Quote:
Originally Posted by jdhiro
Considering that both the M2 and M3/M4 offer RWD variants, I don't see why AWD would be required, although I do know the wheelbase is about 10" shorter.
If Toyota is really doing the GRMN Supra with the S58 as rumored, then the then the R&D is already done.
Well a base 911 starts at $106K - and includes luxuries such as a plastic dashboard. (And a slower 0-60 than the Z4.)
I just spec'ed out a well equipped Z4 M40i and it's barely over $70K. The Z4 has a long ways to go before it starts encroaching on 911 territory.
I maintain that there is room for them to launch a more hardcore M or "Final Edition" around 80-90K.
Welp - fingers crossed.
|
First like it or not a Z4 is not a 911.
People will pay the 911 premium not a Z4 premium. In fact $10K ADM is not big deal on the 911 as they sell everyone thy build.
Z4's sold
2414 cars 4 & 6 cylinder in the USA last year. Porsche sold
9,167 911's
My Z4 MSRP was $73,000. As you said the base 911 MSRP is $106K & the 911 kills the cheaper Z4 in sales.
The M4 Convertible starts around $90K. Mine was $95K. Why AWD? Convertibles are all 503BHP competition models. With the S58 engines power only way they can fully exploit it is to have all 4 wheels working.
The AWD version out performs the RWD in all metrics. In addition if you want to play drifter you can toggle in full RWD drift mode. Best of both worlds
To take it one step further the only way you can get a 6MT is to drop back to the base 473BHP engine. This combination has a hard time against a M440 Xdrive 8ZF because the 440 can put its power to the ground.
Back to the Z4. What power would they put in a 6MT/RWD version? 473BHP thats overwhelms the larger tires on a heavier M4 6MT? Less power or move to AWD?
Current owner stats in a M3/M4 forum poll are
Base offers a 6MT 473BHP 28%
Competition offers 503BHP 8ZF & RWD 22%
Competition Xdrive 503BHP 8ZF & AWD 50%
The base has the 6MT but I don't know what percentage of the base are 6MT. So lets say all of them.
If the current M4 sales were used as a model that would be about 676 Z4 cars each year to spread the development cost over. That's just to put a 6MT into it. It works because Toyota is picking up a nice chunk of the cost.
Moving to a true M car BMW would have to eat all the rest of the development money against a very small sales base.
BMW's low volume M8 sold 7,760 cars in 2021 pricing around $144K. You might expect as Z4 as a limited production M car could be quite a bit more than $75,000.
Coming up with the solution costs development money for a car that is dead in 3 years. Would be happy just to see them pull off the 6MT as an option even though I would not buy it.
The GRMN Supra is also rumored to have a DCT & an AWD option so who knows. Expect pricing would be like Godzilla's. So what would that say the Z4M would need to stay with it? They are talking M4CS power. Would BMW under cut M4C & M4CS pricing to put an M4CS power package into a limited production Z4MCS?