Do you remember this one? Alpine E36 B8 4.6

The Alpina B8 4.6 is one of the most special models ever built by Alpina. The reason — the "big" reason — is under the bonnet.

Alpina managed to do something that BMW had already tried to do and failed. This attempt involved equipping the 3 Series (E36) with a V8 engine, but problems with the model designation and adaptation of the V8 engine to the 3 Series bodywork on the production line threw the brand's plans to rest.

Alpina did it

Without the natural constraints of a large-scale production line, and thanks to 42 modifications to the original E36 chassis, Alpina managed to consummate the long-awaited marriage between the E36 chassis and the 4.0 liter V8 engine (M60B40) that powered the BMW 540i (E34).

But marrying the engine was not enough. Alpina wanted more power and so increased the engine capacity from the original 4 liters to 4.6 liters. An increment that was not easy to operate because the M60B40 block used a special anti-friction treatment (Alusil), and for that reason, Alpina could not simply proceed with the engine overhaul to increase the displacement. BMW had to help Alpina and build a specific block for the B8. But the changes didn't stop there: Mahle supplied high-compression forged pistons, changed the opening time of the valves and reprogrammed the Motronic system.

The end result was 333 hp of power (at 5,700 rpm) and 470 Nm of maximum torque (at 3,900 rpm).

More than numbers… strength!

But these numbers don't tell the whole story. The Alpina E36 B8 4.6 had a monster power delivery. At 1,000 rpm this engine was already developing 350 Nm of torque, which was the maximum torque of the… BMW M3 Evo (E36)! That said, the top speed of 278 km/h and the 0-100 km/h achieved in just 5.7 seconds is no surprise. But more than pure acceleration, the press at the time highlighted the availability of the engine at all speeds.

Dealing with all this power we found Bilstein shock absorbers and a completely revised braking system. In total, 350 Alpina E36 B8 units were produced in three different bodies: Coupé, Touring and Cabriolet.

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