The BMW Z3 was BMW's first mass produced mass market roadster, and was the first new BMW model to be manufactured in the United States. E36/7 refers to the roadster variant of the Z3 which was introduced in 1995, and E36/8 refers to the coupe variant of the Z3 which was released in 1999. The Z in Z1, Z3, Z4, Z8 stands for Zukunft, which is German for future. The BMW Z3 was introduced via video press release by BMW North America on June 12, 1995 and made a short appearance in the James Bond film GoldenEye on November 17, 1995. Karen Sortito was responsible for the campaign, and sales of the Z3 spiked as the film sat at number one at the Box Office. In the 1996 production run, more than 15,000 roadsters were sold out by the time the car was introduced.[2] A facelift for the car was introduced in 2000, and the Z3 ended production in 2002 when it was replaced by the BMW Z4

007 Bond Edition

Z3 Roadster James Bond Edition

A blue BMW Z3 roadster prototype was provided for filming of the James Bond movie GoldenEye at the Leavesden Aerodrome in January 1995.Karen Sortito was responsible for the campaign, and sales of the car spiked as the movie hit number one at the Box Office. More than 15,000 roadsters were sold out by the time the car was introduced for the 1996 production run, and the Z3 appeared briefly when Bond was driving in Cuba. The Z3's appearance in the film was controversial however, as it was the first non-British production car to appear in a Bond film, but the Z3 was also one of the few Bond cars that is not destroyed. In the movie, the car featured stinger missiles hidden behind the headlights, an emergency parachute braking system and a radar scanner in the form of a LCD screen in the dashboard. It is also noted during the briefing scene, that the car contains a passenger ejector seat and a self-destruct system.

A Bond 007 Z3 was available for purchase in the Neiman Marcus Christmas Catalog for USD$35,000. BMW and Neiman Marcus had originally set a 20 unit sales goal, but was later increased to 100 units after receiving 100 orders. The BMW Z3 007 Edition featured a 007 dash plaque, a Hi-Fi system with a subwoofer and CD, a telephone, beige leather seats, 007 Bond floor mats, a wind deflector, special wheels and a wooden gear shifter, centre console and steering wheel. The exterior colour was called Bond Blue Gray. Buyers also had a choice of a manual or automatic transmission.