TC Kline Racing recently completed development of its ‘Carbon Roadster’ — a re-skinned BMW Z4 covered entirely in carbon fiber. Based on the Z4 M, the car has the 346 horsepower engine from the M3 coupe. It weighs just 2,680 lbs — that’s 400 lbs less than the standard Z3M, and 700 lbs less than the M3! The car is expected to go on sale this summer. More info and gallery after the jump…
The Body: The entire skin of the CR is manufactured from Carbon Fiber Composites. The changes to the Z4 bodywork are a direct result of the application of the principals of “form follows function”. Walk around the CR and you will not find any body lines which do not serve as an extension of function. The Carbon Roadster body work incorporates aerodynamic performance enhancements with a front air dam, front wheel house vents, side skirts, and rear diffusers. The body also has all four fenders flared I” to accommodate wider wheels and tires. The use of carbon composites to make the body reduces the weight of the CR tremendously while maintaining a strong durable skin.
Interior: TC Kline has contracted with Recaro to produce a one piece shell performance seat specifically for the CR upholstered in Alcantera and Leather. These light weight performance seats feature cutouts for a driver harness and will have exceptional support while maintaining excellent driver comfort. These Recaro/TC Kline seats are similar to those found in the E46 BMW M3 CSL or the Porsche Carrera GT.
The Drive Train: On the 25th of October, 2005, BMW AG introduced the Z4 M Roadster. The Z4 M Roadster incorporates the E46 M3 Drive train. The TC Kline CR is based on that car and shares its 3.2 liter motor, 6 Speed Transmission and M Lock Differential. TC Kline upgrades the drive train with an Aluminum flywheel for quicker throttle response, improved acceleration and lighter weight. TC Kline has also developed a thin wall stainless steel exhaust system for the CR. This exhaust system is significantly lighter than the stock system, improves horse power by 13 and has the outlet in the center of the rear bumper between the two Carbon Fiber Diffusers.
The Suspension: KONI Double Adjustable Coil-Over struts and rear shocks valved to TC Kline Specifications are already accepted by the BMW enthusiast as the standard for street and track performance and directly contribute to the 1.06G cornering grip the CR develops. The suspension springs for the CR are made in Germany from a light weight alloy steel and TC Kline has a variety of spring rates available which allow the owner to tune the CR to their personal taste. The CR front struts are topped off with TC Kline designed front Camber Plates for quicker turn-in and steering feel and Delrin bushings replace the standard rubber bushings in the front lower arms and rear trailing arms for quicker response and markedly improved feel. These TC Kline components significantly reduce the unsprung weight resulting in a more responsive suspension.
Brakes: Performance Friction Corp. has created extremely rigid and light weight aluminum MonoBloc calipers for use on the CR. The front caliper is a four piston design with four brake pads for superior modulation and high brake torque and the rear caliper is a two piston design sharing the same pads. The large floating rotors have aluminum hats for light weight. The front rotor diameter in 345 mm, and 328mm rotors are on the rear. The PFC Carbon Metallic Brake Pads offer exceptional brake loads for extremely short stopping distances. These ultra performance brakes also contribute significantly to reducing the unsprung weight of the Carbon Roadster.
Wheels and Tires: The final design for the wheels has not been determined, however, the specifications have. As on this prototype, all four wheels will be a one piece forged aluminum design for the lightest weight and strength. The CR standard front wheels are 19×9.5″ and the rears are 19×10.5″. Optional wheels in 18×9.5″ and 18×10.5″ will be available in forged aluminum as well for those drivers who want to take advantage of a larger selection of ‘R’ Compound tires and/or are interested in a more comfortable street ride. Magnesium forged wheels will be offered in 18×10″ front, 18×11″ rear for optimum track performance. The Michelin Pilot Sport Cup is currently the highest performance tire available for the street. The standard sizes for the CR are 265/30×19 front and 295/25×19 rear, (Not yet available). These Sport Cup tires produced 1.06 G cornering in a Car and Driver test driving a TC Kline Z4 using the same suspension as supplied on the CR. The Michelin PS2 Ultra high performance tire will be available in both 18 and 19″ as a no charge option. The PS2 tires offer extended wear with less grip than the Sport Cup tires.
06/12, 12:16 PM
posted by:
Alphard
looks clean…
06/12, 12:22 PM
posted by:
Surya
*drool* I have been eyeing the Z4M for a while now. Anybody know if this is a USA available product and not an Europe special? Thanks.
06/12, 12:25 PM
posted by:
Surya
Actually I just googled it….around 90k…steep…but damn nice!
06/12, 12:47 PM
posted by:
Renton
Drools…………..
I’ll bet it is an insane ride. The handling transitions must be lightning fast with all that weight gone.
The design is very sharp, not overdone. I do miss the ultra-cool Roundel side turn signals though. Put those back on.
06/12, 12:57 PM
posted by:
zalew
awful…. although it’s a very interesting project, how could they change the awesome z4 violin-like side-lines…
06/12, 1:00 PM
posted by:
Hans
The car on the pictures hast the taillights of the Pre-Facelift Z4 Roadster, which wasn’t availible as an M. I think I saw those pictures before and i doubt they are from the M Roadster.
06/12, 1:17 PM
posted by:
zalew
http://www.caranddriver.com/features/9748/specialty-file-tc-kline-racing-bmw-z4-page2.html
here it is said it’s based on the z4 not the z4m. it’s a press release linked on tc kline website.
06/12, 1:43 PM
posted by:
Left Lane News
That is *not* the same car. This one has a carbon body. That one just has performance upgrades and some weight savings.
06/12, 1:48 PM
posted by:
Toy Yoda
400 pounds less, wow. Begs the question, can a standard bmw skin really be that heavy?
06/12, 2:01 PM
posted by:
ã‚コ
looks so sick however the exhaust looks so tiny
06/12, 2:50 PM
posted by:
aj
Still a z4 with some horrible origami crease marks. Yoogly.
06/12, 5:23 PM
posted by:
az
ugh, the profile shot looks terrible. The upper design line on the door interupts the look of the car. Too bad, the rest of the car looks fantastic.
06/12, 6:26 PM
posted by:
Cartman
It does bring to the surface the rather obvious point that BMWs are generally overinflated and bloated pigs. This should be the standard M car not some tuner special. Make the materials slightly less exotic and shave off only half the weight and split the price difference. I’d be sold.
06/12, 7:08 PM
posted by:
VDub
price?
06/12, 9:01 PM
posted by:
1c3d0g
#14: see #3…next time please look up the comments first.
06/12, 11:22 PM
posted by:
manny
they redid the entire body and it barely looks better… and its not like making it look better is hard…
06/13, 3:23 AM
posted by:
Toy Yoda
Cartman.
You are right about BMWs being bloated. I have a 6er. I love the car, but I can’t help but feel the car is a bloated pig at times. There are a handful of SUVs lighter than my car. I could have gone with a 3 coupe, but the 3 coupe looks like a sedan missing 2 doors. The Z would be the lighter choice for people who prefer the looks of the 6er, but the Z is also a bloated pig for the size of the car.
People like to say these days that HP don’t matter, that it’s weight:hp ratio that counts. But, weight alone is probably the most underrated performance stat, and in many ways the most important stat. Brakes can make a cars go faster. You can’t hide weight.
06/13, 6:43 AM
posted by:
Hans
I agree with you, that a car, that is supposed to be driven fast should be as light as possible. But the Z4 is not supposed to be pure race car. And lets take a look at the competition. The Z4 is by far the lightest:
Z4 1,365 kg
SLK 350 1,465 kg
Boxster S 1,462kg
Nissan 350Z 1,520kg
06/13, 8:57 AM
posted by:
El blog de Tuning » Blog Archive » BMW Z4 M Roadster a dieta
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06/13, 10:41 AM
posted by:
Toy Yoda
Who is saying the Z4 should be a pure race car? All we are saying is the Z4 feels heavy and can do with shaving off a couple of hundred pounds. Sure, the Z4 might be the lightest in it’s class, but that still doesn’t take away the fact that it just feels bloated, along with all those cars on your list.
To keep this in perspective, an Alfa Romeo spider from 1974 weighs about 50kgs less than a Z4. It’s actually quite impressive, but you would think with all the modern materials car mfg have today, they could have trimmed the weight of the Z4.
These guys need to figure out a way to make carbon fibre cheaper and pass on the weight savings to the customers… withouth the cost, of course.
06/13, 10:50 AM
posted by:
Cartman
Toy Yoda I completely agree with you. I had an E36 M3 and to me that was the last model that didn’t feel bloated and crammed with too much technology. The trip computer with a lap timer and mpg readout was about as much technology as I really needed. When it came time to sell I looked at the E46 but the extra power seemed to be neutered with a lot of extra weight and techno junk I didn’t want or need (parking sensor thingies on the rear bumper for example). I’m not saying there isn’t a place for all that stuff in the 5 and 7 series but how about some more focused and proper sports cars for the enthusiasts. I think the new M coupe is a step in the right direction but they could certainly do more. I know there has been a management change in the M division and the new guy is supposedly quite focused on weight reduction, so it seems at least there is some awareness of the issue and perhaps a bright future ahead. BMW no doubt has the talent to do it right.
06/13, 11:47 AM
posted by:
Toy Yoda
Is BMW a publicly traded company? If it is, I think your hopes for a light sport enthusiast car will be cut short. As long as shareholders pressure BMW into more profits BMW will be forced to cater to a much wider audience. The sports driving enthusiast is simply not that big of a market.
I mean, you see it already. Does BMW need to make sporty SUVs? Driving an Xx isn’t sporty at all. Yeah, the badge snobs will say it’s still the sportiest of the SUVs in the markat. What the heck is the point of that? I want an SUV with more utility for outdoor sports than a sporty utility vehicle.
I believe as companies gets larger they are forced to cater to more people and “dilute” their well defined original charter vision. I think it will happen to BMW if it hasn’t happened already. And I’m not afraid to admit itt, but the Evos and the WRX of today represent to me the spirit of what BMW was 30 years ago; a sport car you can drive daily, instead of a sport-luxury car you can drive daily. I know the badge snobs will flame me. Screw ‘em.
06/13, 9:57 PM
posted by:
az
Quandt family owns controlling share of BMW.
06/14, 6:04 AM
posted by:
sh.yoon
Toy Yoda, your argument comparing the weight of cars from 1974 and of 2006 is unfounded. Yes, we do use lighter and more stronger materials than before, but you fail to mention that the fact that the cars of 2006 must incorporate mandatory safety features (airbags, catalytic converters) which were not in cars from thirty or so years ago. All of this adds extra weight, weight that cannot be removed.