Japanese Car Auction Finds: BMW Alpina B10 3.5

Car auctions in Japan have a wide selection of non-Japanese-manufacturer vehicles in addition to the expected Hondas, Toyotas and Nissans. Foreign cars are a luxury style-statement in Japan and many, including this BMW Alpina B10 3.5, demonstrate that exclusivity further by being left hand drive (LHD) – even though Japan is a RHD country.

At the time this Alpina B10 was first registered in Japan, confusingly, there were two different models of B10: This 3.5 liter normally-aspirated model with 261PS, and a more powerful B10 Bi-Turbo model producing 360PS. Alpina is a long-time and well-respected BMW tuner. Although it does not enjoy the same closeness to the manufacturer as AMG historically has done with Mercedes, you could say it is the most widely recognized BMW aftermarket specialist. It is also known for being conservative with its performance figures, so it would not be surprising if those engine output numbers were actually a bit higher in reality.

This Alpina B10 3.5 is graded 4, which is a very good grading for a vehicle of this age (19 years old at the time of writing). Although it may not be as attractive as the more powerful Bi-Turbo model, this is a good example of the kind of Alpinas that are available in the Japanese car auctions and that will be starting to assume minor classic status over the next few years.

This is what the Japanese car auction inspector has written about this car:

“”Interior C, LHD, not known if gray or official import, main key and door key are different, seats worn with small cracks, interior trim coming away, ceiling lining sagging, interior wear and grime, scratches dents and repairs, exterior paintwork has same-color paint repairs, right side molding missing just in front of right rear wheel arch, left side molding cracked, marks as per map.”

(Additional information: Wikipedia)

(c) Integrity Exports Co. Ltd. – Japan car auction buyer and exporter.