The first Z series was the E30 Z1. It was introduced in 1987 and had the engine from the E30 325i. The Z1 went out of production in 1992.

The next Z series was the Z3 wich was introduced in 1995. First it was only available as 1.8 but in 1996 the 1.9 came available. In 1997 the 2.8 was introduced. It had a six cylinder engine with 193 HP. In 1998 a new Z3 coupe was introduced. This model is only available with the 2.8 six cylinder.

In 1999 the Z series received a facelift and the 2.0 six cylinder replaced the 1.9 four cylinder. This was the same year that the Z8 was introduced. This new model has an eight cylinder engine with 400 HP. This year the Z3 2.8 will be replaced by a new Z3 3.0.

The Z3 did not need much extra publicity hype after appearing in James Bond's Goldeneye. Later models had larger engines of up to the 3.2-litre 236 kW (321 hp) from the M3. The Z3 is based on the E36 three series with a slightly reduced wheelbase.