8,600 rpm. The engine block itself is cast at BMW's light-alloy foundry in Landshut.
How did the drivetrain, chassis and electronics work?
A six-speed sequential gearbox, shifted by paddles behind the steering wheel, sends power through a propshaft to the rear axle. The rear differential and drive shafts were sourced from the Dingolfing works of the BMW Group. The chassis has adjustable dampers and anti-roll bars. Wheels are 18-inch BBS units with central locking.
Discs measure 378 mm up front and 355 mm at the back. Six-piston calipers grip the front discs and four-piston calipers the rear. The car has a racing anti-lock braking system and traction control (ASC), and as the only GT3 racing car it also carries an electronic stability programme (DSC).
Inside, the driver gets a steering wheel with multiple functions and a display that carries built-in shift lights. For 24-hour races BMW Motorsport offered an endurance package that included reinforced brakes and drive shafts.
What did the BMW Z4 GT3 cost?
A race-ready Z4 GT3 cost 298,000 euros plus VAT in 2010. The 2011 update raised the price to 315,000 euros plus VAT, and the car was offered in 2013 specification for 349,000 euros plus VAT. Owners of 2011 and 2012 cars could convert them to 2013 specification with a conversion kit at 315,000 euros plus VAT.
Sales were measured in single figures at first. Seven cars were sold in the premiere year of 2010, and 29 units had been sold by January 2012. In February 2012, Jens Marquardt, BMW Motorsport's director, said the company intended to keep the car on sale through 2015.
Which teams ran the BMW Z4 GT3?
Customer teams ran the BMW Z4 GT3 in several championships at once. Schubert Motorsport, Marc VDS Racing Team, Vita4One Racing Team and DB Motorsport are covered first, followed by the other teams listed for 2013.
Schubert Motorsport
Schubert's first outings came in VLN races in spring 2010 with two cars. At the 2010 Nurburgring 24 Hours, one car shared by Hartung, Soderlund, Sandstrom and Ohlin came fourth overall. The team also ran two cars through the full FIA GT3 European Championship that season.
After the 4.4-litre engine arrived, Csaba Walter and Claudia Hurtgen won a race at Jarama, and Soderlund and Sandstrom won at Zolder. Schubert finished third in the team standings for 2010, and it made guest starts in the ADAC GT Masters at the end of the year.
The 2011 season was stronger. Schubert won the 24-hour race at Dubai with Hurtgen, Augusto Farfus, Tommy Milner and Sandstrom, and another Schubert Z4 won the 24-hour race at Barcelona. At the Portimao season opener, Sandstrom and Abdulaziz Al Faisal finished ahead of Hurtgen and Walter for a one-two, and the team ended the year second in the team standings. At Spa-Francorchamps the 24-hour car of Hurtgen, Sandstrom and Dirk Werner finished second.
In 2012 Schubert left the European championship and ran one car for a full ADAC GT Masters season. Hurtgen and Schwager took a race win at the Hockenheimring that year. For the Nurburgring 24 Hours, Schubert received factory support from BMW Motorsport, and Uwe Alzen put one of its cars on pole. Repair stops dropped both cars back, and they finished seventh and eighth. In 2013 the team ran two permanent cars in the ADAC GT Masters, and its two cars collided at the Nurburgring 24 Hours.
Marc VDS Racing Team
Marc VDS first used a Z4 GT3 in mid-2011 at Spa-Francorchamps. Afterwards Leinders, Martin and Palttala took wins at Magny-Cours and Silverstone in the Blancpain Endurance Series.
In 2012 the team ran two cars in the series. The same trio won the first two rounds, at Monza and Silverstone. At Spa the team finished fourth, and Martin was by far the fastest driver in the rain. The trio narrowly missed the series drivers' title, finishing second. At its first Nurburgring 24 Hours the team finished fourth, which made its car the best-placed BMW Z4 GT3 in that race.
In 2013 the team kept two cars in the Blancpain series and ran alongside Schubert with factory support at the Nurburgring 24 Hours. Martin, Buurman, Piccini and Goransson took second at the Nurburgring 24 Hours. Martin's lap times were, in places, 20 seconds quicker than those of the opposition.
Vita4One Racing Team and DB Motorsport
In 2012 Vita4One Racing Team, led by Michael Bartels, took two cars into the FIA GT1 World Championship. Bartels and Buurman won one qualifier at Zolder, then another qualifier and two title races at the Slovakiaring. They ended the year third in the drivers' table, narrowly beaten.
The team also ran one car in the Blancpain series in 2012. At Spa Gregory Franchi, Frank Kechele and Mathias Lauda took third place. At the Nurburgring 24 Hours, Wittmann, Klingmann, Lamy and Goransson took ninth. In 2013 Vita4One withdrew its entry to the new FIA GT Series shortly before the season, and it made its first guest start in the ADAC GT Masters at Spa.
DB Motorsport has owned two Z4 GT3s since 2011. That year Jeroen den Boer and Hoevert Vos won a race at Silverstone in the FIA GT3 European Championship, and the team finished third in the team standings. In 2012 it ran two cars through the full Blancpain season, including Spa, and every round of the ADAC GT Masters.
Den Boer and Knap took victory at Zandvoort, their home round, in 2012. It was the first win for a BMW Z4 GT3 in the ADAC GT Masters. One car also competed in the Dutch Supercar Challenge that year, and in 2013 the team continued with a single car in the ADAC GT Masters and the Dutch series.
Other teams
In 2013 several other teams also ran a BMW Z4 GT3 in the series they entered. ROAL Motorsport raced in the Blancpain Endurance Series and the Campionato Italiano Gran Turismo. Ecurie Ecosse entered the European Le Mans Series and the British GT Championship. Studie AG ran in Super GT, and BMW Sports Trophy teams from Brazil and India ran in the FIA GT Series.
Walkenhorst Motorsport entered the VLN endurance series and the Nurburgring 24 Hours, and Thiriet by TDS Racing ran in the Blancpain series and the French FFSA GT championship. Uwe Alzen Automotive, 888Optimum in the British GT Championship and DKR Engineering, whose entry was still open, completed the 2013 list. WestCoast Racing had run a Z4 GT3 earlier in the ADAC GT Masters and the Swedish GT series.
What were the car's main race results?
The record at the Nurburgring ran from fourth place in 2010 to second in 2013 and 2015, with a sixth in 2014 between them. The list also includes wins at Dubai in 2011 and at Spa-Francorchamps in 2015.
- 2010: fourth overall, Nurburgring 24 Hours
- 2011: first at the Dubai Autodrome 24 Hours
- 2012: fourth place in the Nurburgring 24 Hours
- 2013: runner-up in the Nurburgring 24 Hours
- 2014: sixth place, Nurburgring 24 Hours
- 2015: runner-up at the Nurburgring 24 Hours
- 2015: first at the Spa-Francorchamps 24 Hours
What happened to the BMW Z4 GTE?
From July 2012 BMW Motorsport worked with the BMW Team RLL to develop a version of the Z4 GT3 to the ACO GTE regulations. The GTE succeeded the BMW M3 GT. The car's dimensions were changed to meet the rules, requiring fresh aerodynamic work. Under those rules ABS, ASC and DSC are off limits.
The first GTE test came in January 2013. Its racing record then spread across several series. BMW Team RLL ran it in the American Le Mans Series in 2013 and in the United SportsCar Championship from 2014. BMW Sports Trophy MarcVDS ran it in the European Le Mans Series from 2015. The team and series listing runs only to February 2015.
Why does the BMW Z4 GT3 matter?
The car's significance lies in how it was used. BMW built a race car on a production body, and customers could buy it and run it in a range of championships. Customer teams raced it in many series, with factory support from BMW Motorsport at the Nurburgring 24 Hours from 2012.
The Nurburgring and Spa records show a car that competed in long races rather than only sprints. Its GT3 and GTE versions also show how one road-car base could be taken into two different rulebooks.
| Specification | Detail |
|---|---|
| Base car | BMW Z4 (E89) |
| Presented | Early March 2010 |
| Engine until July 2010 | 4.0-litre naturally aspirated V8, from the BMW M3 |
| Output, 4.0-litre | About 353 kW (480 PS; 473 hp) at 8,300 rpm |
| Torque, 4.0-litre | 460 Nm (339 lb ft) at 5,500 rpm |
| Engine from August 2010 | 4.4-litre (268.5 cu in) V8, from the BMW M3 GTS |
| Output, 4.4-litre | About 379 kW (515 PS; 508 hp) at 8,300 rpm |
| Torque, 4.4-litre | About 515 Nm (380 lb ft) at 5,500 rpm |
| Maximum engine speed | 8,500 rpm (4.0-litre); 8,600 rpm (4.4-litre) |
| Gearbox | Sequential six-speed with paddle shifters |
| Weight | About 1,190 kg (2,624 lb) |
| Brake discs | 378 mm front, 355 mm rear |
| Wheels | 18-inch BBS, central locking |
| Price, 2010 | 298,000 euros plus VAT, race-ready |
