Did you know that?: BMW had already tried to put a V8 in the E36 3-series, but didn't succeed in designing a version which could be built on the regular E36 production line. Alpina did succeed, however the body had to undergo 42 modifications at the BMW factory before the V8 could fit. To make it fit, the engine isn't mounted as usual from below- Alpina had to install it from above. Thw B8 has the same suspension as the B3 3.2 with Bilstein gas-pressure units front and rear. The only difference with B3 3.2 is that the B8 has ASC+T as standard. The front breaks are uprated with custom- made Lucas ventilated discs and special calipers and the rear breaks are from M3. The engine is based on BMW's 4.0 V8 from E34 540i. The biggest difference between the standart engine and Alpina's engine is the displacement. As the BMW V8 engine has Nicasil (and later Alusil) coated bores, the block couldn't just be overbored; a new block had to be cast by BMW especially for Alpina. Other changes include higher compression Mahle pistons, changed valve toming and reprogrammed Motronic system. A new sump is required because the V8 is mounted so deep in the E36 body that the usual 540i sump doesn't fit. The new sump is very shallow over most af it's lenght, but has a very deep part at the front. The new sump depht required a new oil pump which Alpina has made by Arri, the German camera maker. A new exhaust system and new catalysts are also fitted. The Alpina engine produses 333bhp, 7bhp less than the B10 because the B8 has a different exhaust- mainfold, and has a torque of 470Nm. At only 1000 rpm the engine produces 350Nm, which is the maximum torque of a M3 Evo. The B8 was only available with 6 speed manula gear box made by Getrag. To ensure the rear axle didn't overheat at sustained high speeds, the B8 received a massive ribbed differential cover in style of the E23 B6 2.8. Gasoline tank has 95 litres capacity. B8 rides on 17in Alpina wheels with Michelin tires 235/40 front and 265/35 at rear. Alpina claims a 0-100 time of 5.6 sec. and top speed of over 280km/h. The in gear acceleration is much better than E36 M3. Production began in april '95 and ended in '98. A total of 221 cars were built. The rarest of B8 4.6 is convertible with only 23 made. Alpina also biult a number of B8 4.0 with 313bhp- only 5 cars were manufactured and all were sold in Japan. (Love this car...)

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