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At $21,850, Could You See Yourself Waking Up To This 1991 BMW 850i?
At $21,850, Could You See Yourself Waking Up To This 1991 BMW 850i?-April 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:09:30

Nice Price or No Dice 1991 BMW 850i

The ad for today’s 850i includes several other cars up for grabs from the seller’s collection. The Bimmer seems to be the cream of that crop, although we’ll still need to decide if it’s priced to sour the deal.

Today’s BMW is collectible for obvious reasons. I averred that yesterday’s collectability quotient was a lot less tangible. My point of view is that the original ML has a decent drivetrain, solid off-roader chops, and a Mercedes badge on both ends. That all should make it a fairly solid contender for future appreciation. After all, whoever expected W123 diesel wagons to be worth what they are today? Few of you agreed with my line of thinking, which is ok, all the more for me. What we almost all could agree upon, however, was the Mercedes’ $2,800 asking price. That won a laudable 82 percent Nice Price victory.

Image for article titled At $21,850, Could You See Yourself Waking Up To This 1991 BMW 850i?

You know, one problem about having an extensive car collection is finding the time to give the whole fleet the exercise it needs. That is unless you’re Jay Leno, he drives pretty much everything he owns. I’ve seen Jay cruising the neighborhood around his Burbank shop in a different car almost every single day. I always make a point to wave and shout “hey!” Jay’s a cool guy and always waves back.

Perhaps Jay might be interested in adding this to his collection. Then perhaps it might get some use. The ad notes that this car was part of another collection and lists a few other, fairly eclectic if discordant cars also offered for sale from the same collection. It further states that the car sat for five years and has had “thousands of dollars” spent to bring it back to waking life. A positive part of being benched so long is that the car has only 65,000 miles on the clock.

Image for article titled At $21,850, Could You See Yourself Waking Up To This 1991 BMW 850i?

According to the ad, the car has no major bodywork issues but does show a few minor imperfections, including a scratch in the paint on the driver’s door. The Calypso Red Metallic looks otherwise solid and is an under-appreciated choice for these big coupes. Factory 16-inch Style 9 wheels underpin, wearing BFG Radial T/As of indeterminate age. The seller claims that other wheel options are available, but doesn’t go into detail as to what those might be.

Image for article titled At $21,850, Could You See Yourself Waking Up To This 1991 BMW 850i?

A beige cabin awaits entry and features leather-wrapped buckets front and rear. Everything inside, save for the wrinkly floor mats looks to be in perfectly serviceable shape, plus there’s a goofy mobile phone on the center console. That probably won’t work anymore but at least it can make you feel like you’re Gordon Gecko.

This being an 850i means that power is provided by a five-liter V12 engine. That gives you 296 horsepower to play with, along with a stout 332 lb-ft of torque that’s just a toe-tap away. The engine bay where it calls home looks complete and free of monkey business. You will note some brown staining on the intake plenums, which is the typical aging of the factory coating there. One of the throttle bodies exhibits this too, while the other — possibly new — is shiny silver.

Image for article titled At $21,850, Could You See Yourself Waking Up To This 1991 BMW 850i?

BMW has always been known for its straight-six engines and the M70 V12 is interesting in that it works like two independent sixes bolted together at the crank. Paired with the smooth mover V12 is a four-speed ZF 4HP24 automatic transmission, making this car a full-on cruiser.

Image for article titled At $21,850, Could You See Yourself Waking Up To This 1991 BMW 850i?

To get on that cruise, you’d need to come up with $21,850 as that is the asking price. That gets you a clean title and, supposedly a car that’s been successfully brought back to life after what the seller describes as a “5-year slumber.” What do you say, is that a fair deal for the car in its present condition? Or, for that much is it best to let sleeping dogs lie?

You decide!

Las Vegas, Nevada, , or go if the ad disappears.

H/T to Dan H. for the hookup!

Help me out with NPOND. Hit me up at and send me a fixed-price tip. Remember to include your Kinja handle.

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