BMW’s new-for-2025 Z4 M40i has a lot going for it: Six-speed manual gearbox, 3.0-liter turbocharged straight-six cylinder engine, rear-wheel-drive, and the roof can be lowered at the touch of a button. It’s a drop-top Toyota Supra draped in German clothes, and somehow it makes for one of the most surprisingly enjoyable cars on sale today.

Response to the current generation Toyota Supra, with which the Z4 shares its bones, has been lukewarm. Love/hate, if you will. Meanwhile, the standard Z4 has been hiding behind the curtains, a car reserved for leisurely cruises and casual top-down motoring. Sure, it was quick enough, but there wasn’t any real pizzazz. And then BMW announced the Z4 M40i, and many of us reveled in the return of an available manual gearbox in the Z4 line, and the result is better than expected.

There’s just something right about the Z4 M40i’s personality. It’s not overly aggressive, angry, or stiff; the suspension is plenty compliant, the steering light but with enough feedback for a BMW-badged sports car, and the engine raucous in a light-the-fuse kind of way. It’s easy to poke around town in Comfort mode with the roof up, music on, and just go about a leisurely stroll of a drive, and the M40i is equally happy to run ferociously up to redline, exhaust shouting six cylinders of fury, six-speed stick snapping between gears. More clutch feel and a bit tighter of a shifter would be nice, but that’s not the Z4 M40i’s vibe.

It’s on that notion that the Z4 M40i lives in a bit of its own land. The test car seen here carried a base price of $66,450 and was optioned up to $77,470. That pricing puts it in the territory of very lightly-optioned C8 Corvettes and 718 Boxsters/Caymans. These options are faster and sharper, so don’t go about comparing the BMW to the Chevy and Porsches exclusively on the front of performance.

As much as outright performance isn’t the Z4 M40i’s number one motive, it’s no slouch. The 3.0-liter turbocharged inline six cylinder engine makes 382 horsepower and 369 lb-ft of torque, but everyone knows BMW underrates their engines, so figure it makes that much punch at the tires and even more at the crank. The Z4 M40i feels like a healthy 400+ horsepower car, probably more like 420, and it scoots properly well for a ~3,500 pound vehicle.

It’s that weight that makes the BMW both good and bad depending on how you look at it. On the downside, the car is a few hundred pounds heavier than would be ideal for really sporty driving, but on the upside it makes for a wonderfully compliant vehicle when being driven like, well, a car, and not a race car– that is, the way it’ll be driven most of the time.

Despite the weight, some of what BMW has done to improve the car for special-version stick-shift M40i duty just makes it inherently good to drive. The gearbox has been specially modified for this application, with M-specific components for the gear set and shafts, and the chassis has been tuned for a sharper experience overall versus the automatic-equipped counterpart. Other goodies like reinforced anti-roll bar clamps and remapped electronic controls for the dampers help the car’s case while trim-specific traction control helps keep things fun but in check.

You’d be lying if you said you notice any of those components over lesser versions of the Z4 unless you drive them back to back, yet the overall experience is a cohesive one, with the engine, transmission, chassis, and suspension creating a surprisingly analog and simple-feeling driving experience given the amount of tech on board. This feels like a modernized, powerhouse version of the old-school roadster formula, and it’s extremely refreshing.

And maybe that’s the biggest thing to understand about the Z4 M40i. It’s not the most finely tuned driving instrument out there, and that’s perfectly fine; it doesn’t to be. There’s enough room in its class for there to be options for those of different taste, and the 2025 BMW Z4 M40i, when equipped with the six-speed manual transmission, is the kind of taste that appeals to a narrow cross-section of folks who will likely either don’t know what they’re missing or will be absolutely head-over-heels in love with the car. I’m in the latter camp, having loved every single second behind the wheel, and I found the Z4 M40i to be just the right combination of modern tech and old-school driving joy. It’s a hidden gem in the car enthusiast driving scene if there ever was one in 2024.

Yay

• A 6-speed manual transmission BMW roadster, as the car gods intended
• Rowdy performance when you get into it
• Comfortable seats; comfortable ride quality
• Pleasant to spend time in with the top up or down
• Immediate directness from steering; willing chassis
• Attractive styling, especially compared to other modern BMWs
• A “complete package” of a sports car with power, handling, and fun

Nay

• Could use an in-between exhaust mode for when quiet is too quiet and loud is too loud
• Steering feel is lacking compared to that of classmates
• Price inching towards too much
• Electronic parking brake
• Where’s the full-fledged M version? Would love to see this fully unleashed

The Takeaway

The 2025 BMW Z4 M40i won’t keep up with a comparably-priced Boxster or C8 Corvette dynamically but it doesn’t have to; with the upgrades applied to what very well may be the BMW’s last roadster powered exclusively by gasoline, the company has created a sensational motoring experience in the Z4 M40i, one that will likely often be overlooked but never should. This is a gem of a car in a class of greats, and what it lacks in at-the-limit performance it more than makes up for in the enjoyment it provides the driver day-in and day-out.