Since there is no longer a huge market for personal sports coupes, those of us who place a priority on driving enjoyment are always gratified to learn of carmakers who choose to plow time and money into such machines, balance sheets be damned. This is why we were gratified to learn our spies in Europe caught this camouflaged Z4 mule undergoing testing on public streets across the pond.
With the current model reaching middle age (at least in terms of car years) it seems that BMW is committing to slight tweaks to the roadster’s front and rear styling. While the test unit shown here seems to retain the existing peepers, our sources say we can expect a nip and tuck in 2023.
There could be other slight changes under this eye-crossing camo but, as with all good distraction jobs, it’s tough to tell. Fortunately, it looks as though there is a body-coloured bumper bar running the width of its front fascia just below the kidney grille, meaning we should be spared the 3- and 4-Series bucktoothed schnoz, which is offensive to anyone blessed with the gift of sight.
Don’t expect too many changes inside, however, since wholesale restyling of a cabin is a bucks-deluxe undertaking that even the smoothest-talking product manager is unlikely to slide past the accounting department. With other models in the family having received – or set to receive – an acreage of dashboard screens, expect the Z4 to soldier on with a typical iPad-on-the-dash type of configuration. Changing hard points is generally very expensive, after all.
We’re reasonably confident the spectre of spending money on a mid-cycle refresh for the Z4 gives BMW accountants heart palpitations, but we feel such vehicles are important to the soul of a company whose spirit is closely tied to the words ‘Ultimate Driving Machine’. It is not unreasonable to suggest that, if it were up to the bed-wetting bean-counters, carmakers would only crank out high-profit SUVs and crossovers. Speaking of, peep the camo’d unit of that precise type in the background of these photos.
We look forward to seeing the refreshed Z4 when it goes on sale some time next year.
Keyword: Spied! Looks like the next BMW Z4 gets a nip and tuck