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Tag: Widebody

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Tuner Tuesday: 1984 Mercedes-Benz 560SEC Koenig Widebody

I was watching a very interesting piece about mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenders last night; a trend which started in the 1980s, some people have been thrown into jail quite literally for the rest of their lives for being involved – even in a minor role – in the war on drugs. In drew into sharp contrast the dichotomous nature of the 1980s, where as a society we declared that drugs were a horrible thing while simultaneously celebrating a community of music, art and even Wall Street that was built around them. In some aspects, one can see that dichotomy in some of the tuner cars from the 1980s, and I think that the mega Mercedes-Benz products are a great example. Starchy, upright and conservative, Mercedes-Benz used to be the standard by which engineering was measured; the automotive bar for luxury automobiles. Yet, at the same time, various tuners took them and turned them into monsters; lowering the suspension, fitting giant wheels and motors, they transformed the conservative Republican into a Punk Rock idol. Some of these creations are more celebrated than others; AMG, for example, has a near faultless reputation which is backed even by Mercedes-Benz themselves, who decided to buy them later in life. Others are…well, not so highly regarded, such as the numerous Koenig specials that were created from otherwise unassuming ’80s Benzs:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1984 Mercedes-Benz 560SEC Koenig Widebody on Autoscout24.it

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Tuner Tuesday: 1994 Porsche 911 Speedster Strosek Turbo S Widebody

I’m going to segue for just a moment to a pop culture phenomena – Keeping Up With The Kardashians. You see, you can sit around all you’d like and say that it’s horrible television – or indeed, that television in and of itself is horrible. You can say it’s exploitation or reverse exploitation. You can say that Kris and Caitruce are atrocious parents. Yet, one thing is for certain; there is money associated with the name and the program, and people apparently really want to watch and partake in them. They want to smell and look like the Kardashians, they want to know about their love and sex lives, they want to see fat Rob going out in public. In short, people want to see the train wreck in progress, and the Kardashians are brilliantly cashing in all the way. Like it or not, Kim Kardashian has repeatedly been the highest paid reality star in the world and makes not just millions, but tens of millions of dollars for her exploits. Clearly, they’re doing something right – or so horribly wrong, people can’t help but bear witness.

Enter Strosek. Strosek has a reputation. That reputation is for creating…well, monstrosities out of seemingly innocent and well meaning Porsches. And yet, they’re not alone. There is Rinspeed, who similarly custom-destroy cars on a regular basis. Then there were other crazy tuners, such as Konig, who tried to turn everything into a Ferrari Testarossa…badly. But Strosek had a unique talent for really creating horribly ugly versions of desirable cars. Yet, they must be doing something right – first off, people actually went to Strosek and bought the cars. Yes, I know that’s amazing, but not only that – they paid Strosek a lot of money to build them. And here we are, talking about them over two decades on. They made an impact, and like a train derailing at high speed, we are helpless but to watch the carnage that ensues from the moment the paperwork is signed until something like this custom widebody Speedster emerges from their works:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1994 Porsche 911 Speedster Strosek Turbo S Widebody on eBay

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1994 Porsche 911 Carrera 4 Widebody Coupe

For the 964’s final model year Porsche gave us a few interesting new variants from which to choose. One of those was looking both forward and backward, drawing upon previous models and hinting at models that would come later. The car in question, which we see here, was the 1994 Porsche 911 Carrera 4 Widebody Coupe. While the Carrera 4 itself first was introduced upon the 964’s debut, it originally came in the narrow-bodied design that was standard to any naturally-aspirated 964. Porsche, who had long produced wide-bodied 911s, had a few lingering Turbo chassis available and for the ’94 model year used those to produce a limited edition Turbo Look Carrera 4. The Turbo Look wasn’t a new idea as the 3.2 Carrera had provided a similar design through the M491 option package, and future 911 models would share the similar layout of the 964 Widebody under the guise of the Carrera 4S. These 964s are almost like an experiment taking previous ideas and trying them out in ways that would signal future directions. They aren’t the quickest 964s out there, but their look has garnered them quite an affectionate following among 911 fans.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1994 Porsche 911 Carrera 4 Widebody Coupe on eBay

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Tuner Tuesday: 1977 BMW 633CSi ABC Exclusive Widebody

It’s a day for storied 1970s modified BMWs apparently, and from one very expensive but tastefully modified BMW we travel on to one very expensive but…well, let’s just call it period piece and be done with it. Widebody cars were the rage of the 1980s, especially amongst top-flight German cars. Built to mimic their racing counterparts, everything from 560SELs to Porsche 928s got the treatment. There were several manufacturers who were notable for widebody conversions; Strosek and Konig are probably two of the most famous, but not to be outdone a small tuning firm from Bonn – ABC Exclusive – also got into the 1980s cliches. Did you want a glitzy, over the top 6-series? ABC could deliver, replete with color coordinated dashboards ripped straight from the Space Shuttle and champagne flutes hidden in the refrigerated seat section in the rear. Have you ever ridden the rear of an E24? I have, many times. Let me tell you, not many people capable of drinking champagne are capable of sitting back there comfortably. Perhaps that explains the champagne, then. But ABC wouldn’t just end there, because if you wanted a different sort of over the top 6-series, they had two more options; you could chop the top off and get a flexible-flier CSi for your trips to the Riviera, or you could opt for the outrageously flared widebody conversion:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1977 BMW 633CSi ABC on eBay

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Tuner Tuesday: 1990 Mercedes-Benz 560 SEC AMG 6.0 Widebody

There were a few things missing from the earlier Alpina E21 post; notably, some of the details of the car were missing like the all important unique engine, suspension, and documentation that would help support the story of its existence. The same cannot be said for this car. Let’s go down the list of what makes this car really and truly special. First, it’s one of the last of the classic 560SECs made. Already these cars are appreciating in value, but this car also has quite low miles at only 37,500 covered since new. That low total is matched by near perfect condition inside and out. But the real value lies in the modifications; super tuner AMG, on its way into the Mercedes-Benz fold, went out with a roar with the M117/9 6.0 32 valve V8 pushing nearly 400 horsepower. While that may seem trite today, the numbers produced by the AMGs in the 1980s were enough to get your into the halls of true supercar royalty. Additionally, this car features with wild widebody kit, massive 3-piece BBS/AMG wheels and some wicked interior alterations. On top of that, there’s documentation to support it – does it get more collectable in the AMG world?

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1990 Mercedes-Benz 560SEC AMG 6.0 Widebody on eBay

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