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, 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 produces close to 300bhp – even more than the M-Sport cars which are now fetching in excess of £25k for the best examples.

The car appears to be in largely original condition throughout with records of minor restoration work in the history file. The black leather Recaro sports interior is also original and is unusually 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 of its prodigious power over the years: it is reported 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.

MOT'd until April 2016, the car was reportedly running and driving well until very recently when the clutch packed up. With too many other cars in his collection also in need of attention, the vendor has decided to pass the BMW on to someone with more time and enthusiasm to devote to getting it back on the road or the race track.

With interest in the iconic 6-Series rising fast of late, this rare and unusually potent manual car looks most tempting and is being offered here at no reserve so the best bid takes it home.