Interview with Darren Spratt

By day, Darren Spratt works in a senior business management capacity, but as a release from work pressures it is the BMW E28 to which his attention drifts.

Why the E28? Â Is this some kind of mid-life crisis Darren?

Maybe it is. Â Very probably!

Let me get this straight.  I am not a car fanatic – in the general sense.  I use a garage to fix these old classics and the limit of my personal investment in their upkeep is a bit of elbow grease in the polishing process.

I think it is a combination of factors.  The drive is fantastic – a wonderful smooth automatic transmission and a 6-cylinder engine which contains some power.  These cars look fantastic too.  A big square, yet streamlined profile – complete with a wonderful shark nose.  The chrome looks great too.

You know, there is an argument that they were slightly old fashioned when new in terms of appearance.  Mercedes were already sporting moulded light clusters when the E28 shone it’s big round headlamps for the first time.  The model followed its predecessor’s (E12) shape pretty closely – something BMW were criticised for at the time.

But you drive a brand new Mercedes for work – why would you want to jump into a 25 year old car at the weekend?

I know, I know.  It’s an emotional thing too.  I acquired my first E28 back in the early 90s.  It was meant to be a stop-gap car when I moved from employment into self-employment.  But I did fall in love.  It was 11 years old at the time and it felt more like a proper car to me!  I even went on my honeymoon in it.  I later sold that car because of my then wife.  She thought it was too big for her.  What a sense of regret I have about that.  I should have got rid of her then instead – I did that later!

Some years on, I found the car was on my mind, so I started to do some research.  I found a great website http://forum.bmw5.co.uk and within this site I found a large number of enthusiasts for the E28.  Naturally, it wasn’t long before I purchased my second E28.

So, these old Beamers are about 25 years old now – must be cheap to buy?

Oh yes!  You can pick one up on ebay for a couple of hundred pounds!  But take a look at the specialist sites and you’ll see the good ones are appreciating.  Take a look at www.classiccarsforsale.co.uk and www.carandclassic.co.uk and you will often find models going for £3,000 to £4000 now.  One member of http://forum.bmw5.co.uk specialises in detailing and has sold a couple of cleaned up versions for circa £7,500.

Well thanks for sharing your enthusiasm – as a final point, is there a particular model of the E28 for you?

For me, it’s the 528iSE – automatic, of course.  I’ve currently got 2 of them…

American fans can find out more at www.mye28.com

By day, Darren Spratt works in a senior business management capacity, but as a release from work pressures it is the BMW E28 to which his attention drifts.

Darren Spratt:Â Maybe it is. Â Very probably!

Let me get this straight.  I am not a car fanatic – in the general sense.  I use a garage to fix these old classics and the limit of my personal investment in their upkeep is a bit of elbow grease in the polishing process.

I think it is a combination of factors.  The drive is fantastic – a wonderful smooth automatic transmission and a 6-cylinder engine which contains some power.  These cars look fantastic too.  A big square, yet streamlined profile – complete with a wonderful shark nose.  The chrome looks great too.

You know, there is an argument that they were slightly old fashioned when new in terms of appearance.  Mercedes were already sporting moulded light clusters when the E28 shone it’s big round headlamps for the first time.  The model followed its predecessor’s (E12) shape pretty closely – something BMW were criticised for at the time.

Darren Spratt: I know, I know.  It’s an emotional thing too.  I acquired my first E28 back in the early 90s.  It was meant to be a stop-gap car when I moved from employment into self-employment.  But I did fall in love.  It was 11 years old at the time and it felt more like a proper car to me!  I even went on my honeymoon in it.  I later sold that car because of my then wife.  She thought it was too big for her.  What a sense of regret I have about that.  I should have got rid of her then instead – I did that later!

Some years on, I found the car was on my mind, so I started to do some research.  I found a great website http://forum.bmw5.co.uk and within this site I found a large number of enthusiasts for the E28.  Naturally, it wasn’t long before I purchased my second E28.

Darren Spratt: Oh yes!  You can pick one up on ebay for a couple of hundred pounds!  But take a look at the specialist sites and you’ll see the good ones are appreciating.  Take a look at www.classiccarsforsale.co.uk and www.carandclassic.co.uk and you will often find models going for £3,000 to £4000 now.  One member of http://forum.bmw5.co.uk specialises in detailing and has sold a couple of cleaned up versions for circa £7,500.

Darren Spratt: For me, it’s the 528iSE – automatic, of course.  I’ve currently got 2 of them…

American fans can find out more at www.mye28.com

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