We could be mere days away from the official debut of BMW's new Z4, which has long been predicted to share parts with the forthcoming Toyota Supra, and now the two models have been spotted during test laps at Germany's famed Nürburgring track. A pair of Supras had previously been caught making the rounds, but the new clip shows plenty of angles of both cars, highlighting similarities and differences between the external design details of the two models.
Toyota gave the industry at large a peek at the general form of the Supra during this year's Goodwood Festival of Speed, but even that car had been clad in a geometric camo pattern to help conceal the most angular tidbits of its form. Both the Z4 and Supra in the newly released clip are clad in a more industry-standard, washed-out camouflage, though the overall exterior profile of the two models manages to shine through.
The Z4 seems likely to be revealed in full on August 26at the 2018 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. The new iteration's concept car was revealed at the event one year ago, and BMW has stated that a reveal of some kind is coming this year. In the meantime, as if to further solidify the connection between Toyota and BMW, a trio of leaked photos popped up in a since-deleted post on the SupraMKV forum, with cropped images showing a Z4 from a few different angles appearing little changed from the previous concept's styling.
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Of note in the leaked shots is the use of M40i badging, suggesting (or confirming) the believe that the new Z4 lineup will provide consumers with the choice between more than one level of drivetrain. In the past, leaked documents out of transmission manufacturer ZF had hinted towards at least one powertrain featuring a turbocharged six-cylinder engine capable of at least 382 horsepower and 369 lb-ft of torque.
Of course, the use of both a normally-aspirated and turbocharged six-cylinder engine fits right into the Supra's past, as well. But while the Bimmer sounds likely to receive a six-speed manual gearbox, North American fans of the fourth generation Toyota Supra, in particular, may once again lament the lack of a clutch pedal on the forthcoming car.