1996 BMW 850Ci. Congrats – You’ve Found the Right One!

1996 BMW 8-Series 850Ci Description

OVERVIEW

This is a 1996 850Ci – a barn find that was off the road for 8 years before I found it near Knoxville, TN in 2016. I am the third owner and have driven the car only a thousand miles or so. It's been stored since fall (started regularly).

In 2008, the car had been prepped for a repaint, but the project had been abandoned due to the owners health issues.I tracked down the owner who had since moved out of the area and negotiated the purchase of the car. Before I picked it up, I had the painting completed(original black).

Over the years, the car had been cared for by a small shop near Knoxville – they do restoration of exotics, custom modifications, and scratch fabrication. They have been maintaining this car since it was purchased by the second owner and have done a great job - the car looks amazing; it’s got 5 coats of paint and 3 coats of clear.The cowl, mirrors and rear valance are matching black – but are a satin finish.

Once the paint was done, I went and picked it up in Knoxville after all the fluids were changed and drove it 700 miles back to Chicago. It ran like a top and hasn't missed a beat since.The car has about 157,000 miles on it. It’s a strong runner – the M73 engine and 5 speed automatic are incredible.

VEHICLE WALKAROUND

The rims are in great shape and look sharp with the black/white carbon center caps. Don't know much about the tires no leaks/plenty of tread.

I have the rear valance (the panel below the rear bumper between the dual exhaust tips) – it’s freshly painted satin black to match the cowl and the mirrors – but it isn’t installed (the upgraded exhaust is wider than stock - so you'd need to modify the valance to fit it). It's a simple installation - it just clicks in with no tools required.

The rear glass is brand new- OEM BMW part ($800). The side windows are tinted, the rear windshield is not.

The interior looks very good.The leather is a light grey – the doors and rest of the interior are a light grey/dark grey combination. The wood looks good, but does have some checking in the finish.The drivers seat does show a bit of wear (see photo).The toolkit is complete (the emergency triangle is on the way).

EXTRAS

This car comes with afew extras that need to stay with it.

• I have a period very cool, period correct (E46) 3 spoke euro wheel for the car as well– but haven’t had a chance to have it installed.
• There is a power amp installed in the car (where the phone used to be).I have not had a chance to evaluate the audio (But I do know that it’s got the stock components – plus this power amp).
• The rear valance is complete and freshly painted – but not installed because the aftermarket exhaust is bigger than the original – so it’s been left off (it just clicks in – no tools required).

VEHICLE SPECS (from the VIN decoder)

Vehicle Identification NumberWBAEG4329TCD05084

Model 850ci - USA

Development CodeE31

ChassisCOUPE

Engine M73

Displacement5.40

DrivetrainHECK

TransmissionAUT

ColorSchwarz 2 - 668

UpholsteryLeder Nappa/silbergrau Hell - M5SH

Production Plant DINGOLFING

Production Date1995-09-29

OPTION NUMBERS(from the VIN decoder)

223 Dynamic Damper Control

241 Airbag Driver Front Passenger Airbag

245 Steering Column Adjustment Elec

298 BMW Lm Rad/turbinenstyling

431 Interior Rr Vw Mirror W Auto dimming

438 Wood Trim

488 Lumbar Support Driver/front Passenger

640 Car Telephone Preparation

694 Preparation For Cd Changer