His interpretation of the 7-series may have drawn a barrage of flak, but if the Z4 is anything to go by, he must have armour-plated confidence in his 'Flame Surfacing'.

What you make of it is your own business. Styling is totally subjective after all, and much as I hate to trot out the 'Ooh, it looks much better in the metal' tosh, it really does look much better in the metal. Not beautiful or especially cohesive, and certainly not conventional, but if you're at all open-minded, Bangle's bravery and originality is nothing if not stimulating.

Compare it with the Z3 and it certainly has a greater air of assurance about it. The contrived, fishy gills have gone. So, too, has the bland, nondescript tail. The simple, all-nose proportions remain, but the flanks are a riot of apparently conflicting lines, creases and curves that, from a few angles at least, harmonise into a shape bursting with kinetic energy. Shame it looks like a pig's ear from others.

The interior is less challenging, but a more obvious improvement over the Z3. With a curved swage of brushed aluminium bisecting the dashboard, simple, chunky ventilation controls and a bold pair of dials sunk into a hooded binnacle, the Z4 has a quality look and feel. The steering wheel is adjustable, too, which makes it much easier to get comfortable than in the Z3. You sit a little lower in the car, too, although there's still a sense of being on it rather than in it, compared with, say, a Honda S2000 or Boxster.

Aside from the styling, the big news is the adoption of the current 3-series multi-link rear suspension instead of the Z3's archaic semi-trailing-arm axle. There's increased torsional rigidity, too - more than twice that of the Z3 - to give the suspension a more solid, consistent platform on which to work. Should this not be enough to keep you on the road there's Dynamic Traction Control and Dynamic Stability Control to catch your fall, unless you've exercised your right to switch both systems off - something BMW seriously considered denying us.

As a result of the hardware upgrade, the sophistication of the ride and handling is leagues better than in the Z3. Strange then, not to mention disappointing, that the sensations you get behind the wheel are remarkably similar to the old car's. This could be largely due to the fact that your butt cheeks nestle just ahead of the rear wheels. Consequently, when you point the Z4 into a corner, the endless bonnet peels in to the apex well before you do. This sensory satellite delay does little to bring you in phase with the Z4's responses, and combined with the numb electrically-assisted (a first for a BMW), non-linear steering and the chassis' tendency towards steady-state understeer, it's no wonder things can feel slightly out of kilter when you're pressing on.

Equipped with our test car's optional Sport suspension and 18in wheel/tyre combo, it's very much a neat and tidy machine, best driven with control and discipline. While the front end communicates that its limit is near via gentle but increasingly resolute understeer, the tail is firmly planted but tight-lipped as to where the limit really is. Provocation is the only route to oversteer, but when it does kick loose it's a sulky, short-tempered slide, and the tail snaps back into line very sharply. The steering doesn't have enough feel while you're applying corrective lock, and it's all too easy to hold the opposite lock on fractionally too long and induce a clumsy fishtail. Not a natural-born hellraiser, then.

Does that really matter? To many of the Z4's intended customers, probably not. BMW may like to think it occupies a rarefied atmosphere in the sports car sector (as it does with its fine range of saloons and coupί¿½s), when the truth is that the Z3 was an unashamed volume seller, with driving dynamics coming a poor second. The Z4 aims and partially succeeds in redressing the dynamic deficit, but at best it occupies the middle ground between the underwhelming SLK and the benchmark-setting Boxster. To be honest, the Porsche isn't a hellraiser either - only TVR's Tamora is truly hirsute of arse in this sector - but Stuttgart's effort doesn't just do neat and tidy, it defines the discipline.

The chassis may have some shortcomings but there's nothing wrong with the Z4 3.0's performance. With a top speed of 155mph and a claimed 0-62mph time of 5.9sec, it has serious sporting credentials. Not that this should come as any great surprise - its 2979cc straight-six is a peach. Smooth, grunty and effortlessly revvy, it throws the 1290kg sports car down the road with real conviction. No longer hamstrung by the Z3's stubby dimensions, the Z4 has room for a six-speed manual gearbox, which adds to the sense of urgency on a cut-and-thrust country road. It certainly feels more lively than a basic Boxster and perhaps even a Boxster S in the mid-range.

Swift though the 3.0-litre model is, there's little more in the Z4's repertoire to worry Boxster owners. Not that BMW's bean counters will worry unduly, for the far inferior Z3 out-sold Boxster two-to-one and Z4 is expected to be even more prolific. Of more concern to BMW, privately at any rate, must be how the public reacts to the Z4's styling, for in such an image-driven sector aesthetics are everything. If potential buyers don't 'get' the new Z's look there'll be some furrowed brows in Bavaria.

Naturally, when asked about an M version of the Z4, BMW's top brass went all coy - a sure sign that something is in the pipeline. With proper rear suspension and the attentions of Herr Richter and his team, it should be awesome. Sadly, it's unlikely to arrive with the other Z4s in 2003. Until then, if you're serious about sports cars, stick to the Boxster, Tamora, S2000 or Elise.