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All good things come to an end. As the 1980s came to a close, a few legendary German vehicles exited stage right. Along with the Mercedes-Benz R107 SL and Audi Coupe GT, the BMW E24 6 series took its last breath in 1989, to be replaced by the 8 series at the dawn of the 1990s. This 635CSi for sale in California represents the last of the breed for the E24, and comes equipped with a 5-speed manual gearbox, a rarity outside of the Motorsports version of this venerable coupe, with only 61 imported for the 1989 model year.
Sellers of automobiles – specifically, most second hand dealers – always interest me. It seems that seldom they do the research to properly sell a vehicle. Perhaps when it comes to a brand new Kia, research just isn’t really necessary – but a 30 year old classic German car? Is some description better than no description? Sure, I guess at least there was an attempt made. But, if very little to none of the information actually applies to the model, I guess I’d err on the side of maybe it would just be better off with no description and just some pretty photos. At least in that case, I’d be annoyed that no effort was made to explain what I was looking at, but an effort made that misrepresents the product or just shows a lack of attention to detail? Now, that I find even more annoying. It’s much like plagiarism; I’d rather receive a poor quality essay on the right topic than an award winning lifted essay on the wrong topic. So, let’s look at this strangely portrayed E24:
Perspective is an interesting thing. This came to mind when considering this E24 for several reasons. First off is how some people like certain perspectives of cars more than others. For me, the best angle of the E24 is the 3/4 rear shot, which accentuates the flowing roofline, the subtle drop in the trunk, and tucks the long hood in just slightly while not masking it. It makes the car look both elegant and aggressive. However, to this car’s seller, the best perspective is clearly the front as there are no less than seven pictures of the front of the car but effectively none of the side or rear that are at all meaningful. Now, perhaps that wouldn’t matter much to a perspective buyer of this European specification 1983 635CSi if the price were quite aggressively low. Instead, though, it is quite aggressively high, which brings me to my second point about perspective. That is, how much a car is worth is really a perspective of both the seller and the buyer. It would seem that amongst more rare models, the initial attempt at pricing generally seems like a Hail Mary – a hope that someone, somewhere will say “That’s the car that I want, regardless of price” and ante up. Obviously, what a car is worth to the seller in terms of either sweat equity or sentimental value does not necessarily equate to market value for a buyer except in rare occasions. So, let’s consider today’s 635CSi:
If there was one song that summed up the 1980s for me, it was Opportunities by the Pet Shop Boys. “I’ve got the brains, you’ve got the looks…let’s make lots of money.” Economic liberalism was on the move during this decade and as a result, consumers were hungry for vehicles to showcase their new found wealth. German vehicles would quickly become objects of desire, noted for their quality. The Porsche 911 wasn’t a new design by any means, but it would be the standard bearer for sports car excellence. The Mercedes-Benz S-class and SL roadster would be for the folks looking to capture a bit of that old money look and the pinnacle of luxury. Then we have the BMW E24 6 series. What about this coupe, then? I’ve always considered the 6 series the thinking man’s luxury car. It combined performance you’d expect from a Porsche with understated luxury you got in a Mercedes-Benz. It wasn’t the obvious choice, but time has been kind to the E24, as it is steadily becoming more and more popular with collectors. This 635CSi for sale in Vancouver, British Columbia is a US market car with just over 70,000 miles on the clock.
The 1980s saw a fair number of interesting and innovative ways to chop the tops off of what would otherwise be lovely coupes; the Carelli 928 and Treser Quattro Roadster are just but two examples that we’ve written up. But long before the Porsche 993 Targa introduced a large sliding glass roof, in 1982 BMW combined with the automotive modeling firm MGA and some backing from The Observer to create a quite unique expression of topless motoring. Think of it as a BMW 635CSi Targa if you’d like; but boy is it unique and well done compared to some other 1980s creations. It’s also on sale, if you have a spare $50,000:
