Warning!
We have 15 years of archives. Links older than a year may have been updated to point to similar cars available to bid on eBay.
This site contains Ebay partner affiliate links, which may earn us a commission at no additional cost to you.
Along with the 2002, the New Six was BMW’s first attempts at branching out to buyers of other luxury vehicle brands, most notably their domestic rival, Mercedes-Benz. Comprised of the E3 sedan and E9 coupe, the New Six was a bit of a different animal than the competition from Stuttgart, aimed more at the driver than those who were seeking a more cosseting driving experience. A number of variants were offered, with the top of the range being the 3.3 Li. This long-wheelbase model packed a 3.3 liter inline-6 packing 190 horsepower and sharp handling that would put BMW on the map for those looking for a more engaging luxury sedan. This 3.3 Li for sale in Freiburg, Germany is one of a handful of these high-end E3s built, with barely 30,000 miles from new.
As interesting as they might be, some cars probably aren’t meant for eBay. I think this 1975 Porsche 911 Carrera Coupe may be one of those cars. The intriguing thing about this 911, which also happens to be the aspect about it that will take the most time to figure out, is that it has the body of the Porsche 930. While the ‘Turbo look’ would become a factory option on the 911 in the mid-80s, in 1975 this wasn’t the case. As such, this is said to be a dealer installed option requested at the behest of the first owner who was unable at the time to import the 1975 Turbo Carrera. In line with these desires, the engine is also said to be tuned, though exactly what that means isn’t made clear, and it has received upgraded brakes. That makes this 911 one of the first true Turbo-look 911s to be produced.
The E12 was the first sedan from BMW to wear the 5-series badge. Available in the US only as a six cylinder model, it was sold here in two guises: the 530i (1975-1978) and the 528i (1979-1981). The classic, Paul Bracq-styled design was, and remains, a winner. However, the E12 is mostly remembered for its numerous flaws. Like a lot of European imports from the time, US market cars were burdened by less powerful, emissions-restricted engines and ugly, 5mph crash resistant bumpers. The 528 incorporated thermal reactors as part of its emissions control system and these had a tendency to overheat the engine bay, causing cracking or warping of the cylinder heads. The air conditioning was rubbish. The handling could be twitchy. The gas mileage was pretty awful. The bodies were particularly susceptible to rust, which is why most of them ended up in junkyards long ago. Still, I have a lot of time for these cars mostly because they are so handsome. Since there are so few of them left it’s always a pleasant surprise to find a nice looking survivor like this one.
I don’t see many W116s on the roads these days, although they do seem to be ubiquitous in certain kinds of Hollywood movies (usually those set in the middle east, in which they feature as the preferred ride of the terrorist bad guys). Produced between 1972 and 1980, the W116 was the flagship of the Mercedes lineup during the period and was the first car to be officially referred to as an “S-class.” Penned in the 1960s, the design looks remarkably more modern than it really is, probably because many of the car’s styling cues were carried over onto models built for a decade or two to come.
This particular example isn’t the range topping, high performance 6.9 SEL model. Instead, it’s a short wheel base, low mileage version of the ordinary 450. Nonetheless, it looks glorious and stately, which is exactly how an S-class should look.
Some days it seems that no stone has been left unturned when it comes to the world of collector cars, but if you dig deep enough, there are still gems to be found. The W114/W115 Mercedes-Benzes, also known as the Strich Acht (or Stroke Eight) was not a particularly flashy or eye-catching vehicle, but this was the first post war Mercedes-Benz to use an all-new chassis. This car would last through 1976, when the W123 would carry the baton into the 1980s, making a name for itself around unmatched durability. In 1974, the OM617 inline-5 diesel would appear in the form of the 300D, an engine that would carry over to the W123 and even live on through 1991 in the G-Class. This 1975 300D for sale outside of Philadelphia has under 70,000 miles on the clock and certainly looks the part, ready to log another 70,000 miles in very short order.
