With only 5,703 units produced, the BMW Z8 is a sought-after youngtimer. Those who own one of the 555 BMW Alpina V8s can consider themselves lucky. Collectors are willing to pay several hundred thousand euros for the Buchloe version of the roadster. We took this automotive gem for a spin in Tuscany.
From Buchloe to the USA. It sounds a bit odd at first. What could a small Bavarian town offer that would be of interest across the Atlantic? Anyone familiar with the cars from Munich knows the answer: BMW vehicles refined by the local tuner, Alpina. So far, so good, but when it comes to the BMW Z8, things get even more interesting. The initially underrated roadster is already a rarity, and as an Alpina? Only 555 units were built, intended for the North American market under the name BMW Alpina Roadster V8. Anyone who manages to acquire one today must be ready to pay several hundred thousand euros. More than for a BMW Z8.
As is often the case in life: there are exceptions to the rule. Alpina was allowed to produce 105 vehicles for the EU market. The informal approach at the time is evident from the fact that the BMW chassis number intended for the US models was simply crossed out and replaced with Alpina’s own VIN. Roadster and USA mean California. The Alpina strategists knew that they needed to differentiate from the BMW original and emphasize the cruiser character.
Technically, this means a V8 engine (code Alpina F5) with 4,837 instead of BMW’s 4,941 cubic centimetres of displacement, slightly less power at 280 kW / 381 PS instead of 294 kW / 400 PS, but with 520 Newton meters of torque, 20 Nm more. The whole setup is combined with a five-speed automatic instead of a six-speed manual gearbox. The idea is clear from these numbers. More cruiser than sports car. Still, in the Alpina V8, you can manually select individual gears with a plus and minus button on the steering wheel. So, the Alpina has enough firepower. The performance figures are still impressive. From a standstill, the Alpina reaches the 100 km/h mark in 5.3 seconds, six-tenths of a second later than the BMW, but with a top speed of 260 km/h, it’s ten km/h faster.
So, it’s California Dreamin’ instead of Bavarian Alpine passes and repeated full-throttle attacks. The comfortably tuned suspension fits this as well. This doesn’t mean the Alpina V8 is a soft American car. Quite the opposite: you can let the roadster really fly. Our model is equipped with the Performance Package, as seen in the strut bar running across the engine bay. The reason for this retrofit is the aluminium space frame of the handsome Munich roadster, which saves weight but proved too “soft” when driving over potholes or curbs, especially when fitted with run-flat tyres that have stiffer sidewalls and don’t absorb kinetic energy as well as conventional tyres. Therefore, the front end had to be stiffened, which also benefits agility. So, the American Z8 handles quite swiftly even in the picturesque Tuscan landscape. We let it fly and enjoy the smoky sound of the eight cylinders under the hood.
We enjoy the drive along winding roads, through sleepy little villages where people sit on small chairs in the shade watching the traffic pass by, or in one of the many street cafes enjoying an espresso. Today, the highway 101 leads us through northern Italy, where cypress trees line the road instead of Pacific waves. The strategy of the Buchloe-based tuner pays off. The Alpina V8 is no less fun than its Munich brother with the Z in its name. On the contrary: the more comfortably tuned suspension proves to be a good choice on northern Italian roads.
In the cockpit, the Buchloe-based Alpina doesn’t hide its genes. The car is a spectacle. Even the instruments offset to the right and the hard plastic extravaganza of the dashboard are part of the Alpina V8 experience. It’s not exactly luxurious, but you can overlook that in a vehicle like this. There is one small detail in the cockpit worth noting: where BMW leaves nothing behind the steering wheel, Alpina has installed a small hood that shows the automatic settings. From the outside, the roadster still fascinates, even 24 or 22 years (the Alpina V8 debuted in 2002) after its launch, as evidenced by the smiling faces of fashion-conscious Italians on their scooters swarming around the two-seater like moths to a flame.
