2002 BMW Z8 (E52)

• First registered on the 4th October 2002 and understood to be one of just 8 cars supplied to the UK in Topaz Blue Metallic with a Cream and Topaz interior
• Just 37 examples were produced in this colour scheme out of a global production of 5,703 cars and fewer than 150 cars were supplied new to the UK
• Visiting only BMW main dealers for servicing, the car has been covered just 366 miles (atoc) having been in a collection for the past 17 years
• It is a testament to the diligence of our vendor that despite a service in 2020 the car will be trailered to his local BMW dealership for a service prior to the sale
• Presented to auction in outstanding condition with hardtop, wind deflector, car cover, tool roll, service keys and unused Motorola Star Tac telephone
• The history file includes the V5C, January 2022 issued MOT, service receipts and leather bound wallet containing the handbooks and service book

Penned by Henrik Fisker the BMW Z8 was initially a concept styling exercise to evoke and pay homage to the stunning BMW 507 produced in the late Fifties. Due to the sensation it caused at the 1997 Tokyo Auto Show, BMW decided to go into production and production ran from 1999 to 2003 for a total run of 5,703 cars with approximately half going to the USA, the rest to continental Europe, and fewer than 150 cars supplied to the UK.

An engineering indulgence by BMW it featured an aluminium space frame body and the famous 5-litre DOHC 32-valve V8 engine produced 400 bhp, situated behind the line of the front axle, giving the Z8 virtually perfect 50/50 weight distribution and enabling it to out-perform its contemporary benchmark rivals in all departments. The contemporaneous Ferrari 360 Modena was left inadequate in terms of performance, handling and braking. Road tests by period magazines frequently better the quoted 0-60mph times supplied by BMW and many achieved figures of circa 4 seconds. Most remarkable was its pure driving pleasure and its effortless 'Grand Tourer' capabilities. BMWs mantra of 'The Ultimate Driving Machine' was certainly appropriate when it came to the Z8.

Having been a mainstay of the Bond series for four decades Desmond Llewelyn retired as “Q” in the 1999 film The World is Not Enough, where, in his poignant final scene, he issued Pierce Brosnan’s James Bond with a BMW Z8. Whilst entering the James Bond Car Hall of Fame helped somewhat with filling the order books it is universally agreed that it is the Z8’s capability as a modern supercar that saw to its success. Delivered only in left-hand drive, fewer than 150 cars were supplied new to the UK and this car finished in the rare combination of Topaz Blue with Cream and Topaz interior was one of just eight cars supplied to these shores out of thirty-seven examples globally produced in the same colour combination.

This car was first registered on the 4^th October 2002 and has been serviced at the following intervals:

19^th August 2002 PDI by Crossflags BMW of Dumfries, Scotland

8^th June 2004 service by Hexagon BMW, Finchley, London at 361 miles

22^nd October 2020 service by Sytner BMW, Sunningdale, Surrey at 365 miles

14th February 2022 by Sytner BMW, Sunningdale, Surrey at 366 miles

Our vendor took over ownership in 2020 and the car joined an eclectic collection of classic Mercedes-Benz, rare Aston Martins, interesting Americana, modern BMWs and even a special little Fiat 500. An enthusiast first and a collector second our vendor prefers to drive his cars and whilst he acknowledges that the Z8 is a work of art the car’s ultra-low mileage of just 365 miles, at the time of cataloguing, is better suited for an important collection or a museum. Presented to auction in outstanding condition with matching factory hard top, wind deflector, tool roll, car cover and unused Motorola Star Tac telephone still wearing its protective screen film and mounted in the central cubby. The factory handbooks, including service book, in their original leather wallet accompany the car along with a leather Z8 key cover and service keys. For such a low mileage modern car it is natural to expect a slimmer maintenance history and the stamped service book is accompanied by previous main dealer receipts. It is a testament to our vendor’s diligence that although a main dealer service was carried out in 2020 he will trailer the car to his local BMW dealership for a service prior to sale, with barely a mile travelled in two years. The most recent MOT was issued in January 2022.

We can only describe our vendor as a “proper chap” who is content to incur the cost of trailering the Z8 to a main dealer for a service purely for the buyer’s piece of mind with barely a mile covered since the last service. Most of the world records achieved by Silverstone Auctions have been for ultra-low mileage cars but this car is perhaps unique as a model driven by James Bond, supplied in a colour combination that only thirty-seven cars were finished in with just eight officially delivered to the United Kingdom and supplied to auction with 365 miles from new.