1991 Alpina B10 BiTurbo on Bring a Trailer: Peak E34 5-series
More expensive and more powerful than a BMW M5, it’s also a unicorn.
- When is a BMW 5-series not a BMW? When it’s an Aplina packing twin-turbocharged power.
- One of only 507 examples made, this car is a handbuilt autobahn express.
- It’s less frenetic than a contemporary M5 but still hugely powerful.
In 1991, when C/D sister publication, Road&Track, gathered the world’s fastest cars, it brought together a Ferrari F40, a Lamborghini Diablo, a RUF Porsche TR2, and…a four-door BMW? Well, no. Not a BMW, but an Alpina. It promptly went 180 mph, making it the fastest sedan in the world at the time.
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One of those rare beasts, an Alpina B10 BiTurbo, has now popped up on Bring a Trailer (which, like Car and Driver, is part of Hearst Autos). As you’ve already guessed from the name, this handsome Nineties 5-series has twin-turbocharged power under the hood, but there’s more to it than that.Bring a Trailer
This is a hand-built machine that’s as carefully crafted as any of the Mercedes-Benz cars worked up by a then-independent AMG. Alpina, founded in the 1960s by Burkard Bovensiepen, made its bones tuning and then racing BMWs, and was officially recognized as a full-fledged automobile manufacturer by the German government in 1983.Bring a Trailer
Since then, the company has been more absorbed into BMW, in much the same way the Mercedes corporate amoeba phagocytosed AMG. But, in the era when this B10 was built, Alpina was fully independent, though it still had strong ties with BMW.
Each B10 BiTurbo started as a body-in-white BMW 535i, delivered directly from BMW’s factory in Munich. The original BMW VIN would be struck off, a new one generated by Alpina, and then work would begin in earnest.
The badge on any Alpina shows carburetors and a camshaft, a nod to the old-fashioned tuning of its origins. In the case of this B10, the 3.5-liter inline-six was torn down, rebalanced, then assembled with forged Mahle pistons, reworked intake and exhaust ports, a new camshaft, and twin Garrett T25 turbochargers. Boost was adjustable via an in-cabin knob, with maximum power at 11.4 psi being 360 horsepower at 6000 rpm and 384 pound-feet of torque at 4000 rpm.Bring a Trailer
That torque figure should highlight one reason someone would buy an Alpina B10 instead of an M5, even at twice the price. This car is a freight train with a five-speed manual, stiffened for maximum stability when running flat-out on the autobahn. It’s a road-going private jet with a clutch pedal and a stick.
As befits such executive transport, B10 BiTurbos were fitted with a host of options. In this case, signature stitched Alpina fabric covers some suitably well-bolstered sport seats, with burled wood trim and an Alcantara headliner. The exterior signature is, of course, those lovely 17-inch 20-spoke wheels. They are a pain to clean, but are also a visual secret handshake to enthusiasts in the know.
Any Alpina is a pretty special machine, and the B10 BiTurbo is among the best cars the company ever made. This example appears in good condition, with a reasonable odometer reading of the equivalent of 59K miles. Being based on an E34 chassis BMW 5-series, it won’t draw attention like an F40 or Diablo. But, in its day, it was fit to run with the fastest cars extant.
The auction ends on October 15.
This 1986 Ferrari Testarossa on Bring a Trailer Is Begging for an Epic Road Trip
Ferrari’s iconic 12-cylinder supercar was made for wide-open spaces.By Brendan McAleerPublished: Oct 11, 2025
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- Ferrari recently brought back the Testarossa nameplate, but the new supercar may be destined to live in the shadow of the 1980s version.
- The example was just recommissioned and has had a huge list of maintenance items done.
- Exotic in looks, a 1980s Testarossa is surprisingly comfortable and accessible to drive.
Ferrari’s decision to bring back the Testarossa name for the replacement of the SF90 Stradale with the 849 Testarossa was not greeted with universal approbation. With more than 1000 prancing stallions on tap, the modern car certainly will have all the performance one could wish for, but it doesn’t at all resemble the car everyone remembers co-starring in Miami Vice.Bring a Trailer
Happily, you can just skip the queue for Ferrari’s latest supercar and go for the bedroom-poster hero with this 1986 Ferrari Testarossa up for sale on Bring a Trailer (which, like Car and Driver, is part of Hearst Autos). It comes complete with the iconic, high-mounted monospecchio single rearview mirror. Best part? Within the last year, it’s received nearly $30K worth of service to recondition it after a long slumber.
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Here’s the secret about the original Testarossa: The looks couldn’t be more exotic, but compared to something like a Lamborghini Countach, it’s far more drivable. It’s still fast by modern standards, and draws eyeballs like few other cars, but it is also surprisingly comfortable for extended tours behind the wheel. C/D editor emeritus John Phillips drove one cross-country in 1992 and remained completely smitten with it.Bring a Trailer
This example should probably stay parked once road crews start salting the tarmac, but until then, it’s a childhood fantasy that demands to be driven. As per usual in a 1980s Ferrari, the air-conditioning doesn’t work, but you’ve got windows that open and a flat-12 soundtrack. Who needs A/C? Or a radio?Bring a Trailer
That boxer-twelve displaces 4.9 liters and was rated at 380 horsepower and 354 pound-feet of torque when new. The power isn’t peaky like a revvy mid-engined V-8, but comes on with authority when stirred up. The click-clack of the exposed metal shifter gate is, of course, all part of the theater.
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The large service bill included a full, engine-out service, with replacement of the timing belt, fluids, fuel lines, various hoses, and on and on. The invoice is as long as an Umberto Eco novel, and it’s nice to have all that work tidied away.
Ready for autumn roads, then a long sleep over winter with dreams of a springtime Sunday ahead, this car is why Ferrari’s latest supercar might get a relatively tepid reception. The new one may be blindingly fast, at the knife-edge of road-going tech, and very exclusive. But when most people hear “Testarossa,” this is the car that pops to mind.
The auction ends on October 16.
This Obscure Crossover Has the Audi RS3’s Awesome Five-Cylinder Engine
The Cupra Formentor VZ5 has 384 horsepower courtesy of the distinctive five-banger found in Audi’s smallest sports sedan.By Emmet WhitePublished: Oct 10, 2025Save Article
Cupra
- VW’s Spanish brand Cupra has revealed a new crossover with a distinctive engine.
- The Cupra Formentor VZ5 has the same turbo five-cylinder as the Audi RS3 sedan.
- We don’t expect this model to come to the U.S., but Cupra has previously announced plans to sell cars here.
The advantages of being part of a global automotive conglomerate are numerous, but being able to drop one of the only remaining five-cylinder powerplants into an otherwise ordinary crossover must rank close to the top. At least, that’s how we suspect the folks at Seat—the Volkswagen Group’s Spanish subsidiary—are feeling as the properly bonkers Cupra Formentor VZ5 arrives for the 2026 model year.
Technically, Cupra is an off-shoot brand of Seat that was previously used for performance versions of its hatchbacks and SUVs. The Cupra Formentor is a compact crossover with no direct Seat equivalent, and this latest VZ5 packs one of the most charismatic drivetrains available for under $100,000 these days. Audi’s turbocharged 2.5-liter inline-five serves as the core of this hot crossover, having been borrowed from the Audi RS3 (and, previously, the Audi RS Q3 SUV, which was never sold in the U.S.).
More on the Five-Cylinder
Cupra
Cupra says the Formentor VZ5 makes 384 hp and 354 lb-ft of torque, only slightly down on power compared to Audi’s smallest sport sedan. The seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission from Volkswagen remains, though Cupra says it is using its own all-wheel-drive system. (Even so, the torque-splitting rear differential present in the Formentor VZ5 sure sounds similar to the hardware available in the Audi.)DW Burnett
Here’s the engine in the Audi, in case you wanted to stare at it. Which we would totally understand.
The Formentor VZ5 receives a visual makeover too. Model-specific front and rear bumpers as well as a front splitter and rear diffuser come standard on the upscale VZ5 model. Other sporty-looking visual design elements include copper exhaust tips and wider wheel arches. 20-inch copper wheels round out the look. Cupra will offer the Formentor VZ5 in five different hues: Midnight Black, Dark Void, Magnetic Tech Matt, Century Bronze Matt and Enceladus Grey Matt, the latter three of which we assume are non-reflective paints and not odd nicknames of guys in the accounting department.
The interior of the Formentor VZ5 benefits from some slight trim changes and a major upgrade in the form of CupBucket seats. Only 4000 units of this oddball crossover will be available, though Cupra says left- and right-hand-drive units will available for the first time ever. That means buyers in the United Kingdom can gear up to reserve Cupra’s latest enthusiast creation. And, of course, the Cupra Formentor VZ5 will not be available in the U.S. unless the company finally gets its plans together to enter the American market. . .or barring that, until 2050, when it becomes eligible for the 25-year import rule.
