///M8: The E31 ///M car that never got the green light

[Matt]

That's a car I really wished they would have built.

The 8 series is absolutely beautiful. I look at the prices now and then; the rarity is what kills it for me. Parts for them have to be outrageously expensive.

I'd take an 8 series with any engine as long as i could put a manual gearbox in there, and could figure out a way to afford to keep it on the road. I saw a purple E31 between Stuttgart and Munich and it was fantastic to behold it in its natural environment.

[LandCruzer94]

Wasn't a limiting factor to the success of the 8-series the fact that the economy sucked at the time? Makes me wonder how they thought releasing a new 8-series line in *this* recession would be a good idea.

[bobby in Derby City]

video just came out. I found it on the M5 board:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znrARdv3 ... r_embedded

[rmiddendorf]

Wasn't a limiting factor to the success of the 8-series the fact that the economy sucked at the time? Makes me wonder how they thought releasing a new 8-series line in *this* recession would be a good idea.

I never understood why they went from their flagship 2-Door being a $60k car (the M6) to it being an $80k car (the 850i) over a 2 year span during that same recession. Its no wonder the E31 never really took off. Plus Lexus was on their heels with a pretty awesome SC line starting in the $30's. My dad had an SC300 5-Speed and it was an incredible car. If a really nice one of those jumped out at me I'd have trouble looking the other way.

[graphite]

Definitely badass. Never really been fond of any BMW except the M1 in red. White is the best looking 8 series color but that is just my opinion.

[snakebrain]

The 8 series is absolutely beautiful. I look at the prices now and then

Are they expensive to buy in the US? They're shockingly cheap for what they are here. Well, to buy anyway. I saw a guy on one of the UK forums who had one briefly and he said he lived in constant terror of 'something expensive falling off' and eventually sold it on a few months later when his nerves couldn't take the strain any more!

[Matt]

All except the 850CSI are quite affordable in the US to purchase.

Not to maintain, however.