WELCOME TO MCP MOTORSPORT

TOTAL BMW ARTICLE

"I usually put it this way when a potential customer says they can't cope with a left hand drive car," says Martin Pearse who runs MCP Motorsport. "If I were to put a briefcase with £15,000 in the left hand seat, where would you rather sit?" Few buyers hesitate especially when the difference between some right and left-hand drive models is a whopping £30-£40K. It says 'LHD European Depreciation Proof Supercars on Pearse's business card and thats exactly what they are, models that were originally imported in tiny numbers, or not at all, or just contemporary iconic sports cars that cost a fortune when the steering is on the right hand side. So what exactly are these cars?

"Fundamentally these are cars that I like to drive and own. That restricts me what I offer, although I will source particular cars if a customer requests it. But if I like the Cars that ensures every single customer and I have more than just a car sale in common.' And Pearse's favourite cars? "Alpina BMWs" Now that's Just what we wanted to hear. So how did it all start? Pearse certainly qualifies for a profile in sister publication Mini Magazine. MCP (Martin Charles Pearse, just in case you wondered) Motorsport dates back to the late 60s. At his own admission Pearse spent many happy days tarting up Minis, making them go faster courtesy of 1493cc blocks and selling all manner of Cooper S incarnations. Eventually a proper job and family commitments ended all that fun and Pearse's taste in cars started to change.

"One day I drove a friend's Alpina B10 Turbo and suddenly every other car on the planet seemed to pale into insignificance. I decided that I just had to have one. I got hold of a copy of the German magazine Motor and Sport and looked through the classifieds and found what seemed to be the ideal example. The owner was a businessman in Munich. His secretary spoke perfect English, but when she said that the B10 had done 274,000 kms I almost put the phone down. She convinced me that it was in showroom condition, had been valeted everyday and generally pampered between autobahn runs, being serviced regularly at Alpina's workshops. Then the service history chattered through the fax for what seemed like an hour, there were reams of bills. I then contacted the service manager at Alpina who confirmed that the car was as described, The next thing I know I'm getting off a plane and being met at the airport by the businessman in a Ferrari Testarossa whilst his wife drove the B10. We motored to the Nurburgring whilst I read through the famous German road test which suggested that the B10 was quicker than a Testarossa. Hammering around the Nurburgring I was left in now doubt, as the B10 vs Testarossa duel proved that there was only one winner, So I had to buy it."

Clearly Pearse is not your average car dealer, he's much more sophisticated and urbane than that. An enthusiast first, this 55 year-old only started importing as a business five years ago for the simpIe reason that the cars he really loved could be bought for less in pristine condition in Germany. In the UK many owners only seem to service their cars when there is no alternative and the inspection lights have burned red into their retinas. Car hygiene habits are suspect too as Pearse shows me an M3 that had belonged to a Brit for just a few months and in the meantime turned the interior into a skip. Not surprisingly Pearse is reluctant to take UK part exchanges, unless it really is of a standard that he can resell. The Germans you see, are not like that, they really know how to look after their cars and six figure kilometre readings aren't an issue because the car has been serviced on the dot. The only problem Pearse has is getting hold of the service history. That's because the Germans assume we are all like them, so what is the point of keeping all that paperwork? The other problem with German cars is their lack of anti-theft devices. Because car crime is not such a big issue, there is rarely a Thatcham anything fitted to them. Otherwise they are utterly brilliant. So what are Pearses favourite left hook BMW buys?

My personal favourites mostly have Alpina badges on them." says Pearse. "This company in Buchloe in Southern Bavaria, take BMWs and rebuild them into something even better and faster. They really are beautifully put together, I've been to the factory many times now and for those of us who thought that the M cars were the ultimate BMWs really have to change our perceptions after just one drive." His favourite is The Alpina B10 Bi Turbo and there is a silver one parked outside the office. Apart from some distinctive spoked alloys and Alpina badging there is nothing to suggest that this is anything more than a normal BMW S series. The difference is that this turbo charged model will out accelerate a Ferrari and power on to a top speed of 185mph and is comfortably the world's fastest saloon. It must also be the world's best value saloon at just £12,950 for this sprightly 8 year-oId. Stable, comfortable, well built and with gut wrenching mid range torque, this is all part of the appeal. These models really are depreciation proof and can be bought from £13K to £16K and you can't ever imagine them being worth much less.

Then there are M3s. Shake an M-Technic gear stick at a bunch of classified adverts these days and the chances are there will be plenty of M3s in varying conditions to choose from. Outside the MCP office is a bright red Evolution for £7995. Evo Sports are hard to find and convertibles are always in big demand. However, Pearse prefers to source the more exotic incarnations of the M3. Alpina's own B6 3.5s costs around £14K is difficult to find, but reckons Pearse, it is better than an Evo Sport III. Hartge's M3 was badged as the H6 24v which pumps out an impressive 330bhp, but you probably won't ever have seen one because they only made 6. Lotech's M3 is almost as rare and quick. For sheer Q car invisibility Pearse highly recommends the Alpina B7 Turbo which is based on the E28 5 series that will leave a '9Os M5 in its wake They are getting old now at up to 15 years old and cost around £8K. When it comes to classic BMWs Pearse will go as far bank the CSLs, but no further. He has sold four Batmobiles and is currently negotiating to buy an Alpina version.

One of the best value BMW buys is the 850 coupe' which was expensive (at £50K plus when new), heavy, slow and largely ignored by right hand drive buyers. However at £10,000 in left-hand drive form it makes a fabulous alternative to a Mercedes SL, or the still pricey Jaguar XKB. More beautiful and powerful though would be a 635 B7 Turbo, which has 32Obhp on tap and a real rarity value as just 60 were built. Pearse says that the '93 on 3.8 M5s providing they are immaculate always sell well and there is lots of interest in the Z1 at £15K. But really the slide doored 325I is a summer fun vehicle rather than a track day special or business express, the two main categories that most of MCP's sales fall into. Pearse tips the Alpina 750 B12 5.7 as the one to watch. By next year these beautiful beasts will be £16-17,000 down from £100,000 new.

You can't shop for left-hand drive in Germany without noticing what good value Porsches are. A silver 1995 911 Bi Turbo 4S sits menacingly outside the MCP office and is arguably the ultimate 911. It will accelerate to 100 mph in just 9 seconds, it has had just one owner and has covered 45,000 miles and the asking price is £39,950. But if the steering wheel was on the other side you could add some £24K to that figure. Pearse also seeks out the companies who rework Porsches in the same way that Alpina transform BMWs. A distinctive 'flat nose' Kremer Porsche Turbo from 1979 looks outrageous and costs £16,995. Because there are so many Porsche specialists around MCP always aim to offer something a little more special from Ruf, Almera and DP Motorsport.

Mercedes also went down that the high performance special route with the 190 in Evolution II tune which cost £56,000 in 1991. Pearse had two of these superbly built models from £19.999, but reckons that they are too slow to be legendary and need to be revved through the roof for real results. The more staid image of Mercedes has never properly translated into high performance folklore like the sporting BMW. AMG may start with an A, but these products are no Alpinas. Post '92 500 SLS at around £13 - £14,000 are hard to ignore though.

What you won't find at MCP is any of that Far Eastern nonsense. "We don't stock Subarus, Skylines or Lancer Evolutions. They might be good value, but they still depreciate too much for my liking. Also a customer of mine went to a track day in a B10 and basically left those Imprezza Turbos a long way behind, Case proven I think".

Pearse can also boister our German cars are built better than anything else prejudice as he gets decidedly cool about the Italian left hand drive icons.

Lancia Integrale Evolutions, just don't feature on his stock list whilst the prancing horse jobs sell on value. An F40 is 30K less from Europe and a 348 are always going to be £20K plus cheaper in left-hand drive. However, Pearse manages a wry smile when commenting that he has never seen a Ferrari with more than 40,000 miles on the clock, which makes you just a little concerned. As a driving machine though Pearse really loves the wilfully ugly Alfa Romeo SZ and has sold a few of those at around £20,000.

It all sounds so very tempting to simply nip across the channel and come back with a left hand drive icon of your own and leave out the middle man. Well middleman Martin Pearse isn't greedy, keeps overheads low and prides himself on having yet to be on the wrong end of a compliant it. You can phone up customers and rest assured that the car you see is fully serviced and fully documented. Many less scrupulous importers immediately register the cars in the UK to lose the German documentation. Pearse holds onto the Fahrzeug Brief (log book) so that you can see who owned the car before and even ring them up. Just as cars in the UK can be write offs, clocked and stolen, it is the same in Europe. I'd rather trust an experienced enthusiast with a network of good contacts than chance my wallet alone in Europe.

That's because there are regions and countries that you don't buy from (for instance Italy) and registration details to sort out unless you want your new car confiscated. A recent sob story involved a British buyer of a Porsche Carrera 2 who only found out it was stolen when the Police stopped him. He is now out of pocket by a whopping £23,000.

So we say wave depreciation worries goodbye and get yourself a left hand drive icon that will be 30% - 50% less than a UK car, that's assuming it was ever available as a right hooker. A blue and white roundel with companion Alpina coat of arms isn't compulsory, but you know that ultimately it makes sense.

MCP Motorsport 1999/2000/2001 Last Page Update 21st February 2001