Much to my chagrin and my ability to perceive when a car is losing traction, the Z4 was equipped with Continental SportContact 4 tires which only carry the slightest impression of a tread to meet legal roadworthiness standards. Would the Continentals grip the pavement on a nice Spring day without a hitch? The answer is probably yes. Do the tires accomplish the same feat when it’s 13 degrees out in February? I can say, from sufficient experience, the answer is no.
The aforementioned mashing of the accelerator was sometimes accompanied by the car going absolutely nowhere in the forward direction and everywhere at once sideways. In short, the tires probably weren’t the best choice for Southern Pennsylvania in Winter. At the risk of upsetting my mom who will likely be reading this and my car insurance agent, it was really fun when the back end of the BMW kicked out from loss of traction and the engine howled in protest.
With a car that has as much power on tap and as little tire tread as the BMW, it garners a healthy amount of respect when you are taking it through its paces. I am, frankly, not used to driving a car as capable as the Z4, especially when it’s acting as my daily driver. It requires wisdom to operate in a way that doesn’t end with you and a nearly $80,000 BMW leaving the road in a manner that the manufacturer did not intend. English poet William Cowper said “Knowledge—a rude, unprofitable mass, the mere materials with which Wisdom builds.” Wisdom definitely built in me over the course of the week. My daily driver is a 2017 Chevy Cruze, a car that is perhaps diametrically opposed to what a car like the BMW Z4 represents, at least when it comes to performance and practicality.
