For Your Consideration:
The ’88-’89 BMW E24
I realize some of you will always be partial to beauties such as the delectable E9 coupe, the exquisitely-proportioned E31 8-Series or the swoopy 507 roadster, but to me, BMW hasn’t made a better-looking car than the E24 6-Series. They just nailed it.
Frankly, the bumpers make or break the styling. Up until the final two years of the car’s long 13-year model run, the E24s bound for the US were fitted with hideous, protruding “diving board” crash bumpers—functional to be sure, but an order of magnitude worse to look at than the lovely, discreet Euro-spec pieces. But in 1988, BMW standardized the design across all markets with their so-called “world bumpers,” fitted to the E24 seen here. They still don’t complement the car’s lines quite as well as the Euro bumpers, but if the example seen in these photos is any indication, they do a fine job in their own right.
As an aspirational car, fit center caps to the 17″ wheels and position the badges correctly, and wouldn’t be ashamed in the least to be seen behind the wheel of this machine. Quite the opposite, in fact.
The rest of this photo collection can be viewed on the BigCoupe.com boards.
Image credits: Gregory Markarian
So that’s what those are.
I had always thought they were “tucked” diving boards. Didn’t know they came like that from the factory!
Yessir. For the record it is possible to tuck the diving boards, but it looks terrible. I did a considerable amount of research on this subject during the time I owned my E24.
Educate thyself on the various flavors of E24:
http://sharknose.de/damals.htm
Interesting. Of course I agree with you that the Euro bumpers are the way to go. These “world bumpers” are a close-but-no-cigar for me (not that I’d kick one out of the garage..).
Now here’s the all-important question: chrome or shadowline?
Depends on the year and color of the car. :) On an early E24, I’d leave the chrome as it accents the classic feel of the car, but on a later example (mid-’80s on), I’d consider shadowlining if it were already a darker color. I wouldn’t shadowline Alpine White or Polaris, for example.
Of course it’s understood that we’re discussing proper shadowlining, which involves leaving the kidneys alone (no blacked-out kidneys, please) whilst blacking out the rest of the trim.
Black kidneys are anathema to me. Why owners decide to obscure the most signature, instantly recognizable part of the car I’ll never understand.