M Coupe

STORY

The BMW Z3 was a landmark on two fronts: it was the first BMW roadster of the modern era and the first BMW built in the United States, at the new Spartanburg, South Carolina plant that remains BMW's largest factory in the world. It launched in 1995 with perfect timing.

That timing was cinematic: the Z3 made its debut as James Bond's car in GoldenEye (1995), generating enormous demand before the car had even reached showrooms. Beyond the marketing coup, the Z3 spanned a huge range, from modest four-cylinders to the ferocious M Roadster and the design-cult "clownshoe" M Coupe, and it re-established the affordable, front-engined BMW roadster as a core part of the lineup.