BMW 635CSi Manual

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One of the most desirable cars of the Eighties, the BMW E24 6-Series looked sleek as a missile with its long, low stance and predatory ‘shark-nose’ front end.

A fitting replacement for the superb E9 3.0 Coupe (an example of which features elsewhere in this catalogue), it was based on the chassis of the excellent BMW E12 5-Series, widely regarded as the finest handling saloon of its era. A range of straight-six engines were offered, top of the tree being the fabulous M-Sport tweaked 285bhp 3.5-litre unit found in the M635CSi. Mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox, it could punt the car to 60mph in just 6.1 seconds on its way to a top speed of 158mph.

The vast majority of 6-Series cars were fitted with a 4-speed automatic gearbox but for the really sporting driver there is no question that the rare manual version is the model to have. Which is where this car comes in.

According to BMW factory records it was completed in February 1986 and first registered to construction giant Alfred McAlpine in the following month. A very special car, not only does it benefit from the 5-speed manual gearbox, it has also been modified (perhaps from new) by renowned BMW tuning house, AC Schnitzer. This includes a Schnitzer-modified engine with dyno printouts showing that the robust M30 3.5-litre powerhouse is still producing close to 300bhp – even more than the M-Sport cars which are now fetching in excess of £25k for the best examples.

The vendor (a race car engine builder of some repute) acquired the car in early 2012 with the intention of turning it into a Group A Historic Motor Sport contender but quickly realised that it was too good to chop about in this way. He states that the car is highly original throughout and shows no signs of any significant previous restoration other than a few paintwork touch ups here and there. The black leather Recaro sports interior is also original and looks well-preserved.

Although the car has covered some 142,800 miles, it comes with a large history file to show regular maintenance (some by marque experts Munich Legends) and has lost little, if any, of its prodigious power over the years, the vendor reporting that “the performance is quite startling, faster than any road BMW that I have ever driven from this period and it will give most modern cars a run for their money without having to push it too hard”.

Desirable goodies include a limited slip differential; stainless steel sports exhaust (very fruity!); cruise control; rear seat head restraints; 5-spoke Schnitzer alloys; BMW ‘works type’ mono windscreen wiper (original two-blade system also included); and the much sought-after 5-speed ‘dog-leg’ close-ratio gearbox as was fitted to the Group A FIA Touring cars in period.

On the button and ready to go with an MOT until April 2016, this rare and unusually potent Eighties icon looks most tempting at the modest guide price suggested.