NMNA: 1981 Alpina B9 on BAT

[coupedegrace]

I think this is a lovely car, but the main reason I'm posting it is because the seller posted a proper driving video. (Please don't take my approval of the video as an endorsement for crossing double yellow center lines however.) The only thing keeping me from bidding is the lack of drone footage showing the garage where it's been housed.

1981 BMW e23 Alpina B9 3.5 5-Speed

Bid for the chance to own a 1981 BMW e23 Alpina B9 3.5 5-Speed at auction with Bring a Trailer, the home of the best vintage and classic cars online. Lot #79,772.

bringatrailer.com

 

[GolfBavaria]

I saw that car but can someone more knowledgeable than me (which is most of you..LOL) explain what part of that motor is Alpina? I don't see any of the motor being Alpina.

 

[GolfBavaria]

I think this is a lovely car, but the main reason I'm posting it is because the seller posted a proper driving video. (Please don't take my approval of the video as an endorsement for crossing double yellow center lines however.) The only thing keeping me from bidding is the lack of drone footage showing the garage where it's been housed.

1981 BMW e23 Alpina B9 3.5 5-Speed

Bid for the chance to own a 1981 BMW e23 Alpina B9 3.5 5-Speed at auction with Bring a Trailer, the home of the best vintage and classic cars online. Lot #79,772.

bringatrailer.com

That driving video is ok....more like a casual jaunt on most backroads when I lived in Northern Cal. I've never been to Kansas but that doesn't look like Kansas to me from what I've heard. Like the quote from Dumb and Dumber..."That John Denver is full of shit!" LOL....

 

[autokunst]

I had (nearly) this car - same color, grey market, minus any reference to "Alpina" and different seats/steering wheel. It was a hoot just as it was. Loved it.

 

[coupedegrace]

I saw that car but can someone more knowledgeable than me (which is most of you..LOL) explain what part of that motor is Alpina? I don't see any of the motor being Alpina.

They massaged the engine: ECU, cam, higher compression Mahles, combustion chamber porting, etc. Result was 240 - 245 HP, vs 218 HP in euro trim. Some sites say the engine is an M90, while others aren't so specific.

 

[JMinPDX]

As a perceptive commenter mentioned it’s the holy grail of e23s, for a lot of reasons. (Dislike the word Unicorn) Safe bet if you offer it up at a rich car guy’s castle you won’t hear: “no thanks, he’s already got one”

 

[GolfBavaria]

They massaged the engine: ECU, cam, higher compression Mahles, combustion chamber porting, etc. Result was 240 - 245 HP, vs 218 HP in euro trim. Some sites say the engine is an M90, while others aren't so specific.

Got it, ok, because it doesn't have the distinctive Alpina injection I am used to seeing for that era. What is your guess on hammer price? Roughly...not holding your feet to the fire, market is all over the board right now.

 

[shanon]

Peanut gallery hammer guess: @ $60K

Those front seats would be sharp in the E3, but the stock seats sure are comfy

 

[GolfBavaria]

Peanut gallery hammer guess: @ $60K

Those front seats would sharp in the E3, but the stock seats sure are comfy

Agreed those are really nice seats. Are those Recaro Sport Seats?

 

[shanon]

Agreed those are really nice seats. Are those Recaro Sport Seats?

Believe so, but not a Recaro expert.

 

[coupedegrace]

Got it, ok, because it doesn't have the distinctive Alpina injection I am used to seeing for that era. What is your guess on hammer price? Roughly...not holding your feet to the fire, market is all over the board right now.

Man, I stink at tea leaf reading these days. Especially as crazy as the marketplace has seemed. Hopefully north of the $60k estimate earlier. Speaking of which, congrats on your car sale. It's a beauty. I hope you replace it with something you can get more behind-the-wheel time in.

 

[GolfBavaria]

Man, I stink at tea leaf reading these days. Especially as crazy as the marketplace has seemed. Hopefully north of the $60k estimate earlier. Speaking of which, congrats on your car sale. It's a beauty. I hope you replace it with something you can get more behind-the-wheel time in.

Thanks yeah I have a nice Porsche Silver Anniversary Edition 911 that is a ton of fun but same issue as Bavaria, it sits for 7-months and I have to shoehorn it in garage in the winter out of the way, but takes lot of space. I am having a hard time pulling the trigger on selling that and having a real difficult time figuring out what 4wd or AWD car to get because I am not a big Audi guy. I have an awesome, last year (2010), e61 M-Sport Touring X-drive that I love, but more or less my wife's car. Although I drive it too. I wish they made those new again or at least imported them again, not sure if they still make those in Germany. I'm too old for a Subaru or Mitsubishi Evo. I'll figure it out.

As far as this B9 goes, there is still plenty of time but I don't think it will hit $60K. But then again I didn't think the Bav would either....

Shoot we should have hooked up when I dropped the Bav off in Portland at Avant-Garde.

 

[JMinPDX]

Unfortunately one commenter (bidder) is being a bit unreasonable in their questioning of the total dollars spent during the restoration process. Hinting at misrepresentation. This led to VSR1 having explain how their Quickbooks invoicing works. Personally knowing that VSR1 worked on this e23 would ease concerns. Commenter seems more concerned with the invoices than the actual quality of the work or condition of the vehicle.
Now I’m all for proper due diligence, but it would seem to me that the remedy would be an in person PPI or simply don’t bid.

 

[Stevehose]

I think this car is cool as heck

 

[autokunst]

Unfortunately one commenter (bidder) is being a bit unreasonable in their questioning of the total dollars spent during the restoration process. Hinting at misrepresentation. This led to VSR1 having explain how their Quickbooks invoicing works. Personally knowing that VSR1 worked on this e23 would ease concerns. Commenter seems more concerned with the invoices than the actual quality of the work or condition of the vehicle.
Now I’m all for proper due diligence, but it would seem to me that the remedy would be an in person PPI or simply don’t bid.

Oh jeez, I just read through the comments. Agree that all the questions from that one bidder (an early bid that is far below any reasonable selling price) seem to intentionally be disruptive. That level of "keyboard questioning" could better be spent just looking at the car (or hiring a PPI). My tea leaf readings suggests that bidder will not be in the mix at the end of this auction. Hopefully they didn't ruin it for other more serious bidders and the seller.

 

[amg5872]

Wow that is beautiful. It's making me wonder how e23s are for tall drivers (6'7" in my case). An e23 is certainly more spacious than my Bavaria but I can't say I really fit in my Bavaria, I just love it to death so I make it work. Any tall e23 drivers?

 

[bluecoupe30!]

I agree this car would be a blast to drive. So well equipped. I owned a 1978 E23 Euro 730 for a year. It had all the good stuff: Getrag 265/6, Stahl headers, triple Webers, LSD, BBS front air dam, factory rear spoiler, aluminum mags, awesome package! But SO VERY rusty. It ran, but I could only drive in on my farm. Boo-Hoo. Really had overlooked these cars when they were in their prime (I mean, not rusted out). parted it out, kept what I wanted, and miss what I would have enjoyed as a driving experience. BTW, I noticed how very seriously, BMW took exhaust heat insulation in this car, and made me notice how our very hot Coupes could benefit from extra, or any, driveshaft insulation.