Limited Edition BMW Z4 sDrive35is Mille Miglia

Still amazed by their victory at Mille Miglia race 70 years ago, BMW released a new special and limited edition of the Z4 Roadster called of course the Mille Miglia Edition. Based on the sDrive35is variant powered by a 335 bhp twin-charged I6 engine, it is developed in Italy and it’s limited to 99 units.

BMW Z4 sDrive35is Mille Miglia Limited Edition - This car must have the longest name in automotive history!

The Z4 sDrive35is Mille Miglia comes standard with a M-power body kit and a special Polaris matte grey color, and it’s distinguished by a couple of 1000 MIGLIA badges, blaked-out BMW grilles and 19-inch dark wheels.

Inside the car you get sport red/black seat covered in leather and alcantara with Q-citura style stitching. There’s also a M steering wheel, red/black floor mats and a big 1000 MIGLIA emblem on the center console.

2011 BMW Z4 sDrive35is

BMW Z4 sDrive35is

Its tedious name notwithstanding, the sDrive35is promises to be the most entertaining model of BMW's Z4 roadster.

An upgraded version of BMW's stalwart 3.0-liter straight-six engine produces 335 horsepower and 332 pound-feet of torque from just 1,500 r.p.m. An electronically controlled overboost feature on the twin turbochargers can crank torque up to 369 pound-feet for brief blasts of ultimate acceleration.

The roadster hits 60 m.p.h. in just 4.7 seconds. Its top speed is electronically limited to 155 m.p.h.

BMW launches slightly sportier Z4 – but there's still no Z4M

BMW Z4 sDrive35is: more horsepower and speed

BMW has introduced a slightly quicker version of its Z4 Roadster. The previous top-of-the-range version, the sDrive35i, is joined by the sDrive35is. The additional "s" signifies a car that has 34 more horsepower and gets to 100km/h (62mph) from rest in 4.8 instead of 5.1 seconds. At £43,885, the sDrive35is costs over three thousand pounds more than the sDrive35i, but returns exactly the same 31.4mpg in official combined cycle fuel consumption tests and emits the same 210g/km of CO2 – again in official tests.

The current Z4 is a very agreeable car but one that can leave the enthusiast wishing it had a slightly harder edge – in particular, there's still no true replacement for the exhilarating Z4M version of the previous-generation model. On paper, the new sDrive35is appears to offer most of the performance the old Z4M but whether it will offer as much excitement is another matter. The introduction of the sDrive35is does, however, coincide with the introduction of an optional M Sport package of mainly cosmetic enhancements for the Z4 range, although these seem to stop a long way short of transforming the car in the way that a full "M" variant would.