BMW picked the world’s most glamorous car show to reveal a new two-seater concept that harks back to past glory without resorting to a retro look.
Unveiled at the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este on the banks of Lake Como, Italy, the Skytop is a traditional targa with a removable roof that has to be manhandled off and stored in the boot. Also old school is a proper shark nose and a spine that runs from the bonnet through the interior to the tail of the car, as previously seen in the Z8.
“The BMW Concept Skytop is a truly unique and exotic design, in the tradition of the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este,” said Adrian van Hooydonk, BMW Group Design boss. “It offers a combination of driving dynamics and elegance at the highest level, comparable to its historic ancestors, like the BMW Z8 or BMW 503.”
Other design highlights include the slimmest LED lights ever seen on a BMW, mounted on milled aluminium carriers and a unique graded silver chrome shadow paint scheme. The red-brown leather trim inside extends to the integrated roll bar, while door handles are discretely hidden in the shoulders.
The Skytop was the highlight of BMW’s 25th year as the main partner of the Concorso and, like 3.0 CSL that it showed as a concept in 2022, it could make it to limited production.
“We’re not sure whether we’re going to make it but we could, because this time we put all the learnings into the design phase,” van Hooydonk told BMWblog. The 3.0 CSL took just a year to get road-ready after its Lake Como debut, with 50 examples sold at around £700,000 each. The Skytop would be even easier to produce, with parts such as its slimline lighting already road-legal. “From a technical point of view, yes, it’s very very feasible,” he added.
If there’s sufficient demand then a run of 50 Skytops could begin to be built within a year with an estimated price tag of £400,000.
It a nice car