BMW Z8 Prices Are Soaring, We Look at the Numbers

Seeing that we are celebrating Open Top Month here on autoevolution, we thought we'd look at some of the most memorable cars in this category of all time. What are the attributes that define such a vehicle, though? Is it all about the design cues, or perhaps the engine it utilizes?

Do you care more about owning a rare car than you care about owning a fast one? Where do you draw the line? We thought we'd start with the somewhat controversial BMW Z8.

The Z8 was designed in the '90s by Henrik Fisker. It was meant as a celebration of the late '50s BMW 507, and it wasn't hard for it to outshine the old BMW Z3. Just over 5,700 units were built between 2000 and 2003. The 2003 Alpina Roadster V8 replaced the Z8 after production stopped in November of 2002.

As you can guess, the Alpina is a much more exclusive vehicle, with only 555 of them ever being built. While the Z8 was powered by the same engine found inside the BMW M5 E39, the Roadster V8 was fitted with a 4.8-liter unit that was shared with the Alpina E39 B10 V8 S.

With 395-hp and 369 lb-ft (500 Nm) on tap, you could say that the Z8 was the sportier version of the two. Meanwhile, the Alpina was more of a Grand Tourer, with 375-hp and 383 lb-ft (519 Nm) of torque.

One more major difference between the two was the transmission: a six-speed manual for the Z8 but a 5-speed automatic for the Alpina. Back in the day, the Z8 was featured in both a well-known videogame - Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2- and an internationally acclaimed movie featuring James Bond: The World Is Not Enough.

With that in mind, it becomes obvious that getting your hands on a BMW Z8 could be quite the investment. For today's case study, we've chosen to look at the auction history of the model via Bring a Trailer.

While the site went online in 2007, it took another few years until a BMW Z8 was listed on it. Back in 2015, a 2002 Titanium Silver Metallic Z8 with 20,000 miles (32,186 km) on its odometer was auctioned off for $167,000. This color happens to be the most common one for the Z8. A total of 3,182 units rolled out of the factory like this.

Up next, the most common color for the Z8 is Jet Black, with a total of 1,572 units. This is where it all becomes even more exclusive: 319 cars were finished in Topaz Blue, 291 of them in Bright Red, and 196 in Stratus Gray.

So you can already start to predict a pattern of pricing in correlation with the color of the car. Over the past 7 years, BaT has had 121 different auctions featuring either the Z8 or the Roadster V8.

But it all started rather slow in 2015, 2016, and 2017. Out of a total of five listings, only two cars switched owners. For the other auctions, the minimum reserve was not met. Things took off in 2018, with 13 auctions in total.

Only eight of those cars were sold, while five didn't reach the minimum reserve. At the same time, this was the first year for an Alpina to be listed on the auction site. Back then, the most expensive car to trade hands was a 2001 Z8: it went for $178,000. We did the math, and the average price for the Z8 that year was $152,750.

The volume of trading doubled in 2019, with a total of 22 cars being listed up for sale. We all know how 2020 went, so it's no wonder that sales went down for that year. But in 2021, 39 Z8s were sold via BaT.

Three of those were Alpina models. As we're publishing this, we're halfway through 2022. A total of 23 Z8 auctions have concluded so far, and 20 of those cars have found new owners. But let's get back to analyzing how prices for the German-built roadster have evolved.

As of now, the most expensive one to be sold via BaT was a 34-mile Alpina: the new owner paid $478,000 for it in February of this year! That leads to a 168% increase compared to the most expensive one sold in 2018! Sure, not everyone is going to chase after the most exclusive Z8 they can find.

So what about the average prices? In 2018, the level was set at $152,750. In five-years time, the average is up to $292,810: that's a 91% increase! If you're keen on adding another car to your garage, the Z8 has the potential to double your investment in a few years. If you can afford the initial cost, either a Topaz Blue Z8 or any low-mileage Alpina Roadster V8 will most likely render the best possible return. Have fun shopping!