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Tag: 1985

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1985 Mercedes-Benz 500SL

Published May 16, 2014 by Paul

Beginning in the 1970s, the split between US and Euro market vehicles of foreign manufacturers became more pronounced, leading some US customers to import more and more non-US market vehicles. Oftentimes these imports would be more powerful, have features unavailable on US models or, in an era of changing safety rules, have slimmer, lighter bumpers. Such was the case with the R107 Mercedes-Benz SL. Before the 560SL arrived on the scene for the 1986 model year, the holy grail of forbidden SL fruit was the 500SL, with the 240 horsepower V8. This was considerably more than the 155 horsepower offered from the 3.8 liter V8 in the 380SL sold in the US at the time. This 500SL for sale in New York offers the SL enthusiast a chance at an R107 in one of its ultimate forms.

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1985 Porsche 928S 5-Speed

Published May 14, 2014 by Carter

I’ve spent a fair amount of time talking about how the 944 – especially the Turbo and S2 – have seemed to remain one of the best values in German motoring; on paper and in real life easily the match for their more popular 911 friends, they’re generally available for a fraction of the entry price into the much more air-cooled world. However, there’s another way to travel in Porsche style as well; the car that was intended to replace the 911. A revolutionary design in the 1970s that still looks remarkably fresh today, the 928 is a supreme grand tourer with plenty of power, a fantastic sound track and a tremendous amount of presence and personality. While it’s a very different character than the 911, they’re well built cars that don’t get the attention that they should. If you’re an enthusiast, that means you can pick up a great example on a budget – at least, for now:

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Heap(s) of the Week 2: Tres Audi Quattros with DTM dreams

Published May 1, 2014 by Carter

Ahhhh, the Audi V8 quattro. It’s like that friend that comes over, crashes on your couch, eats all of your food and smears his greasy hands on your furniture, insults your wife and leaves the toilet seat up, burps and farts in a business meeting, forgets your birthday, and asks to borrow a hundred bucks (or several thousand) that you know you’ll never get back. But he’s your friend, and it would take a lot more than just those indiscretions to make him otherwise. Every once in a while, your friend really dresses up and looks great, but most times that you see him he’s disheveled, unshowered and hacking up some fairly disgusting looking phlegm – which, incidentally, he spits out on your carpet. Sound awesome? My experience with the V8 quattro was pretty similar, and yet it’s a car that I just look at and daydream about. Few are in good shape and serviceable today; many more appear as these do; discarded, forgotten, permanent projects. And much like your college bum friends, they seem to congregate in groups, because of course you need a parts car for your parts car. So what are they doing here? Well, one of this particular lot happens to be the best of the bunch brought to the U.S. – the coveted 1991 Audi V8 quattro 5-speed:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1985, 1990 and 1991 Audi package on Craigslist

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1985 Mercedes-Benz 500SEL

Published April 14, 2014 by Paul

When the W126 S class debuted at the outset of the 1980s, the top engine for US customers would be a 3.8 liter, all-alumnium V8. Those in Europe, however, could specify a larger, 5.0 liter V8. This led to many gray market imports flooding the marketplace, leading Mercedes-Benz lobbyists to push for legislation against private importation of vehicles not originally intended for US sale. But, in 1984, Mercedes-Benz threw an olive branch to those S-class buyers wanting a bit more power: the 500SEL. With a new 5.0 liter V8, this engine produced 184 bhp and 247 lbs. ft. of torque. This may not sound like a lot from a V8 engine, but manufacturers were still coming off a wave of newly introduced emissions controls that strangled power. Also, this was an era where a Honda Accord was barely cresting 100 bhp.

The 500SEL would last two short years until the 560SEL, with the 5.6 liter V8 engine, arrived for the 1986 model year. This final year 500SEL for sale in Texas has covered a scant 63,000 miles and spent much of its life in Southern California.

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1985 BMW M635CSi

Published April 7, 2014 by Carter

A about a month ago I wrote up a M6 roundup, covering the many nice examples for sale. They range greatly in price and condition these days, so it’s really best to do your homework, find the one you like and try to get one with a solid maintenance history over a few less miles. But occasionally one pops up that you just say “Wow!” to, and this one is pretty high up here. With a reported 40,000 miles, this European-spec 1985 M635CSi is just jaw-dropping:

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