BMW's New Shooting Brake Concept Is the Revived Clownshoe of our Fantasies

BMW produced a number of shooting brake concepts in the past, while some markets even got the M3 Touring just recently. Now, the Bavarians are teasing us with the Concept Touring Coupé, a Z4-based longroof produced for this weekend’s Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este. This one, though, is strictly a one-off.

Eleven years ago, BMW presented its Zagato Coupé at Villa d’Este. That car is a shooting brake concept based on the previous generation Z4, produced in collaboration with the Milanese coachbuilder. That Z coupé also had a roadster variant presented earlier at Pebble Beach. In production for five years now, the current Z4 is strictly a soft top roadster, sharing its basic architecture with the Toyota GR Supra. Both cars are manufactured in Austria by Magna Steyr. Yet since we all remember the Z3 M “Clown Shoe” very well, BMW felt it was time for a new evolution.

“A timeless symbol of freedom on four wheels” is how BMW sees the Concept Touring Coupe. Apparently inspired by both the winner of the 1940 Mille Miglia, the iconic 328 Touring Coupe, and the much more accessible compact hatchback, the 02 Touring produced between 1971 and ‘74, the Z4-based shooting brake is powered by the turbocharged 3.0 straight-six engine. That means no manual transmission and an output between 335 and 382 horsepower.

BMW came up with a new shade for the concept called Sparkling Lario. It’s a brown fading into grey, boosted by flakes of blue glass in the paint. The trim pieces feature a silver-bronze finish, while the shooting brake rides on unique 20-spoke alloys measuring 21 inches at the rear, and 20 inches at the front axle.

Last but certainly not least in case of a two-seat shooting brake, the leather of the dual-tone interior were produced by the Italian experts at Poltrona Frau, while the custom luggage set is the work of the Modena-based Schedoni leather company. With two large and one small weekender bags, plus the garment bag fitted perfectly in the back, the new six-cylinder Z4 Clown Shoe is something we can now lust after even without any hope for series production. Still, one might argue that the Touring Coupe is the Z4 variant BMW is missing from its lineup.

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