BMW Zagato Coupe revealed

BMW has debuted an amazing road-ready coupe show car built in association with legendary Italian styling house Zagato. The BMW Zagato Coupe debuted this weekend at the posh Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este car show in Italy.

What is the BMW Zagato Coupe?

The BMW Zagato Coupe is officially described as a one-off and has come about thanks to a friendship between BMW design senior vice president Adrian van Hooydonk and Zagato chief designer Norihiko Harada.

Does the BMW Zagato Coupe have heritage?

The BMW Zagato Coupe is actually the latest in a line of BMW collaborations with Italian styling houses. These date back to 1939, when a special BMW 328 clothed in Italian bodywork was created: it won the famous Mille Miglia race the following year.

How traditional is the BMW Zagato Coupe?

The BMW Zagato Coupe is still, however, entirely hand built. Not only this, all the aluminium panels are hand-beaten by hand: aluminium sheet metal really has been shaped entirely by humans to create the stunning forms of the show car.

Which model is the BMW Zagato Coupe based on?

The bodywork of the BMW Zagato Coupe has been tailored to fit the rear-drive mechanical — but BMW has released no details of them. It is safe to assume they're based on one production Z4 variant, perhaps the 225kW Z4 sDrive35iS.

Is the BMW Zagato Coupe just a show car?

Amazingly, the BMW Zagato Coupe is fully road legal. It's been aerodynamically honed and has even been tested at high speed on the BMW test track.

What's with the roof of the BMW Zagato Coupe?

The BMW Zagato Coupe has the trademark Zagato double bubble roof: it wouldn't be a Zagato without this. The firm says the 'doppia gobba' roof gives more space for those wearing helmets, improves aerodynamics and also enhances the car's torsional rigidity.

What is the front of the BMW Zagato Coupe like?

The front of the BMW Zagato Coupe is low, wide and forward-surging. The bonnet contains additional air intakes — hinting at a high-performance turbo motor beneath? — and the design shouts 'BMW', thus achieving a key aim of Zagato.

What is the rear of the BMW Zagato Coupe like?

Because it's been hand-beaten from sheet aluminium, the designers of the BMW Zagato Coupe have been able to minimize the lines in the rear end, making it appear as if it's built from one big section. The transparent panels are a Zagato styling cue and the rear diffuser is absolutely enormous, cutting into the side panels to suggest this car really has been optimised for high-speed use.

Why are the wheels of the BMW Zagato Coupe special?

The distinctive propeller-shaped five-spoke alloy wheels of the BMW Zagato Coupe reference the aerospace heritage of both BMW and Zagato.

How has Zagato created the amazing paint?

The stunning Rosso Vivace paint of the BMW Zagato Coupe changes from bear-black to brilliant red, depending on light levels and angle of view. It's made up of a black base coat, a silver metallic layer, then six thin layers of brilliant red — all covered by two clear layers of lacquer.

Will BMW build the Zagato Coupe?

The BMW Zagato Coupe is an amazing design that is even more enticing because of BMW's great effort to make it road-ready. Don't be surprised if a limited run of cars follows. They would be expensive. They would be iconic. They would sell like hot cakes, believe us...