Great shots! I still find the E32 to be one of the best proportioned designs that BMW has ever done. Plus it felt light years ahead of the E23 (which I still love and wish I hadn't sold). My parents were in Europe around May (?) 1987 and got a hold of the then new 7 series brochure and mailed it to me. I showed it to a friend that worked at the dealership and he freaked out because they had just received one photo and very little detail as to what to expect. I still have that brochure in a box somewhere. Also, I miss the way the hood opened on BMWs, I always thought it gave the car a lot of character. That was the one thing I didn't like back when the E28s came out, conventional hood? WTF??
Thanks for your kind words, eam3. My particular model has four things going for it: It's a very early model (9/87 production date), which means it was made a few years before BMW started to skimp on the zinc anti-corrosion protection. I have been all over this vehicle, and I found NO rust anywhere on its undercarriage, and just a few pinhead sized spots on the body. It also got a new paint job just a few months before I bought it. The PO's wife wouldn't let him get any more BMW's until he got rid of one or two (he already had five!). Most of the car's wear and tear is on the interior. The car really does look that good on the outside. Amazing for a 223,000 mile car. Also, BMW made around 1,200 of the first year 1988 750iL's, and it's estimated only half of these are still on the road, making for a particularly rare sight if you can catch one. Statistically speaking, you have a better chance of sharing rush hour traffic with a Lamborghini or a Ferrari than seeing one of these fine cars on the road. Last but not least, this one has the earlier model for the water valve. These are desirable because they are rebuildable. The newer model water valve is NOT rebuildable and generally considered junk when it fails. Newer isn't always better, and it's certainly true here. Are you talking about the hoods that slide forward then tilt up from the front? I thought all BMW's did that. My E21 3-series (1981 320i that this car replaced) opened the same way. Thanks for your kind words again. I truly lucked out with this one. Definitely a keeper to remain in the family.
Where have you been hiding? No BMW has had a front-hinged hood for several (model) generations. (Which ticks me off no end, but ... <shrug>.) Come out and play with the rest of us once in a while.
I can think of several BMW features missing from BMW's for a while. Being able to swap batteries without a trip to the dealer (not possible since 2002) Copper wiring (not seen since the 1994 E32) simplifies electrical repairs. A full sized spare tire, along with four regular tires that can be changed without purchasing a new roadwheel too. A fairly complete toolkit in the trunk, along with a tire jack. A dipstick and "conventional fill ports" for both my oil and my transmission fluid. Being able to change my own oil, transmission fluid, etc. Best of all, it's PAID FOR.
It's true. I saw a photo in Roundel magazine a few months ago of a new BMW and the hinges were on the windshield side. How weird is THAT??? ... then again the top of a modern BMW engine looks like the top of a Sears Craftsman shopvac, so who would want to open the hood anyway? Ewwww. You can't build a sexy shopvac.
Although I agree with all your items listed, this one is the one I still consider the worst flaw in current BMWs. Audi and Mercedes don't seem to follow this idiotic trend, why is BMW so insistent on shoving it down our throats?
I've heard a few rumors -- none of them that I agree with a) BMW wanted an increase in available cargo space in the trunk without having to engineer a spare tire well b) A small cost savings by no longer providing a tire jack or tools c) BMW claims it provides added safety by not requiring someone to pull over to the side of the road to change a tire. However, very few people are killed this way compared with a number of other causes of death. d) (my own personal suspicion follows) cost savings by not having to offer a spare tire, jack, and tools to change the tire, plus a potential profit opportunity by selling a proprietary runflat tire permanently bonded to the roadwheel. Add that to a TPMS (tire pressure monitoring system) that limits your range to 100 miles and your top speed to 50 mph in the event of a road hazard "incident." I don't agree with any of that, personally. Again, these are mainly theories. I prefer the old fashioned way of doing things -- four conventional tires on conventional roadwheels, a full sized spare in the trunk along with tools, plus the freedom to choose MY own roadwheels and tires, rather than what BMW sees fit to put on my car. That is what tirerack.com and the used roadwheel market is for, right?
I've posted this picture before but here's the wonderful run-flat tire from our 535i and the reason I'm so glad it still had a spare tire and a jack. This happened right before Christmas at night. I was in the middle of nowhere on the way to a party and it was a sudden failure with no hope of driving anywhere on that tire. When replacement time comes for the 535i at the end of the year, my wife wants to look at the Audi A6 because, especially after this incident, she doesn't want a car without a spare.
You have been misinformed. BMW tire fitments are not proprietary--far from it. For example, Tire Rack carries more than 30 different run-flats from eight manufacturers in 225/45R17--a common BMW fitment. Choices increase and technology improves as demand rises. Large or new sizes may be unique offerings at first but that usually doesn't last long. Run-flat tires are not permanently bonded to the wheels. That's just false. The TPMS doesn't limit your range or top speed, tire construction does. Typical self-supporting, run-flat tires have sidewalls stiff enough to survive about 50-150 miles at up to 55 mph, near which limits they will collapse like any conventional tire. The TPMS does not enforce the limits (which may vary by tire model), it merely alerts the driver to a loss of pressure--because by design the tire may not suffer an immediate and detectable change in handling when it goes flat. You probably could but it would be kind of disturbing, I think. As for the plastic bits, they're easy to remove and store if they're not to your taste. Personally I don't mind them since they make it possible to hose down the engine compartment without fear of drowning my ignition system.
That car is certainly beautiful -- E32s are what made me love BMW when I was a kid. But I'll tell you I hate not having that filler port in my 93 E32 -- well as far as I know.
I miss my baby http://bmwcca.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=2005 Looking at the pics of your makes me miss mine. Gotta get her back on the road again. These are a few shots of mine about a year ago.
