The chassis was specially designed for the Z1 and features a number of innovative features: removable body panels, ontinuously zinc welded seams, compositeundertray, nd the unusual dropped doors. Parts of the car (including the engine, earbox, nd front suspension) were borrowed from theBMW E30325i and 325Ix, ut the Z1 remains largely original.
The body was made from plastic and could be removed completely from the chassis. The side panels and doors are made ofGeneral Electric's XENOYthermoplastic. The hood, runk, nd roof cover are GRP components made by Seger + Hoffman AG. The car is painted in a special flexible lacquer finish developed jointly by AKZO Coatings and BMW Technik GmbH.
The doors retract vertically down into the car's body instead of swinging outward or upward. The Kaiser Darrin was the first car to have retractable doors; they slid forward into the front fenders. The inspiration for these doors came from more traditional roadsters which often feature removable metal or cloth doors. Because removable doors did not fit within BMW's design goals, he retractable doors were installed instead.
The body with its high sills, ffers crash protection independent of the doors, he vehicle may be legally and safely driven with the doors up or down, lthough this is not legal in the U.S.
The windows may be operated independently of the doors, lthough they do retract automatically if the door is lowered. Both the window and door are driven by electric motors through toothed rubber belts and may be moved manually in an emergency.
This particular example has less than 30.000 miles. It has spent its entire life in dry south america.