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Month: January 2016

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1991 BMW M5

1991 BMW M5

Published January 14, 2016 by Carter

I’ve talked about opportunity costs before, and when considering a car such as yesterday’s 320is it bears reminding. There are plenty of people, myself included, that spend a fair chunk of the day dreaming about what super rare car they’d import from Europe if given the chance. And we’ve be Mr. Feelgood for you, supplying a steady stream of somewhat attainable European market goodies over the past few weeks. But does all this dreaming overlook something that’s right at your fingertips? In the case of the E34 M5, I think that might be true. This chassis is still generally overlooked compared to the E28 and E39 models, but those that have spent some time behind the wheel of these well engineered, hand built Q-Ships proclaim they’re one of the best BMW products made. They’ve got plenty of the right ingredients – the last of the S38 motors producing 315 horsepower, Motorsport details throughout, a great subtle look which still is commanding of respect, and limited numbers – only 1,678 were imported. It’s the right recipe for a future classic:

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2011 Porsche 911 Carrera GTS Cabriolet

2011 Porsche 911 Carrera GTS Cabriolet

Published January 14, 2016 by Rob

I’ve spent a bit of time back in the world of air-cooled Porsches lately so let’s drift back into the realm of modern 911s to take a look at this 2011 Porsche 911 Carrera GTS Cabriolet. In recent years Porsche has taken to offering nearly every conceivable combination of model variants and the GTS more or less completed that picture for the 997. The GTS, in some ways, can be thought of as a Carrera S with the power pack, but for less money. For many that in itself might be the crucial selling point. But the GTS provided more: it included center-locking wheels, Alcantara seat inserts and steering wheel for the interior – though the example here appears to have gone for an all-leather interior – and the wider rear of the Carrera 4, all in addition to those extra horses provided by the power pack. The one we see here even benefits from having retained the very desirable 6-speed manual over the 7-speed PDK. With a MSRP exceeding $110K for the Cabriolet, the sub-$60K asking price here represents quite a discount over new for a car that’s only a few years old. At nearly 39K miles, the mileage isn’t low for its age, but if it has been carefully maintained that shouldn’t be something to be overly concerned over.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2011 Porsche 911 Carrera GTS Cabriolet on eBay

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Less is More? 1990 BMW 320is

Less is More? 1990 BMW 320is

Published January 13, 2016 by Carter

The perfect counterpoint to Volkswagen’s GLi 16V like the one we featured earlier has to be the BMW 320is. Ostensibly, these two cars were aimed at close to the same market although the BMW was a fair chunk of change more expensive than the Jetta. But both were sports sedans, both came only as manuals, both had BBS wheels, grippy Recaro seats and sport suspension, and critically both featured a 2 liter 16V motor. But it’s there where the similarities end, because while Volkswagen rung 134 horsepower out of the 9A, BMW squeezed a seemingly unbelievable (for the time) 192 horsepower out of the lower displacement S14. For some time, the 100 hp/liter mark was considered about as good as naturally aspirated motors got and the 320is was hauntingly close with 192 ponies from 1,990 CCs – proportionately, more powerful than the larger 2.3 and 2.5 variants. We’ve previously covered this model a few times and so won’t go into lengthy detail about the history (plus, some of it is included in the listing), but if you wanted to understand why you’d pay more for one of these BMWs in the late 80s, that engineering feat alone was a good indication. As the E30 market has been red hot and importation becomes possible for more of these cars, we keep seeing them pop up:

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1977 Porsche 930 Turbo Carrera

1977 Porsche 930 Turbo Carrera

Published January 13, 2016 by Rob

Pairing some racing graphics with the highest performing variant available seems like a winning combination, right? Well, that’s more or less what we see here with this Silver 1977 Porsche 930 Turbo Carrera that has been complemented by a set of Martini graphics. In the world of available Martini decals this is actually one of the more subdued options Porsche made available in the late-70s and early-80s. They provide a nice talking point, but without making it appear as if you’re trying to pass your car off as a racer. There are few more recognizable graphics in racing than Martini and Porsche’s long history of running their livery has made them a popular choice for those who desire to help their Porsche stand apart just that little bit more. Oh, and it also has a Lobster Red interior. For those who are fans of these red interiors, and I count myself in that group, it’s a fantastic color.

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1992 Volkswagen Jetta GLi 16V

1992 Volkswagen Jetta GLi 16V

Published January 13, 2016 by Carter

“DOHC” was king in the late 1980s and 1990s, and Volkswagen offered several different flavors of dual-cam goodness. You had practicality and sport in the Scirocco model and GTi, with the Golf carrying the torch into the 1990s after the sports coupe’s production ended. Volkswagen also carried the 16V into the Jetta, but offered some slightly different features and styling to help to separate it from the Golf. Where the Golf was slightly more hard-edged and felt like a racer, the Jetta felt slightly more refined. While 1987-1989 models externally weren’t very different in the front from the GTi, after 1990 single rectangular headlights continued and GLis now came standard with the BBS RA 15×6 wheels in silver. Those wheels had previously been outfitted on the Helios Edition. They also got the Recaro Trophy seats and bigger, aerodynamic bumpers that the GTi now carried. Standard was central locking, twin outlet exhaust, 10.1″ front brakes and a cassette radio with 6 speakers, while options included ABS, power windows, sunroof and metallic paint. Just like their GTi counterparts, these expensive Jettas weren’t sold in great numbers and finding all-original examples can be difficult, especially one with lower miles like today’s end of the run 1992:

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