If you want a high-performance BMW from the factory, then you have two options. An M-car or an Alpina. That's it. Now, everyone knows what an M-car is. How could you call yourself a car enthusiast if you didn't?
But, when it comes to Alpina, things become a little different. Alpina is not just an external tuning company. In fact, they are registered in Germany as their own marque. They take a very different approach to performance cars in comparison to BMW's M division. Here are the ten sickest BMWs built by Alpina.
10 Alpina B12 5.7
The Alpina B12 5.7 is the car that we really wanted BMW's M division to make. It's based on the BMW 850CSi, and it was an absolute animal to drive. The original BMW V12 was enlarged to 5.7 liters and this meant that power was increased to 410hp and 4210 lb-ft of torque, more than a Ferrari 360 and almost as much as a Ferrari 512 TR.
This thing was more of a GT than a supercar, but nevertheless, it was still an absolute monster. It featured a 6-speed manual gearbox, could hit 60 in 5.8 seconds, and flat out do 186 mph. It was the dream E31 8-series for any BMW enthusiast, but unfortunately, only 57 were ever made.
9 Alpina B7
For years and years now, the Alpina B7 has been a great car. The current G12 model was launched back in 2016, and it was a direct rival to the M760Li from BMW. The B7 featured a 4.4 BiTurbo V8 with 599hp and 494 lb-ft of torque. This was later increased to 600hp and 590 lb-ft of torque which is near enough the same as the V12 M760Li BMW.
It hits 60 in 3.7 seconds, and flat out, it does 205 mph... except in America, where the top speed is limited to 193 mph. It's a very quick sedan and inside it is so luxurious. If you thought BMW was good with interiors, then you really need to see Alpina.
8 Alpina V8 Roadster
The BMW Z8 is one of the most beautiful cars ever made. Unfortunately, it is a handful to drive. It features the same V8 as seen in the E39 BMW M5. Alpina took the Z8 and made it their own. The S62 V8 from the M5 was replaced with an M62 V8 from Alpina's own E39 B10 V8 S. It pushed out 375hp and 383 lb-ft of torque which was pretty good. Flat out, it was limited to 161 mph.
The gearbox was then changed to a 5-speed BMW Steptronic automatic transmission and suspension was tuned to be much softer. Alpina had turned this car into a proper GT, but it was still a handful to drive. Nevertheless, it was still a great car both in looks and performance.
7 Alpina B10 BiTurbo
The Alpina B10 Bi-Turbo was one of the greatest performance cars ever to come from Alpina. It was a brilliant alternative to the M5, and it featured a similar setup. Under the hood was a 3.4 liter twin-turbo inline-6 with 208hp and 225 lb-ft of torque. The M5 was not turbocharged, so this was pretty special.
The B10 BiTurbo hit 60 in 5.6 seconds, which was absolutely nuts, and had a top speed of 180 mph. However, independent tests showed that this car could actually hit 60 in 5.2 seconds, which is the same as a modern Jaguar F-Type 340. It's a rare car and the reason why is that it cost twice the price of a new E34 M5 back in the day.
6 Alpina B8 4.6
The Alpina B8 4.6 is an absolute gem. Based on an E36 3-series, it's wildly different from both the 328i and the M3, as well as any other BMW on sale at the time. This was the first-ever V8 3-series, and it was special. Under the hood was the same 4.6-liter V8 from the Alpina B10 4.6 5-Series.
Alpina actually had to ask special permission from BMW to install such a large engine into their smallest car. Their response was simply "if you can make it fit, you can do it." It sure was a challenge, but it was possible. The B8 4.6 was available in coupe, sedan, wagon, and cabriolet form.
5 Alpina B8 Gran Coupe
The new Alpina B8 Gran Coupe is a beautiful car. In fact, it may just be better than the M8 Gran Coupe. One of the most surprising features of this car is what's under the hood. It's an S63 Bi-Turbo V8, the exact same engine used in the M8 and M5. If you know your BMWs and Alpinas, you'll know that Alpina normally doesn't use BMW M-Division-tuned engines, they prefer to use standard BMW engines and tune them themselves.
It pushes out 613hp and 590 lb-ft of torque, which is very similar figures to the M8 Competition. It is a little slower to 60, doing it in 3.4 seconds in comparison to 3.2 on the M8 Competition. It is more of a GT though rather than a sports car. Very luxurious inside and out.
4 Alpina B10 V8 S
The Alpina B10 V8 S was based on the E39 BMW 540i, and it is a car that is very sought after today. Alpina made a few variants of the E39 B10, two being powered by 6-cylinder engines and this one being powered by an 8-cylinder. It featured a 4.8-liter V8 with 370hp and 376 lb-ft of torque.
It's a properly fast car and everything about it is special. The engine was enlarged, the suspension was made a tad softer and the whole car became so much more luxurious. It also featured those beautiful multi-spoke classic Alpina alloys.
3 Alpina B5 BiTurbo
The Alpina B5 BiTurbo is a very traditional Alpina car. It's a very different car in comparison to the BMW M5. First of all, you would never even notice a B5 BiTurbo unless you studied it a little. The car is just so discrete, with a classy body kit, cool multi-spoke alloys, and very little badging.
Under the hood is a 4.4-liter twin-turbo V8 from the M550i BMW. It's been tuned to 599hp and 590 lb-ft of torque. It hits 60 in 3.5 seconds and flat out will do over 200 mph. A very fast car indeed, however, it's more of a comfortable businessman's sedan than some supercar killer performance sedan.
2 Alpina B3 Bi-Turbo
The latest Alpina B3 is a very good car, and what makes things better is that it does not have a stupid-looking front-end. It's a very classy car indeed, with a 456hp 516 lb-ft of torque 3-liter S58 twin-turbo inline-6 under the hood. It's a pretty quick car doing a 0-60 time of 3.8 seconds.
This is another Alpina car to use an M-Division tuned engine, this one being the S58 from the G80 M3. Surprisingly though, it has far less power than the new G80 M3.
1 Alpina B7 Coupe
Another rare Alpina, the B7 coupe was based on the E24 6-Series. It's not a very well-known car, due to the fact that not many of these cars were produced. Based on the 635 CSi, it came in a few different variants. There was the standard model which was naturally aspirated and after that, there was an even rarer turbocharged model.
The B7 Coupe was a proper original Alpina. It had the classy body kit, the multi-spoke rims, and of course the awesome decals. This is a car that any gearhead would dream to own since it's just so cool.