Like Ned in Recreation of Thrones, the vendor of at the moment’s Good Worth or No Cube BMW sees winter approaching and needs to organize. Meaning a 4WD instead of the Bimmer’s convertible high. Let’s see if we’re ready for its asking worth.
A 2000 Toyota MR2 Spyder is a troublesome promote to a crowd that thinks the reply is all the time a Miata. That was the problem going through the vendor of the ‘Mister Two’ we checked out final Friday, and at a $11,495 asking, it wasn’t successful many converts. It didn’t win in our voting, both, taking house an awesome 85 % No Cube loss for its un-Miata-ness.
Again within the 12 months 1968, pop legend Harry Nilsson plaintively crooned, “One is the loneliest quantity that you simply’ll ever do.” Three Canine Evening took that tune and made it in style with the crowds, working all of it the way in which as much as quantity 5 on the Billboard Sizzling 100. Being ‘One’ might have as soon as been a tragic sack’s lament, however that didn’t cease BMW from constructing a full line of 1 Collection vehicles, and these are enjoyable for every person.
This 2011 BMW 128i convertible is a kind of, and never solely is it a decade newer than the Toyota MR2 Spyder we thought of final Friday, however it’s additionally extra useful. It affords 4 seats as an alternative of two, has extra baggage house, and, with 228 horsepower on faucet from its 3.0-liter N52 straight six, it has nearly 100 extra ponies underneath the hood.
BMW launched the coupe (E82) and convertible (E88) editions of the 1 Collection as an homage to the 02 line of vehicles from the late ’60s and early ’70s. These vehicles share a platform with a line of three and five-door hatchbacks, however BMW properly selected to not deliver these to the U.S., the place they might have needed to compete in opposition to the vastly higher VW GTI in a market that’s not all that eager on scorching hatches anymore. The coupe and convertible, nevertheless, seem like Shrinky-Dink variations of the three Collection, and plenty of folks love these.
At present, BMW nonetheless sells the 1 Collection as a hatch in markets exterior the States, however as a result of firm’s shift in naming conference, the coupe model (the convertible is not any extra) has been spun off by itself and is now branded as a 2.
Our convertible is a 1, and we’re going to offer it the once-over to see if we expect that’s a constructive quantity.
The E8x line was designed through the Bangle period, and that’s evident within the automotive’s swayback decrease door edge and pulled taffy headlamp design. The remainder of the automotive has an actual E46 vibe, and a lot of the design’s extra flamboyant points are masked by this automotive’s black paint. That paint, by the way in which, seems to be in stable form and is well-paired with the brilliant silver Type 360 wheels. Atop all that could be a black canvas convertible roof that additionally seems to be in wonderful situation.
It’s an identical story within the cabin, with no obvious points with the upholstery, trim, or switchgear. It’s in right here the place you’ll discover this E88’s get together piece, which is the shifter for the automotive’s Normal Motors-sourced six-speed handbook transmission.
That’s an uber-rare choice on these vehicles, making this a little bit of a standout. All the things else right here is geared toward consolation and comfort, with energy home windows and locks, computerized local weather management, heated seats, and a push-button begin.
In line with the vendor, mechanically, the automotive is ideal. It has not too long ago undergone a considerable spherical of vendor upkeep and repairs, protecting a lot of the main ache factors. It’s not been a storage queen both, because it has performed 134,096 miles thus far, racked up by its two homeowners.
A clear title tops off this little Bimmer’s excessive factors, and the vendor makes the added boast that that is the one handbook 128i presently listed in California. We’ll need to resolve if that sways us in contemplating the automotive’s $12,000 asking worth.
What’s your tackle this 128i asking for that sort of cabbage? Is {that a} truthful worth for a uncommon and seemingly well-kept automotive carrying the blue and white Roundel? Or is that an excessive amount of for a mini Bimmer?
You resolve!
San Francisco Bay Space, California, Craigslist, or go right here if the advert disappears.
H/T to Don R. for the hookup!
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