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Tag: Alpina

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1971 BMW 2800CS

1971 BMW 2800CS

Published November 19, 2018 by Carter

One notable omission from the EAG Ultimate BMW garage I wrote up last Monday was an E9. The E9 represented one of BMW Motorsports first production endeavors in the 3.0CSL. But beyond that, it also one of the prettiest cars BMW and their pals at Karmann Coachworks ever produced in my opinion. The elegant pillar-less design married with impossibly slender A and C pillars to create an elegant, sweeping greenhouse over the low, angular lines of the main body. Recently my wife asked me if there were any attractive cars made in the 1970s, and the E9 was my immediate retort. They were more muscular and yet elegant than the earlier and somewhat awkward 2000CS they were based upon. It’s just right.

Now, today’s example isn’t the mega-desirable 3.0CSL. It’s not even a 3.0, but the earlier 2800CS. It’s also undergone quite a few changes into a bit of a resto-mod. But for me, the look is bang-on and this is one of the better looking E9s I’ve seen recently. It was certainly worth a further look:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1971 BMW 2800CS on eBay

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1988 BMW 535i Alpina Tribute

1988 BMW 535i Alpina Tribute

Published November 3, 2018 by Carter

We’ve certainly seen our fair share of fake Alpinas come across these pages, but this one makes no claim to be authentic. Instead, it’s inspired by Alpina but takes its own route and character. I originally looked at this car back in 2014 and it’s been on and off the market since. Now showing “8,800” kilometers, the side Alpina decals gone and with a $10,000 increase in asking price since the last time we saw it, will the market appreciate this custom-built E28 this time around?

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1988 BMW 535i Alpina Tribute on eBay

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Tuner Tuesday B Unique: 2005 Alpina B5

Tuner Tuesday B Unique: 2005 Alpina B5

Published September 18, 2018 by Carter

Update 9/18/18: This Alpina B5, claimed (believably) to be the only one in the U.S., is now up on SecondDaily.com with a $22,000 Buy Now. At that price it would seem much more in line with the market!

In my mind, Alpina’s mystique has dimmed slightly over the past decade. Still capable of producing monsterously powerful luxury machines, the proliferation of options that are also insanely fast and luxurious has meant that the company’s original niche has become substantially more commonplace. And while it’s been awesome that Alpinas started being imported through BMW dealerships in 2007 and now offer several models to U.S. fans who can stomach the serious price tags, it also made them much less exclusive.

While products have widened over the past few years to include the 6-series, most of what Alpina sent to the U.S. market was based on the 7. The supercharged B7 was quite potent, but didn’t solve the problem of the E65’s looks all that much. Arguably, no amount of anything could do that particularly well.

But the B7’s supercharged 4.4 V8 was also available to Europeans in a (slightly) smaller package – the B5. Based on the E60, what would have started as a 330 horsepower 545i was transformed into a 500 horsepower, 500 lb.ft torque weapon. In typical fashion, Alpina revised the wheels and suspension, exhaust and interior, and of course added body kits to the E60. With 133 lb feet more torque than the V10 M5 produced and at a more reasonable 4,000 rpm rather than 6,000, the B5 could actually out-accelerate the M product. 0-62 was tested to arrive in 4.6 seconds, and the fun didn’t run out until you were just 5 mph shy of 200. Best yet, you could have this speed in a wagon!

Unfortunately for U.S. fans, the B5 and even more powerful B5S weren’t imported to the U.S.. Production of the B5 was limited to only 428 sedans, and the quite believable claim is that this is the only one in the United States:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2005 Alpina B5 on eBay

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Tuner Tuesday: 2004 Alpina B3S Cabrio

Tuner Tuesday: 2004 Alpina B3S Cabrio

Published September 18, 2018 by Carter

The prospect sounded promising, but I was left feeling lackluster at best about the 750 mile 2001 BMW 330Ci I wrote up a few weeks ago. Sure, it was nice and that interior certainly was to die for; so, too, was the basically as-new condition. But the 5-speed automatic transmission, coupled with the outrageous $32,000 asking price, had me thinking there were better options out there. So if I was in the $30K range for an E46, what are my options?

Well, obviously there are plenty of M3s to check out any day of the week, and I’ll be looking at one soon enough. But when our reader John sent through this seriously impressive Alpina, I couldn’t help but take a look. The B3 isn’t a model we often look at; in fact, I’ve only reviewed on prior, and it was a E36 chassis. The E46 took an unusual route for Alpinas; rather than a blank-slate motor, the Buchloe company selected the S52B32 from the U.S. spec E36 M3 for their basis. It was bored and stroked to 3.3 liters, netting 280 horsepower. In 2002, the “S” version of the B3 was released, with a bit more bore and a revised engine management and exhaust system. This brought the power to 305, 0-60 plummeted to 5 seconds and with a 6-speed manual you could come close to hanging with the M3. Why buy one, then? Well, the looks were a bit more discrete overall, and you could buy not only a sedan and Touring version, but an all-wheel drive one as well. Today, though, we have a lovely Cabrio with the 6-speed manual to check out:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2004 Alpina B3S Cabrio on Autoscout24

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Affordable E34 Face-Off: 1990 Alpina B10 3.5/1 v. 1991 M5

Affordable E34 Face-Off: 1990 Alpina B10 3.5/1 v. 1991 M5

Published June 16, 2018 by Carter

Update 6/15/18: After not selling last year with a $14,500 Buy It Now, the Alpina B10 3.5/1 part of this duo is back up for sale having finally been washed at the same asking price. Will it find a buyer this time around?

Just because it’s got an exotic name or badge doesn’t mean it’s automatically out of your reach. That’s the lesson for today’s twin E34s. If you’re willing to undertake a bit of a project you can certainly save money up front. Just like we saw with the S65 AMG Andrew wrote up, the initial cost you pay only going to be part of your total outlay but for the price of a small economy car, you can grab another league of luxury, performance and exclusivity that a Nissan Versa could never dream of matching. So which of these project E34s is the one you’d chose, or are both busts?

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1990 Alpina B10 3.5/1 on eBay

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