Alpina on Ebay again?

[phocus]

I guess if the auction is not going your way,,,you just start over, huh?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1973-BMW-2002-Alpina-Euro-Wide-Body-Collector-M3-Tii-Ca_W0QQitemZ4603164008QQcategoryZ42601QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[Harv]

Pictures of the head, manefold, intake, CR steering box. He's getting there. Still needs more pictures to sell a car like that.

John

[phocus]

Do you suppose the bidders are a bit angry?

[Harv]

probably not since I don't think it has been over the reserve yet.

John

[jgerry2002]

I love how the picture of the steering box is just blurry enough so you can't actually verify the S/N to verify if its a real close ratio or just a stock box thats been repainted.

I just wish the guy would accurately represent the vehicle. Its not a real alpina anything. Just a bunch of go fast parts.

[f1reverb]

I emailed him to see if it is/was my friend's car, but no reply. The thing is filthy aside from a quick wash on the paint. Look how rusty those headers are, and what looks like burn marks on the body by the headers.

[Marty]

I like the dust on the rear seat realy makes me want to bid ya know

[Ben.T]

I love how the picture of the steering box is just blurry enough so you can't actually verify the S/N to verify if its a real close ratio or just a stock box thats been repainted.

I just wish the guy would accurately represent the vehicle. Its not a real alpina anything. Just a bunch of go fast parts.

Justin I understand your point about representation. That would be true of any car sold there. There is always a risk to buying a car virtually.

How can you make a blanket statement, like "ts not a real alpina anything. Just a bunch of go fast parts" when if you know the Alpina history, in the days of 2002s they did not keep any real records about the cars, they sold upgradeable part kits to improve the cars. Anybody with a bank account big enough could buy their stuff.

I would be willing to wajor that MichaelD's 1of3 says BMW on the title, but we know what it really is. Is his just a tii with bunch of go fast parts?

This thing is probably a sleeper and somebody is going to get a car with lots of hard to find parts, regardless of how far somebody here picks it apart.

[prsncat]

Actually, it is pretty easy to pick this car apart since it is a USA VIN with an early nose and the wrong tail panel. Why anyone would go to the effort of putting square taillights on the car is beyond me...

Alpina didn't document its early cars, but documented history will certainly make a car more valuable. Michael's car has a very thorough, documented history. Although his is one of three, it is actually one of about 16-21 cars (the numbers keep changing) that Hoffman sent to Alpina to be modified. However, these cars sent by Hoffman are well documented.

The seller in this case hasn't done any of the research to determine the history of the car.

A number of US companies bought Alpina parts and converted cars here in the states. Does this make it any less an Alpina? Yes -- an Alpina car is one that has been tuned by Alpina directly.

If anything, this car should be represented as a nice car with a lot of rare and valuable components.

However, it looks tired and well used. The pictures still don't show this car as anything too special. Therefore, the bid pricing has been realistic and accurately reflects the car's true value. I suspect the reserve is probably $2K higher than the car's realistic value.

I, for one, don't find this car very appealing. Yes, it has a lot of nice parts, but - like any hot rod - reflects the personal taste of an individual. Therefore, the seller needs to find someone with similar tastes, a reasonable amount of cash available, and is willing to buy the car on Ebay.

It should be interesting.

Brian

[jgerry2002]

How can you make a blanket statement, like "ts not a real alpina anything. Just a bunch of go fast parts" when if you know the Alpina history, in the days of 2002s they did not keep any real records about the cars, they sold upgradeable part kits to improve the cars. Anybody with a bank account big enough could buy their stuff.

I would be willing to wajor that MichaelD's 1of3 says BMW on the title, but we know what it really is. Is his just a tii with bunch of go fast parts?

This thing is probably a sleeper and somebody is going to get a car with lots of hard to find parts, regardless of how far somebody here picks it apart.

Let me clarify: The ebay car is just a tired, but cool looking '02 with a bunch of interesting and period Alpina parts.

Making the claim that this car (or any car) is some sort of authentic "Alpina" (implying the work was performed by Alpina themselves) museum piece without any documentation is just plain misleading.

Could it have been built by Alpina? Maybe...

Could it have been built by a guy in his garage? Probably more accurate in this case.

The current owner is trying to play it up hoping that someone will pay too much for it. I just hope whoever buys it realizes it could be a fun toy rather than a super rare museum quality investment piece.

[dubois]

What makes a real 2002 Alpina has been discussed at nauseum (sp?) before, there are different schools of thoughts and they are probably all correct! How narrowly or broadly you define the term is really arbitrarly and can exclude or include a wide spectrum of cars that have some or a large Alpina parts content. Regardless of what school you are in, we all probably agree that there is an "Alpina feel", you can't define it but it is recognizeable (for those lucky enough to had experienced it). Is it just the sum of the parts, the mechanics magic touch, the Bavarian air, the nameplate, or all the above? I wish I knew! Wouldn't it be nice to dump a bunch of money and turn any 02 into an Alpina?

There is only one way of knowing if this Ebay car is a great car: drive it! If it then feels like an Alpina, it probably is... The next question is what kind of premium should it then command over a similar car? Is there something inherently "better" other than the "feel". It's all very subjective ... great subject to discuss, but still subjective.

[Guest]

The car is up to $7100 with reserve not met. Without Alpina documentation, that price seems to be pushing it.

Oh, I doubt it is a "real" Alpina as it has a USA VIN and the only truly Alpina parts on it that I can see are the seat cloth and the intake mainfold, but not even the much rarer Alpina air cleaner. The headers, steering wheel, wheels, etc. aren't Alpina. Cool parts, nice looking, but probably not a "real" Alpina.

But, as Michael points out, that doesn't really matter for anything other than resale value.

To me, the car looks like a rough, tired car that has some nice flairs and a few other parts. Personally, I would drop an S14 in there and sell the rest to help fund the project (but I have enough projects right now).

[f1reverb]

Leif Anderberg took his Euro delivery '75 straight to Alpina after picking it up at the factory. So there you would have a real Alpina USA version. Too bad it was hit and totalled two block from the dock when he took delivery here.

Now Alpina has had several official USA guys over the years including Hyde Park Motors (the first Alpina importer), and then Mike Dietel, Hardy & Beck and others. Are cars done by them real Alpinas? I would think so, just not done at Buchloe.