Alpina C1 2.3 HELP!!

[nate30]

Hi all,

After looking at a pretty historic post on this forum about a C2 2.7 Alpina E30, I'm trying to validate both the authenticity and spec of an E30 I'm buying myself! It's a RHD C1 2.3, supposedly done by Sytner Nottingham in 1985. Does anyone know if there's any way of telling if it's genuine or a replica alpina as so many cars were back in the day?

Just using a plate checker online, the registration brings up the vehicle as a BMW 323i, which is strange as I expected it to say ALPINA. I've also checked a few other C1 2.3's on the alpina register and these have all come up the same so I'm hoping it's genuine?

Any help greatly appreciated!!

Nate30

[psgcarey]

Have you asked Sytner Nottingham?

[Leins]

Presuming it’s a UK car, it should have been a Sytner conversion of a 323i, hence the registration. The spec on these varies from car to car too, so don’t be put off if, say, it doesn’t have Alpina branding on the dials or a dash plaque

Do you know where the car was initially purchased - e.g. Sytners in Nottingham, John Clark in Aberdeen? Might be worth contacting them to see if anyone remembers it

Ideally you’ll want a copy of the conversion spec sheet (hand written at the time) in with the books, but invariably they aren’t available

Alpina Register is a great resource, so I’d be surprised if someone on there doesn’t know of it, whether it’s a proper Sytner conversion or a later replica

[soxboy]

Back in the day weren't a number of these UK cars conversions done by Sytner rather than actually produced by Alpina in-house?

Sytner Nottingham would be my first port of call, I imagine they have some sort of register.

[nate30]

Thanks everyone for all the help, called up sytner nottingham and thankfully managed to get hold of someone who was able to help!!!

Really appreciate the quick response.

[Leins]

Good stuff, hope the purchase all works out. Don’t forget to do a reader’s car thread if you do buy it!

[Legacywr]

I had one a few years ago...

The car proably won't have been registerd as an 'Alpina', although some cars were.

It will certainly have been converted by Sytner in the UK.

Got anymore info on the car? Just out of interest

Just to add, Sytner got very funny about answering questions about older conversions, due to the amount of requests they received, and, started to charge for the service. Although, you did receive a letter of conformation, which was worth having.

[MarkwG]

Have a look on here too - https://www.alpina-archive.com/?cat=478&nmt=sy...

I suspect Sytner won't be much use, frankly, they weren't great when I asked 10 years back about a 7 year old car.

[nate30]

Sytner was so helpful! Glad someone suggested contacting them.

As for the car, it's a 1985 C1 2.3 been stored in a barn for a significant amount of time and needs some TLC. See the pic below for a sneak peak! Will be sure to post more online about the progress when and as it happens

https://imgur.com/lgzu2Bk

[MarkwG]

That's good to know, I guess it depends a bit on who picks up the 'phone on the day! Looks like a nice project.

[Legacywr]

Blimey, nice find. Have you done the deal?

Looks to be black? What seats has it got? Alpina cloth?

[nate30]

Deal all done! Picking her up this saturday and can't wait!! It really does just depend who you get I guess at the end of the day

[Touring442]

Could be Agate green metallic. Spec was anything you wanted, added to the base car before Sytners did their conversion.

The engine - if original - will have a small four digit number stamped into the front inlet side of the head. The engine number itself will be on a flat surface close to the distributor/alternator.