• • The first Z13 concept used a 1.1 liter engine taken from a K1100 motorcycle with 61 kW output.
• • Robert Powell was the man who designed the concept.
• • The 1 Series and i3 are the smallest new offerings from BMW currently on offer in South Africa.
• • You can find more stories about driving a car at Wheels24.
“So close and yet so far” is the phrase that best describes BMW’s plan to bring the Z13 concept into production.
The 1990s was a pivotal time for many automakers, when many models were introduced that spawn current generations and even achieved iconic status in the process.
The Bavarian brand is the king of its own castle. She recently launched her range of M3 and M4 performance models – not to mention they help Toyota with the mechanical components of the latest Supra.
They’re not a brand that follows the small-car blueprint, and their X-SUV range is particularly evidence of that. The 1 Series and the i3 are the smallest offerings currently on offer in South Africa.
The beginning of something
According to Car throttleThe first prototype used a 1.1 liter four cylinder engine taken from a K1100 motorcycle with 61 kW output. It weighed only 830 kg, with power being transferred to the rear wheels via a CVT purchased from Ford. What made it different was its unique central seating position – a trait it shared with the recently unveiled McLaren F1 at the time.
BMW was originally designed by designer Robert Powell and presented the Z13 at the 1993 Geneva Motor Show. It was well received by the public, which led the German brand to commission Powell to develop a second prototype.
1993 BMW Z13 concept
This time the 1.1-liter engine was chucked in in favor of a larger 1.2-liter engine from the K1200 motorcycle. Gone was the CVT, too, and a five-speed manual transmission arrived.
The general consensus is that people who show enough interest in a particular model during the concept phase will be more likely to bring it into production.
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In 1994 the Rover Group was taken over by BMW, which happened to also own the rights to Mini Cooper. As a side note, BMW didn’t introduce the 1 Series until 2004, so the brand had never had a compact range in the stable before.
2020 BMW i3 (Press Club / BMW SA)
With the availability of the Mini, plans for the Z13 slowly fell back, as resources no longer had to be channeled into a car that already had a model in production.
Live the i3
According to Motor1, Just like today’s i3, the concept had a generous selection of technologies such as an electric parking brake, satellite navigation, telephone and even a fax machine.
Judging by the electrification of the i3, the concept would have headed in the same direction because it made sense for a small car to have a small but powerful source of power, and in this day and age there is no better way to do that than with an electric powertrain.
Both the i3 and Z13 were constructed from carbon fiber bodies that could accommodate either a small internal combustion engine or an electric motor. BMW would probably never give the idea of a central seating position in a compact city car, even if it were beneficial for general driving dynamics.
While the Z4 and Z4 M40i are not directly compatible with the Z13, they share the same model line but serve as BMW out-and-out roadster options available in SA. Prices start from R887 100.
Introduced in 1995, the Z3 Coupé had a uniquely compact shape, often referred to as the “clown’s shoe”, and was 4,025 mm longer than the i3, which was 3,999 mm.
In 2013, BMW launched its electric i3, carefree paying homage to the forgotten Z13 compact city car that it would have been. Other premium brands such as Audi and Mercedes-Benz also had smaller A1 and A-Class offerings, which will continue to be sold as advanced models in SA.
The truth is that the Z13 concept was a hit with the broader automotive community and would have seen production without the acquisition of the British brand.
At first glance, it might not look the same, but since both use carbon bodies and measure at nearly identical lengths, these are some indications of borrowed DNA.
Would it have been available in South Africa? Nobody could have known for sure, but considering how many models they have here right now, there’s a good way to do it.
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