BMW 850i (E31) review: a technological marvel that needs a specialist, not a dealer
3.2/5motorssouq Editorial Team
An E31 850i is a purchase for a dedicated enthusiast, not a used-car buyer looking for transport. Budget for the pop-up headlight motors, vacuum-operated systems and a wiring harness that is now over three decades old, source a specialist familiar with the platform before you buy rather than after, and treat parts sourcing as an ongoing hobby, because a Bahraini BMW dealer will not be able to help.
Pros
- First production V12 BMW with genuinely smooth, characterful power delivery
- Technologically remarkable for its era, including dual-DME engine management
- Distinctive, still-special styling decades after launch
- Increasingly rare, which supports collector-market value for correct examples
Cons
- Pop-up headlight motors and vacuum systems fail with age and parts are scarce
- Original wiring harness insulation hardens and cracks after three-plus decades of heat
- Requires a specialist familiar with this specific platform, not a general workshop
- Not a practical daily car by any modern Bahrain standard
When BMW launched the 850i in 1989, it was arguably the most technologically advanced car in the world: the first production V12 mated to a fully electronic engine management system with dual DME control units, pop-up headlights, and a body designed with then-cutting-edge computer-aided engineering. The M70 5.0-litre V12 delivers 300 hp with the kind of smoothness only a twelve-cylinder engine can offer.
The reality of ownership today
Every part of that ambition is now a maintenance item. The pop-up headlight motors and the vacuum-operated systems controlling them fail with age and are increasingly difficult to source parts for. The original wiring harness insulation, now over three decades old, hardens and cracks in Bahrain's heat, and diagnosing an intermittent electrical fault on dual DME units requires a specialist who has actually worked on this platform — not a general BMW workshop.
None of this means the car is unreliable in the way a modern used car might be unreliable; it means ownership requires patience, a specialist relationship, and a parts supply chain that runs through classic-BMW importers rather than a local dealer counter.
Who this car is actually for
An 850i bought correctly, with a known history and a specialist already lined up, rewards its owner with a genuinely unique driving experience — a V12 grand tourer with styling that still looks special decades on. It is not a car to buy on impulse from a classifieds listing without doing that groundwork first.