Alpina B8 4.6

In the days when tuning was still largely a German craft, Alpina established a formidable reputation with its BMW-based masterpieces. When the small firm from Buchloe was absorbed by the giant corporation from Munich, an era ended and Alpina as we knew it ceased to exist. Partly as a celebration and partly out of nostalgia, we took a very special B8 4.6 from the marque’s golden age out for a drive. 

In the 1990s, the M3 was BMW’s undisputed king of the sports sedans. With a 2,990 cc straight-six producing 286 PS at 7,000 rpm, BMW Motorsport focused squarely on performance and razor-sharp handling. The engineers had already experimented with fitting a V8 in the E36, but the idea had to be shelved due to production difficulties. The V8 was simply too large to lower the bodyshell over it, as was customary on the BMW production lines.