The Z1 is one of those unusual cars which most people have forgotten about and, since BMW built scarcely 8,000 over a two-year production run, even fewer people have ever actually seen on the road. Sixteen years ago though, they were one of THE cars to be seen in and I have been smitten ever since - how could I not goggle at a car with disappearing doors? I recall my stepmother, bored during a polo match, spotting a brand new one with the keys in the ignition at the side of the pitch and deciding that she and my sister absolutely had to go for a joy ride. They returned some time later to find a rather puzzled player looking for his car but all was rapidly forgiven when he saw that the culprit was an attractive blonde female!

At various points since coming of driving age, the idea of having a Z1 has popped into my consciousness and I have attempted to convince myself that I could fit one into my life. However, it had always ultimately been too impractical a proposition for someone like me who frequently found I needed to lug friends, junk or dogs around. Happily though, circumstances change and last summer, in a moment of mental instability, I seized a passing opportunity to go to Russia for a two-year secondment that started in January this year.

I realised immediately that this meant I'd have to flog my car, which at that point was a much-loved Nogaro blue Audi S3. Fate though, has a well-established knack of meddling with even the wisest intentions and so, shortly thereafter, I happened across a Z1 for sale at Munich Legends for the same amount as my asking price on the S3. I instantly realised this was my chance to have one, since unlike the S3 it would not depreciate while I was away and practicality had ceased to be a major concern.

An appointment was quickly arranged and I whizzed down to Sussex for a look-see, aided and abetted by one of my best friends who for years has been my car-buying partner in crime. Privately though, I was sure that the Z1 wouldn't live up to the lofty expectations of my youth and I was prepared to be disappointed. However, when we arrived and I saw not one but two Z1s sitting on the forecourt, I was already lost. Painted respectively black and green, they looked fantastic. Despite my preference for black as a colour, I was more interested in the green car as it had the rare Wiesmann hard-top (which converts the car into a snug and striking coupe) and a very serious-looking Lorenz exhaust. It had originally been sold new in Düsseldorf and imported to England by its last owner in 1997. The mileage was a mere 86,000kms, a trifling amount for a 14 year old car. So off I went with the highly entertaining proprietor for a lengthy blat around the Ashdown Forest. To say that I was smitten would be an understatement of epic proportions. It wasn't particularly quick - noticeably slower than the S3 - but the straight six sounded fantastic yowling through four fat tailpipes and it was great fun to drive. Plus the electric doors were so cool they could single-handedly reverse the effects of global-warming.

After that, I viewed two other Z1s (one red, one black) but none were as nice as that first green machine and so eventually, once the S3 had been sold, it was back down to Sussex to talk turkey. The asking price included about two grand's worth of remedial work which Munich Legends thought the car could benefit from following its spell in storage and which they talked me through. Most of it I agreed with apart from the suggestion of a new set of tyres since the current Yokohamas were absolutely fine and so a deal was struck. A week later I roared off through Sussex back to London in my very own Z1, an incredulous and utterly indelible grin on my face.

Since then, the car has been a thorough delight to own and drive. As well as being fast and noisy when you want it to be, it cruises quietly and calmly at motorway speeds and is even pretty economical (30mpg) unless you cane it. There are of course some foibles. All Z1s are left hand drive which I'm sure could be problematic if you aren't used to it. However, this being my third left hooker, it doesn't bother me and is only occasionally an issue for overtaking or joining motorways, both of which require more caution. This is slightly exacerbated by the fact that both the soft-top and hard-top create a large ¾ blind-spot. Access is not a strong point - anyone overweight, very tall, very short or advanced in years finds entry and exit difficult, especially with the hard-top on, but this doesn't bother me, since I am of average height and neither porky nor old. Women in short skirts also find it difficult to get into without flashing their knickers at all and sundry, which is again not something I personally have a problem with! Once in though, all agree that the seats are extremely comfortable - one of the points that attracted me to this particular Z1 was that it been re-trimmed in black leather which is infinitely preferable to the deeply nasty standard mix of grey alcantara and wrinkly camouflage leather, which looks like the skin of a dead catfish. Purists might moan but aesthetes will not.

This is not a car for the shy, as the attention you garner is astonishing - people tend to turn around to see what it is that is making such a loud noise. Driving it with the doors open gives rise to lots of gawps and appreciative comments from fellow motorists, and prompts even the most cynical London cabbies into speech along the lines of "'ere, mate, where's the bleedin' doors?" It gets a bit embarrassing when onlookers get their cameras out but generally the attention is fun!

People often claim that Z1s are overly fragile but mine seems so far to be pretty sturdy and stood up fine to three months use as my everyday wheels before I left London. The mechanicals are, after all, largely based on the E30 325i with the addition of a bespoke rear Z-axle. It has required no expenditure so far other than the fitment of a new Alpine stereo with integral iPod functionality. This is more important than you might imagine as there is very little space to store CDs in the cabin. The insurance is expensive at around £1,000 fully comp (5yrs protected NCB) but that is purely one of the odder upshots of not being a UK resident. If I moved back to the UK, the policy would be around £400-£500.

The car's first adventure consisted of a trackday at Bedford Autodrome where it proved a bit softly sprung (ageing dampers) and rather slow compared to various fettled Exiges and M3s, but generally it handled in a nicely progressive manner. Hot on the heels of that came a 3,000km round trip to the French Riviera for Christmas with the family, and I was pleasantly surprised how much luggage you can actually fit in, since an initial glance in the boot suggests that you'd be pushed to fit a washbag in. Sharing the driving, my sister and I dispatched London-Monaco in one day and the car didn't miss a beat despite my sister's propensity for exceedingly illegal speeds, and white-out blizzard conditions on the M2 in Kent on our return leg. At Christmas, the Z unexpectedly gained its bonnet mascot, a bronze tortoise (it's ironic apparently) christened, for no readily apparent reason, Henrietta, which was my sister's present to me this year.

The most recent outing in the car was an 1,800km round trip from London to Islay last month, where I spent Easter with some relatives. The ground clearance is actually much better than you'd expect (it's nowhere near as low-slung as the styling contrives to appear) and the car dispatched the badly rutted 4 mile track to my relatives' house without drama, although I did take it very carefully, conscious that fixing the undercarriage of a Z1 might rather tax the local garage. Again the car performed impeccably and the drive along the sunny shores of Loch Fyne and Loch Tay with everything open was memorable (if a touch chilly!) and another reminder of why I hope to keep this car for as long as possible.

So if you're considering getting an affordable roadster, can hack left hand drive and want something a bit different, why not try a Z1? It will make most other small roadsters seem slightly ordinary.

track pictures: www.trackphoto.co.uk