‘They don’t make them like they used to anymore’ you hear people saying all the time these days and we tend to agree with them on some levels. Usually, however, when someone says something like this, there are two reference points in his/her mind: one from at least 20 years ago and one from the present day.
Going further into details, you probably know by now that we’re talking about cars and their reliability. BMW actually rose to fame due to its reliable vehicles. Back in the day, the luxury/premium giant we know today was in trouble and the only way to get out of it was built a proper reputation around its products.
Barely avoiding bankruptcy, the company was turned around by one Mr. Quandt that decided to take a leap of faith and invest in the business. Today, his family owns nearly 50 percent of the stock and is still pretty much involved in the business.
It was the 60s when all of this happened and that’s also when things started turning around. The E12 5 Series was one of the cars that helped out as well. It was the first model ever to wear that moniker, even though similar cars were built before the E12 codename was ever mentioned. They were not 5 Series though.
This particular model was built in 1977 and it’s a 530i which means it’s using a naturally aspirated 3-liter petrol engine with the trademark 6-cylinder inline architecture. However, back in those days, the same differentiated power outputs were used.
The European model used the M30B30 engine with 170 HP and 250 Nm (180 lb-ft) of torque that revved nicely over 6,000 RPM. In the US, the same engine was rated at 176 HP and 251 Nm (185 lb-ft) of torque.
That’s what our main hero here is driving. Being a 1977 model, his car is actually using a fuel injection system, something that was perceived as futuristic back in the days when the 530i first came out.
Jon de Jesus’ car is probably one of the best preserved models we’ve ever seen, with the paint being mostly untouched even though more than 30 years have passed since it was applied on the body of the 5er. New wheels were added to the mix but they don’t take away any of its charm and the interior has some nice touches like all the original electronics and manual windows. Check out what the driver actually has to say about it, in the video below.
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