- Seller: John G (Contact)
- Location: Kansas City, Kansas
- Mileage: 91,200 Shown
- Chassis #: WBAEC8405F0610469
- Title Status: Clean
- Engine: 3.5-Liter Inline-6
- Transmission: ZF 4-Speed
UPDATE – Videos of this BMW have been added below!
Almost 25 years ago, a good friend decided to buy a used 1990 BMW 525i on a whim. He thought it would be fun driving a fancy German car, and he was right. Not being a car guy, he didn’t hang onto it for long because an aging BMW daily driver requires a little more attention than the Mazda Protege he owned immediately beforehand, but he owned it long enough that I was able to drive it a few times, and I immediately understood what all the fuss was about. It was tight and crisp, as if nothing short of a meteor strike could push it off course. Add that feeling of solidity to some of the most gorgeous lines to come from Bavaria, and you will have the 6-Series coupe. So handsome that it was stylistically little changed for almost 15 years, it still looks great today, and you can bid on this 1985 BMW 635CSi now as a no reserve Barn Finds Auction!
Part of the charm of an ’80s or ’90s BMW is its smooth inline six, 3.5 liters (with some judicious rounding) under the hood of the 635. With 182 horsepower and the aerodynamic styling of a land shark, freeway cruising is effortless. Backing up the six is a ZF four-speed automatic with an overdrive top gear. The seller says that the car runs perfectly with new plugs, wires, distributor, and water pump, but there are some things that will need to be addressed. Under the hood, it needs a new Idle Air Control Valve (it’s unplugged now) and it has a power steering leak. It’s also due for brakes and shocks, and one wheel speed sensor needs to be replaced. Aside from the ABS and the windshield washers, however, everything works, including the air conditioning and cruise control.
The interior is in very good original shape for being a 40-year-old car. I love the interior styling of 1970s and 1980s BMWs. Everything has a purpose, with just the right number of easy-to-read gauges, controls that are tilted toward the driver, and firm leather seats that remind you that you’re not fooling around anymore. Put down your coffee; you’re supposed to be driving.
You can see from the photos that the car isn’t perfect, and the seller is very open about its flaws. There is some rust in the rear wheelwells and lower fenders (but little to none underneath). The front valance panel is cracked and should be replaced. It needs a left front turn signal lens. But if you’re a home mechanic and you like to work on your cars while you drive them, this might be an inexpensive way to get into a mostly solid, running 635. The original wheels and spare will come with the car, too, if you prefer a factory look. If you’re enamored by the styling of BMWs famous coupe, bid now!
Bid On This Auction
DualJetfire bid $3,500.00 2025-03-17 17:42:46
Senap bid $1,000.00 2025-03-12 20:54:27
One of BMW’s better-looking cars. I’ve often wanted to feel what that big six feels like, under my right foot.
and the four speed with clutch at your left foot!
This is an automatic, but if it did have a clutch it would be a 5-speed.
Yep! The early cars had the four speed option. My first e24 was a 77 630csi. I loved rowing the gears in that seafoam green Bavaria beauty!
You need to buy one then
“Some day”
I used to have a classic car dealership and a fellow phoned me up about taking a Ferrari 328 up to his house for him to have a look at as he had just had an operation and couldn’t drive at the moment. I agreed and took the car up, and I mean up, to him via a beautiful hilly, winding road. I wasn’t very impressed but after him having a good look at it he asked me what else I had in stock. I mentioned a BMW 635csi and he said could I bring it up to him. I managed to do so later that afternoon and I was more impressed with the performance of the BM than I was with the Ferrari. He bought the Ferrari, after a test drive a week or so later of both cars but later admitted that he should have bought the BMW.
Those are such beautiful cars, about the only BMWs I truly like. And at that age, sure it’s going to be somewhat of a money pit. So what. While it’s broken I can sit and look at it.
To be honest – as the resident mechanic who’s loved this car over the years, I wouldn’t hesitate to drive this car across the country. Compression is good, the suspension is tight, and most everything has been well maintained! I’ll also likely do the brakes/rotors, and possibly even a leak down test for a prospective buyer if they wish. I just want someone to love it like I have.
It sounds like you have been a great caretaker, John, and I hope that you get a price you are happy with for this car. The main areas of concern for these (as well as e3s and e9s) are the front and rear shock towers, checking them out and possibly photos if you can get them may help. GLWS!
Since I can’t reply to you directly, I figured I’d say that thankfully both front and rear shock towers are in surprisingly great condition. I did my best in the videos to show the extent of the rust in the car – which is relegated only to the outer panels in the wheel wells. No further rust is throughout the car.
I do sincerely hope it goes for what she’s worth. But I suppose that’s the nature of no-reserve auctions. Fingers crossed!
From back when BMW literally WAS The Ultimate Driving Machine.
Current cars? Meh…no thank you.
Needs a bigger grill…
Said no one
Yep! Now the “M” stands for…mmmmmarketing! It seems up to the early/mid 90s are the ones to have. I have had e3s and e24s, probably will sell a clean e32 I have. Can’t keep them all!
I always liked these too. A true grand tourer, the seven is too big and the five too small. But with that mileage it’s troubles could just be beginning, despite that it looks well maintained. I’ll give one hundred English pounds, no, too much.
For that money you could have a magic bus…
I would normally agree with you very much so, but I have done my utmost best to repair common problems before they arise. And would be willing to repair most all of the issues it does have to a prospective buyer! Brakes/rotors most certainly. But all things considered, I’d actually trust this car to drive anywhere in the country or beyond! (When they finish building the bridge)
BMWs of this era run FOREVER. The milage is a non-issue. Just keep up with the regular maintenance and enjoy the drive!
It cracks me up that people make comments about the mileage, John, this is actually considered low mileage! But not too low that maintenance was not performed. I have a friend with an e24 that has more than triple the mileage and he is asking triple the current bid. And it runs amazing.
Love those bbs basketweave 17s… Had them on a 99 528 msport sedan I had.. Perfect classic rims.. In November I purchased a 93 525 sedan from the 2nd owner of the last 24 years. I just turned 148k on it… Did some deferred maintainance but what a solid 30 year old fun driver it is.. Also have an 02 530 sedan. Love the oldies… Very nice looking shark. Buy it and enjoy an ultimate driving machine, you’ll be glad you did
Nice BMW. I have owned two, an M3 and a 540i and loved both of them. I bought my 5401 with 45K on it and sold it 7 years later with 140K and with the exception of preventive and regular maintenance, I did not have a problem. The M3 needed a valve job after 79K. The 635 is the best looking BMW of all time and if I was in the market I would certainly take a look at it. The mileage is realitve, I would much rather have a BMW with 95K that taken care of instead of 25K one that sat. You have be very careful of low miles and high miles and a personal inspection or PPI is mandatory. Nothing wrong with 40 year old cars, most of the light aircraft flying over your house are 40 years or older, still function well and can be a source of fun and satisfaction. I would much rather spend my 47K (the average price of a new car) on buying a 635 for a reasonable price and have the extra bucks to maintain it over the modern junk they peddle now. Good luck!
One of my favorite Bimmers. The prices of these cars have appreciated well above my means to acquire one especially one this nice. I’ll be watching this one closely.
Don’t be so sure!! With the bid price it’s at currently, you could be the proud owner of this E24 and I’d be more than happy to pass this torch along to the next caretaker!
Being an ex-BMW service manager I have driven many, many BMWs. Like an XKE or even an XJ Jag. They have a personality and driving experience all their own. Common wear item an this model with this age/mileage is the rear diff/rear suspension bushings and the front suspension/steering components. Not a tough or expensive job for a do it yourselfer. I had a German issue (gray market?) M635 show up at the dealership one day. The driver said that he was thinking about buying the car and could we bring it in the shop and check it over. Unfortunately at the time we were backed up 3 weeks in the shop. I offered to drive it with him and offer my opinion if he would like. He accepted and I explained that I would be “wringing it out” to check for any deficiencies. He said lets go. The dealer ship was a few blocks from the freeway and the car, you could tell had been sitting for a long period of time. But was loosing up with every block driven. Once on the on ramp I nailed the throttle and it coughed a few times and momentarily spat out a large cloud of smoke and chunks of carbon. And then the thing just blasted off! This was the fastest BMW (except for a twin turbo V12 850 that I drove on occasion) that I had ever driven! The car was a rocket! As I was shifting to fourth gear at about 100MPH I said WOW! you have to buy this car! I looked over at him and he was as white as a ghost and said NO, it’s too fast! I slowed down as I did not want him to puk in the car. But the car was amazing! I have driven M5s, M3s, many 630 cars but other than that twin turbo V12 that I got to use on occasion it was unbelievable fast. I understood that this car was literally built for the Autobahn, AND that it was an “M” car. But I still to this day can’t comprehend how fast that car was. If this car was a stick and I could afford the bid I would buy this car and not worry about it. Beautiful and nice driving cars!
Love the history lesson! I drove it from Kansas City to Laramie and back a couple years ago and I can confirm, setting cruise control above 90mph made the car *more* than happy.
*This one’s steering components are quite solid, thankfully, I truly I don’t think I’ve ever driven a car like it with this steering feel. The rear could use some bushings and Strut mounts. Were it a stick I would be having an even harder harder time parting with it than I already am. 😅
Thanks for sharing your experience! To my knowledge, the m635csi is the euro version of the M6 and is a better performer. You drove the best that the e24 platform had to offer. I am jealous!
This would be on my short list! Owned a ’95 740iL once upon a time and pressing the ‘go’ pedal was much akin to the Starship Enterprise entering warp drive.
I had a 733 which was great, and then a 1980 (?) 745 which was absolute dynamite!
If this one had a manual transmission it would be, bar none, the ultimate driving machine. And one of the best looking cars, ever.
Have a 85 w/5speed. Rust free California car w/126k miles. Bought it 25yrs ago when I worked at BMW dealer. Traded in & I paid $1000. Spent a month cleaning & polishing it up. Put about $2500 in needed maint/repairs. Its been a reliable vehicle since then.
They are beautiful vehicles & defiantly drive wonderful. Back when BMW really did make “the ultimate driving machine”
Have a 85 w/5speed. Rust free California car w/126k miles. Bought it 25yrs ago when I worked at BMW dealer. Traded in & I paid $1000. Spent a month cleaning & polishing it up. Put about $2500 in needed maint/repairs. Its been a reliable vehicle since then.
They are beautiful vehicles & defiantly drive wonderful. Back when BMW really did make “the ultimate driving machine”
Parts for this cars are cheap and plentiful
They are a little more scare than they were 15 years ago, but you aren’t wrong as far as availability. Cheap is subjective. I used to pick driving e24s up for less than a grand. That being said, there are some people who specialize in parting out these cars, Elias Gerry in SoCal is a really good dude and has everything.
Elias Gergy. Thanks, autocorrect
Identical mechanically to the e28 5 series and to some extent the e32 7 series BMWs.
I find it fascinating, owners of these iconic cars allow them to fall into a sad state to which we are now observing. Is it ignorance or simply benign neglect. Clearly this 635 is a “chase” to recommission to a presentable condition. Rust remediation will be a challenge, to which the restorer undoubtedly will uncover some rude surprises when getting deeper into it. Hopefully the future buyer understands this, and the seller gets what he is fairly looking for in price. Wonderful cars, and its deserves attention. Thanks for sharing..
There is a guy here in UK who has a You Tube series where he buys accident damaged super cars and restores them to better than new. At the moment he is restoring a BMW 635 csi and the amount of rust that was on this car is unbelievable. “Matt Armstrong BMW 635 csi should get you there if you are interested.”
To be honest, while I’m not the one who let this car get to this state of repair, the owner before me loved this car beyond imagine as well, and sometimes time is not kind to automobiles. I would be considerably shocked if the rust was as bad as you suggest, though. Normally I suppose that could be the case, however, from my sleuthing, the rust pictured on the body has been the only rust I’ve been able to locate. The videos of the car show the condition of the underside and wheel wells is surprisingly spotless. I don’t drive this car in the snow, or the rain. I would certainly say it could use some shocks though!
The chirpy ‘DIY’ comments slid past the mention that the ABS was inoperable. Not cheap, if my Volvo experience has a parallel BMW story. Who needs brakes, anyway?
Ettore Bugatti, when faced with criticism about the braking systems of his cars, allegedly retorted with “I make my cars to go, notta to stoppa!”
Fortunately the ABS System being inoperable is a case of a wheel speed sensor having failed. The issue is I’m unsure which one and have not had time to get it in the air and spin the wheels to find out. However, if a prospective buyer would like me to repair parts of the car (at cost) I’d be more than happy to spend time doing that for them. I have far too many projects that this one has fallen by the wayside.
I won the auction. What happens next?
Congrats on winning the auction! We have forwarded the seller’s contact info.
I am currently on my fourth e24, first was a 4 speed 77 630csi that I bought for $350 (and a 79 for $350 and an 80 for $200). I now have an 81 Euro 3 speed, I have a complete sportgearbox swap for it.
The auto is still quite fun with the addition of an adjustable fuel pressure regulator. Straight, with no real rust or accidents, I would kept it forever if an m6 or m635csi 5 speed does not cross my path at the right time.
These cars are tons of fun and iconic of what BMW used to be. I cannot speak to the 4 speed auto trans, as I have only had the 3 speed. I believe the 4 speed was introduced when the series 2 chassis came out, which is e28 based, as opposed to the pre-82 cars that are e12 based. Parts are a little harder to find for the ser1 cars, but they are still around. Buy spares for your spares!
I hope the buyer and seller reach a fair price for this car. They won’t be around forever, the e3s and e9s were not valued as highly not too long ago.
Appreciate the vote of confidence! Unfortunately for me, and fortunately for the buyer, it looks like this car sold for less than half of what it’s worth.
I suppose they can’t all be winners.
Maybe bringatrailer would have been a better venue for this type of vehicle?
Honestly, I think anywhere would’ve been a better outlet unfortunately. Seems the user base of people that actually bid here is somewhat limited. So, certainly my mistake. But an expensive one. Haha.