Rebuilding a classic BMW M635 CSI: keep it original, or make it a track monster?

Don’t be afraid of buying the £10k project car. That £30k will be the best £50k you’ve ever spent. As internet memes go, this latest one cuts painfully deep and may as well be embossed in my E24’s door sills as a permanent reminder.

However, on a more positive note, I now have a complete BMW M6 back in my unit for the first time in over seven years. The only slight issue is the fact it requires some assembly to get it back on the road... ‘some’ meaning several thousand pieces in 30+ boxes all scattered around it.

Reassembly – in theory – shouldn’t be too tricky if it wasn’t for a couple of additional hurdles. Firstly, I’ve never taken apart any car to the extent of the E24, let alone this particular model, and finding a stage by stage guide online which isn’t in German for someone with zero mechanical ability is proving quite tricky. But the bigger issue here is the state of what’s in those boxes versus what’s on the car currently.

Bodywork? That’s all good. The same can be said for the engine, the engine bay, all the underside and everything which holds it together. Every bit has been restored, replaced or rebuilt. The rest? Well, that’s where it goes downhill.

‘All original’ makes it sound quite honest. But there was a reason this particular car was cheap back in 2018: it didn’t run and it was in dire need of some TLC. Obviously, this was less of an issue when the plan was to ditch all of the interior for a stripped back, track-orientated setup. Think centrelocks, rollcage, bucket seats and naff all else – all of which has been built or paid for already.

Unfortunately, I made the rookie error of seeing what E24 M635CSIs are now worth upon rescuing all the original pieces, and now I’m wondering whether to change path altogether and simply reassemble it back to stock.

People love originality and decent restorations of cool classics will always have appeal, not to mention the peace of mind that a car will actually work and not fall apart every time it’s taken for a drive. A sensible approach, but it does sound a bit boring. I mean, who wants a bone stock and lovely E24 when you could have an unnecessarily restored, track spec version with Group A bits which will make it appealing to perhaps three people worldwide?

Yes, bolting everything stock back on would be infinitely simpler but it would also need everything else restoring to match the rest of the car. Putting ripped leather seats back in is a bit like getting fresh teeth from Turkey and then optimising your diet with soft drinks and bags of Haribo. Both options being a fantastic waste of money.

I’ve never taken apart any car to the extent of the E24

The other option – and the real reason for this update – is to serve as a reminder to stick with the original plan. Stop trying to be sensible, accept this car is the epitome of that internet meme and actually try and finish it. Get the roll cage welded in, the centrelocks built up and make it a track car which has now cost so much money the prospect of bashing it off kerbs while being harassed by Sparco-wearing M2 drivers now sounds even more terrifying than finding the cash needed to reassemble it.

Over the past few years, I have made many promises in these Top Gear updates, almost all of which I’ve inevitably ignored. But there is one I can categorically state as now being fact; for as long as I remain an adult obsessed by cars, I will never ever start a full scale project rebuild ever again. And that is a promise... for now.