A few of my friends had their tongues hanging out. The year: 1984. The car: a brand new Toyota Celica Supra. It had the words ‘SUPRA’ in big bubble letters on the rear. Just in case you missed it. Pop-up headlights. Seats that actually had bolsters on them. A sunroof, and the very best AM/FM Cassette money could buy. My brother, that lucky and overachieving bastard, got it brand new as a thank you for the 4.0’s that would eventually land him in the world of radiology. After experiencing my very first “Holy Shit!” moment as a passenger (my folks were lifelong right lane drivers), and watching a five-speed shift for the first time, I was smitten. Later on that evening I watched my first Knight Rider and then all hell broke loose.
I started seeing cars for the first time. A lustful Camaro V8 driven by a Jersey guy with more gold chains than . . . well . . . any of my friends. A Datsun 280ZX with what seemed like a headlight design straight from Mars. Before this time the automobile had been nothing more than a big pillowy yawnbox. Early 80s Cadillacs, a Buick diesel, my grandpas 1974 Chevy Impala. They were eventually replaced with two Toyota Celica GTs, a 1st gen Acura Legend, and a Lincoln Mark VII. Although the cubist proportions and big letters denoting the model would become a thing of the past, the fun and reliability of these models would stay with me well into the 90s and beyond.
Of course, time, machines and aspirations move on. For example: a 1998 BMW 540i in dark blue with a 6-speed, leather, and an excellent history with 110k miles. Two owners. The second had bought it as a certified pre-owned vehicle. First three years spent in Virginia, the last eight in rust-free metro Atlanta. Michelin tires. Garage kept. A few scratches but otherwise a cream puff. Guess how much?
For the BMW? My guess is $3500.
I thought the E39 540i manual had six forward gears…
Retail? I think you should get $7K for the Bimmer, but it will take a while — lots of people aspire to an “ultimate driving machine” but few know how to drive a stick. Whatever.
What is a pre-certified vehicle? Do you mean a Certified Pre-Owned vehicle? My guess is that retail hovers around $8,500-$9,000, so wholesale would be maybe $5,500? Sounds like a decent car if that’s what you’re looking for. I got burned on post-warranty Bimmers, no more for me for a while.
I started really noticing cars after getting interested in them watching F1 in person. Then I started really noticing motorcycles after I got my m-class and bought my first motorcycle. Now that I’m re-vamping the kitchen of my new house, I’m noticing building materials a LOT more.
It’s good to remember that at one time, Toyota actually built attractive cars. Now, they seem to have succumbed to the “ugly and the same stick” as have the rest of their Japanese brethren.
The 5M-(G)E engined Supra and it’s unbreakable W58 gearbox.
A manual 540? That would be reasonably rare would it not, even in the USA? I always admired people who choose that combo for their E39 5-series.
The 1984 Supra remains my favorite Japanese car design among those that reflect Japanese culture. And to imagine it looked okay with 14s…
I’m guessing about $5.8k.
It’s a strange phenomenon to see cars you lusted over as a youth, cars that were the pinnacle of the automotive pile at the time, driving around as beaters now. Case in point, lately I’ve seen multiple E38 era 740is and 750is driving around with ragged bodywork and/or missing trim. One 1994ish 750i even blats (not humming anymore) around sans rear bumper cap like any old Civic or Cavalier. I used to want that car in the worst way. Now it looks like a junkyard beater, and it feels like a part of my adolescence has died.
You tow it ‘outta my driveway and it’s yers!
A 5 speed 1998 5-series would definitely be an automatic. The 6-speed manual was part of a special optional package.
There are a lot of reasons to be wary of an 11 year old BMW. Especially something unremarkable like a run of the mill slushbox 5-series.
I would guess that the price reflects that – you get what you pay for.
On the other hand, for someone with enough mechanical skill and special tools to work on the car it might be a deal.
I remember the odd thing about the Celica family was that its looks varied greatly between the hatchback and the coupe. The first gen in the early 70’s, the hatch version was definitely the better styling choice, but for the second gen, from late 70’s to early 80’s, the coupe was the sweeter ride.
My first room mate in college drove a 1980 Toyota Celica coupe that sported the last “racing” buckets made out of black vinyl (you know the kind, cracks in the seat that pinched the shit out of your leg, not to mention the tendancy to cook naked skin in the summer), a nice five speed and the first tach I ever saw on a car that actually would redline. Later on my girlfriend’s 1985 Supra had the distinction of being the first car I ever saw with a Climate Controlled HVAC where you set the temperature instead of sliding between blue and red.
My 1998 BMW 5401 Sport had the 6-speed manual (cold weather package, warm weather package, fold-down rear seats, silver/black) — a great car. For my style of driving, it was 80% of an M5 at 20% of the cost (purchase and upkeep). The 540 autos are just another average mid-size car. I bought mine in 2004 with just under 100k miles for $16k. Drove it for two years and sold it for the same amount.
Twotone
$1, Bob.
My guess is $1700 wholesale.
From everything I’ve read, I think I would still rather take a chance on a late-80s or early-90s BMW than something later. Not so many complicated electrical components.
As I recall, a problem with that Celica Supra was that they would develop a bad case of rust around the lower part of the hatchback.
It was a cool car in it’s day… my old brother totaled a rental.
Gran Turismo did the same thing for me.
twotone understands the real underlying value of these vehicles. They are exceptionally rare in the USA and this is one of the very few I’ve seen over the years that actually had a good history to it.
It sold for $6200. I wasn’t the buyer. It went to a place in North Georgia that specializes in Bimmers.
A buddy of mine from Cambridge ON has a 540i 6 speed. He said that about 1 in a 100 comes with a 6 speed. His has a 150k klics on it and is on its 3rd cooling system.
How many of you knew that you could at one time buy a Lincoln Mark VII GTC with a Jack Roush 5.8L V8 and a t-5 manual tranny upgrade?
http://web.atmc.net/~snonnenman/images/GTC22.jpg
I’ll take that over a beemer any day.
@finderskeepers
Fast? Yes. Sleeper? Yes. Take it over a BMW? Arguable, since I don’t like propeller cars. In desperate need of some White Snake? YES.