Image via Dennis Collins/YouTube
Many a gearhead has dreamed of owning an early 90s BMW 850i and for good reason. After all, it comes with the same 5.0-liter V12 that’s used in the 750iL sedan of the same era, but it’s smaller and sportier. Plus, the car looks great and comes loaded with some nice comforts. But owning one isn’t always a comfortable thing.
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When you’re Dennis Collins and have plenty of experience rescuing cars of this sort, things are a little different. The man is known for taking risks, calculated risks, that is. And he knows his stuff.
So he’s well aware of just how bad things could be with this 850i when he travels to a little horse town in north central Texas. But the car looks incredibly clean outside and in, plus it’s only had one owner this entire time.
Just the kicker is it’s been parked since the early 2000s, so about two decades. What could possibly be wrong with it? There’s a long list of potential problems. After all, BMW V12s are notorious problem children.
What adds insult to injury about the 8 Series is the cars sold for over $70,000 when new. That was big money for a vehicle in the early 90s, something we don’t expect kids can fully grasp considering there are pickup trucks selling for well over $100,000 today.
Collins heaps praise upon the overall design of the Bimmer, saying “they drive great” and one would hope so since it was the brand’s flagship model back in the day. They’re not monstrously powerful, but they can get to 150 mph or so and handle great.
While we get to see the rescue of the 850i, we don’t get to see how Collins’ team diagnoses and gets the German beauty running again. Would you touch this BMW with a ten foot pole? Or are these 850i coupes just not worth the trouble, even if this one is a one-owner, clean ride?
Images via Dennis Collins/YouTube
