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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.
It’s always a bit amusing when we stumble across listings where the seller doesn’t seem to have a full grasp of the vehicle which they are selling. In some cases, it’s a buyer’s dream – snatching a car that the seller doesn’t know the value of. In other cases, it’s just a lack of accurate information. I’ll give this seller a break in that, at the very least, they don’t offer much of a description at all on what is a very interesting 1986 BMW. Represented as a “86 M6”, enthusiasts will immediately spot many issues; it’s not a U.S. spec car, so it’s not a M6. What it is, though, is quite an interesting find in many ways, so let’s see if we can break it down:
I was sitting in the airport the other day scanning my Facebook news feed when I came across some old photos of the 1980s sitcom Moonlighting with actress Cybill Shepard driving a BMW 635CSi. It was appropriate that one of the quintessential eighties television series featured prominently one of the quintessential cars from the decade. In 1987, BMW gave the US market what they had been seeking in the form of the M6. The E24 was already a decade old by the time this version appeared. However, this was one potent super coupe for the time, with the 256 horsepower, 3.5 liter inline-6 under the hood. This M6 for sale is a two owner car with under 40,000 miles, perfect for someone looking for a treat to take to the next club meet.
An odd reversal has occurred in the BMW world; go back even five years and the car from the 1980s – outside of the M1 – was the M6. Now, oddly, the M6 may be the best value going in Motorsport BMWs from the 1980s. What caused the turn around? Well, it certainly had little to do with the M6, and probably more to do with the inevitable acknowledgement that the more rare M5 was a great car too, and the E30 has equally gained status as – effectively – a 911 replacement. So the M6, the grandest of BMW’s grand touring lineup, has become relatively affordable for the performance level offered. The extra benefit of it’s high residual price has been that most have been kept in excellent condition overall; while it’s normal to see highly modified or ratty M3s and M5s, finding pristine M6s almost seems cliche; odd, considering the relatively low number produced. Even more affordable than the later M6s was the M6 prototype; the M635CSi. While never imported to the U.S., a fair amount made it here through the grey market long before the M products debuted in this market. With an even more potent version of the inline-6, the M1-detuned M88/3, coupled with lower weight, these early M6s were even more impressive performers than the later cars. However, unlike the later M6s, finding clean and unmolested M635CSis is more difficult as lower residual value on the grey market cars meant they were sometimes neglected or more heavily modified:
The BMW M6 is one of those cars that seems to have benefitted from its contemporaries, namely the E30 M3 and E28 M5. As values rise on these two early M cars, the E24 is inching its way up as well. Of all three, the M6 is my favorite, as I have a soft spot for graceful looking coupes. With an aggressive nose and thin side pillars, this car has a look almost impossible to replicate to this day. The E24 is a car that is finally getting its fair shake after years of being almost unnoticed outside of Bimmer enthusiast circles. This M6 for sale in California is not a garage queen, but one that has seen regular use with a host of maintenance records dating back to day one. Best of all, part of the proceeds of the sale goes to charity.
