Some people can’t understand why ALPINA cars are so loved. Well, it has a lot to do with how the German company makes its cars but also with the fact that they are usually BMWs taken to 11. The upgrades ALPINA installs on them make the entire experience even more enjoyable, most of the time in a luxurious way. That’s why classic ALPINA models are now worth a lot of money as a 1987 Alpina B7 Turbo proved not long ago.
The guys from RM Sotheby’s have sold one such incredible machine for no less than €103,500 ($116,388) last week at one of their events held in Essen, Germany. The car was one of only 17 ever built. At first it may seem peculiar but, even though ALPINA made 130 units of the B7 Turbo back in the 1980s, only 17 of them were fitted with a catalyst. This is one of them and it is absolutely stunning.
The ALPINA 7 Turbo Coupe used to come with a 3.4-liter straight six unit making 330 HP in the decatted version and 320 in the catted alternative. Torque was rated at 520 Nm (383 lb-ft) on the versions with a catalytic converter making them basically on par with a modern day BMW fitted with a B58 engine, to some degree. Now imagine that amount of power on a 1980s 6 Series and you can get a better idea of how crazy this thing was back then.
The sprint from 0-62 mph takes 5.8 seconds, according to ALPINA and the top speed was rated at 265 km/h (164 mph) which is fast even by today’s standards. This particular model from RM Sotheby’s has a black exterior combined with a bright red interior and a plaque certifying the said interior was redone a while back and it certainly shows. But that’s just part of the magic of this car, as you can see in the gallery below.
[Note: This is not the actual image of the car]
