BMW V12 - 1997 850Ci... One of ONLY 133 Built!

[execmalibu]

I just stumbled on another BMW 850Ci this one is a 1997 the last year for the 850Cis. The car has only 63K miles and is brand new in the wrapper condition. The car has a very rare 3:91 rear end with a Limited Slip. This makes the car very quick.

These late 850s are ultra rare because at $100K in 1997 dollars they only built 85 850Cis for the entire US market. The last series 850Cis have a larger V12 (M73- 5.4 Liter) with 30 more HP along with being upgraded to having a new 5 Speed Trans and larger brakes.

Definitely NOT as cool as a Ferrari 550 Maranello but not that far off.

The 850s are GREAT drivers and will soon be a great investment because of their styling,performance and ultra rarity. A lot of the younger Professionals grew up in the 1990s with the BMW 850 being and icon!

Nice early 850is with very low milage can still be had for around $10K-$15K which is incredibly cheap for such a nice car. Definitely a car to keep your eye on. Nice option to have parked in the more modern section of the collection next to your Porsche 993, Ferrari 550, 360 etc and Mercedes V12 AMG.

[reed]

I am not a fan overall but absolutely love the greenhouse. Was this the last car made without a b-pllar?

[Stevie]

Very nice catch! Working on one for a friend, also a M73 5.4 car. Very underrated car, third gear go is amazing even by todays standards, and build quality is something from another age. Bombproof.

[Peanut]

Pretty car, but I thought the csi was the "one to have" with a 6-speed stick. That being said, they don't hold a candle to your e9s, in my humble opinion.

Scott

[execmalibu]

Peanut,

Yes the 850CSi is the "M" (BMW Race Shop) Version V12 with 375HP vs 326 HP for the M73 850Ci.

The 850 CSi is the "RS" of the 850 series with the 850Ci (M73) being the 73 911S equivalent. The CSi were very rare with just 225 made and were only built in 94-95 and they were ALL 6 Speeds! They had subtle changes to the body work on the bumpers and trim and the engine looked different with M badging.


The 850CSi are the hot ticket and are being offered at around $35,000-$50,000 which is probably in line with them being the rare RS version. But $35k is starting to be a lot of money at double or triple the cost of the 805Ci or 850i.

For those interested the 850i were first released in 1991 and BMW sold around 4,200 US models in both 4 speed autos and 6 Speeds from 1991-1994. In 1993 BMW changed only the name to 850Ci but not the car! They first 850Cis were virtually identical to the previous 850is with the M70 (296HP V12) through 1994. 1995 was when the first M73 (330HP V12) version was released.

Because of the 1990s recession BMW was only able to sell a total of just 363 850Cis in three years from 1995-97. 363 cars Ain't a lot of cars for the entire USA! I was told that some of the 1997 850Cis were still sitting unsold in dealers showrooms until 1999! I remember Porsche 928S4s that were also experiencing dismal sales during the same period.

BMW also built a V8 version starting in 1994 called the 840Ci. Looks identical! Kind of like a 911T parked next to a 911S

[Stevie]

The M73 powered cars are MUCH better cars then the M70 sheds ever were. M70 5 liters still used motronic 1.1 per bank, with a separate ECU to synchronise the banks and an antique 4-speed auto. The whole car was still e32 (1986) based.

The 5.4 liter M73 cars used the driveline from the e38 7-series with one Motronic 1.7 for the whole engine, and one of the beefiest automatic car transmissions ZF ever built, the 5HP30. Many components were borrowed from the much better e38 range saloons. A well sorted 5.4 joy to drive!

[tfmcmahon]

thanks for the info, gentleman.Here is one I noticed while looking.Comments are welcome.Mileage is high,but with a rebuild. http://www.cargurus.com/Cars/invento...sting=98175919

[execmalibu]

That price is a bit high for a CSi with 139K miles... Some day it might seem like a gift?





Stevie wrote the M73 cars are much better. It is like comparing a 1971 911S with a 2.2 liter and a 901 trans to a 1973 911S with a 2.4 liter and a 915 trans. The early (1991-94) 850is drive great but the later models drive even better.

[tfmcmahon]

This is an 850CSi car with the M engine.However it appears high in both mileage and price.

[sithot]

Pretty cars but they can be real money pits, especially the V12.