Seller Submission: 1985 BMW 635CSi 5-Spd
The E24 generation BMW 6 Series was a grand luxury tourer sold from 1976 through 1989. Its shapely shark style curves were penned by legendary designer Paul Bracq and prices have been reasonable for years. Find this 1985 BMW 635CSi 5-Spd here on eBay
with starting bid of $7,500 located in Derby, CT. Seller submission from John H.
The seller, John H writes:
I recently
purchased a BMW 635CSI, after one of my good friends bought one from a
BringATrailer auction and I fell so much in love with it that I had to
have one of my own. It is one of my all-time favorite cars, but it has
to go, because my parents said that one of my two cars had to go, there
isn’t enough room for both of them. My other car, a 1973 Jensen
Interceptor, means a lot more to me, because I worked to restore it back
to running and driving condition, with the help from a donor car.
The
car also belonged to my grandfather, so there is sentimental value in
it as well. Sadly, this all has prompted the sale of my BMW. While it
isn’t an S2000 swapped sunbeam, it would mean a lot if you could run it
on the site.The car has 160k
on it, and is in very nice shape, with no rust, new Michelin trx tires,
on BMW bottlecaps, and all of the original equipment included (radio,
and air intake).
This looks to be a decent example of a manual transmission equipped E24 with a nice paint job and interior. Expect the 215 horsepower/224 ft-lbs 184 horsepower/210 ft-lbs of torque 3.4 liter inline-6 to be peppy, but not earth shattering.
See a better example of an 80s coupe that is guaranteed to be a classic someday? tips@dailyturismo.com
John…nice car and I wish you luck, but I'm thinking you're a bit high on the price. Additionally, I've owned multiples of these—are you sure about the "no rust"? Just in the pics I can see rust around the front jack point (a very common location on e24's) and the nearby rocker seam. Additionally, the condition of the tool kit would indicate that the trunk has seen some water intrusion, and there looks to be some rust in one of the visible trunk seams (usually it really accumulates in the rear trunk corners).
On the positive, even though it doesn't have the desirable sport seats, the interior is in very nice condition. Also, it's rare to see one of these that still has the metric wheels. Did you put the new TRX tires on it? If so, I'll commend you for sticking with originality even in the face of logic—–most people don't since you can usually buy a set of 16" BMW oem wheels AND tires for less than a set of the TRX's from Coker.
Is this the same John H who had that post of the year over on BaT? Good to see a young gear head in training, keep at it!
That's it! I thought I recognized the Jensen story!
You would be correct! This is he, and I have much more (carwise) planned for the coming year! Some of my automotive endeavors have been published to Oppositelock.kinja.com if you'd like to check it out.
Correction: this is a US spec M30B34 engine, ~184hp, 210lb-ft.
Notes: The "cold air intake" sucks from near the exhaust manifold, where the factory system has a duct to actual cold air. Probably no power lost or gained, honestly. I'd still go back to stock.
These comfort seats are a lot more comfy to me than the sports, so that's a very subjective plus.
TRX tires were fantastic when new. It's been well over a quarter century since then, and tire tech has advanced accordingly.
'85 was the only year to get the G265 transmission, widely regarded to be the strongest.
The rust doesn't look bad to me, keep in mind this is an Ohioan's perspective. The exhaust is usually the first thing to rot away.
Water in the trunk is usually caused by a bad trunk seal. They're pretty cheap and easy to replace. Use 3M glue.
There are tons of handling mods available to make this thing ride worse. Some actually make improvements. It's more a grand tourer than a sportscar, don't make it ride like your neighbor's slammed Honda.
Engine mods are likewise available, but in order to make real power, you either need forced induction or to put new pistons in. Most people after a little more just swap in the later M30B35, which gives the 215hp mentioned above.
Final comments: It presents well in pictures, and anybody worried about that level of rust clearly lives in Arizona. I'd recommend taking the seat out and having an upholsterer take care of the torn seam. It can't cost that much if it's as simple as re-sewing the seam. Prices for these are steadily on the rise, I think it would be well sold at the opening bid. I had one, it wasn't nearly this nice. It did have a turbo, which was a lot of fun for 6 months, till a combination of electrical gremlins and my only having the patience of a 20 year old put an end to it.
I had an '87 in Delphin Grey with a Natuur leather gut for 7 years, it ran like a train. Not too quick on initial pick-up, but once you were rolling it just kept going and going (sort of like the Energizer Bunny). Watch out for the front air dam, they catch on almost anything and are impossible to replace. I did have to switch out the metric bottlecaps because I really didn't like the TRX Michelins, had them on my 528. I think this ask is very fair, but then again I had to sell mine fast during the '08 meltdown and only got $4500 for it 8>(
Suggestion to the seller. Include a picture of the rear seat. These along with a fiat Dino and a few others have to my eye the most inviting rear seats. It give them a true Grand Touring car look.