BMW officially ends Z4 production with no successor planned
BMW has officially ended production of the Z4 G29, its last pure two-seat roadster. The final car left the Magna Steyr factory in Graz, Austria in May 2026, closing a chapter that began in 2018. BMW has confirmed no direct successor is planned, meaning the brand's open-top sports car lineage — stretching back to the original Z1 — is effectively on ice.
A roadster born from compromise
The G29 was unusual from the start: it shared a platform with the Toyota GR Supra A90, with both cars assembled at the same Austrian plant. The arrangement let both companies split development costs for a niche product neither could justify building alone. Toyota's side of the deal ended first — the Supra A90 stopped production in March 2026, and Toyota is developing a next-generation model for 2027 using its own hybrid powertrain rather than a BMW engine.
For BMW, the Z4 was the last car in the lineup built around the joy of driving over practicality. The brand has since retired the open-top 8 Series, and the only convertible left in the range is the 4 Series Cabriolet G23 — a heavier car with token rear seats and a very different character.
The numbers tell the story
Sales peaked at 15,827 units in 2019, then fell steadily to 9,744 in 2025 — a decline of nearly 40% over six years. Even the addition of a proper manual gearbox option (the Handschalter package, long demanded by enthusiasts) couldn't reverse the trend. It generated a brief burst of interest rather than a sustained recovery.
That pattern played out right to the end. In Q1 2026, sales ticked up 4.9% to 2,555 units — a last-minute rush from collectors and ICE holdouts who wanted a Z4 before the window closed for good. In the US, the Final Edition started at $78,675, finished in Frozen Black with the manual transmission package included.
BMW Z4 interior. Photo: BMW
What comes next — probably nothing soon
BMW's strategic focus is shifting to its Neue Klasse EV architecture, which will underpin a new generation of electric vehicles through the late 2020s and beyond. A Z-badged EV roadster is theoretically possible but is not in any approved product plan. The Porsche Boxster faces the same electrification crossroads, and the Nissan Z — a traditional sports car by comparison — outsells the Supra in the US market, suggesting demand exists but is fragmented.
For anyone who wanted a Z4 and didn't act, dealer inventory from the final production run should remain available through the rest of 2026. After that, the used market is the only option. What BMWBLOG called "the last true BMW" won't be replaced anytime soon.
