Reposted from Automobiles de Luxe

By Gunnar Heinrich

Amid the welcomed comments and e-mails that I've been getting over the last two days about the BMW 733i segment, I would like to take this opportunity to address two recurring questions.

Q: I thought you were a Mercedes-Benz enthusiast?

A: Growing up, there were four or five cars that were seminal to my appreciation of what a luxury sedan should be. Of those, one stands alone and the other takes a vaunted second place.

1st: 1986 Mercedes-Benz 560SEL

2nd: 1988 BMW 735i (E32 gen., 5-Speed Manual Trans.)

Q: Why the E23 7-Series?

A: In 2000, BMW of North America formed an online 7-series club in advance of the E65 (current gen.) launch. In the forum, there was one disgruntled owner of an E23 7-Series - the first recognized generation of BMW's now-signature flagship line - who complained bitterly that his was "the black sheep" of the 7-Series lineage.

At the time, I agreed with his assessment.

Then, some years later, I actually drove the model in question and my perspective changed for the better. The E23 proved to be a solid car.

Will it ever approach the exalted view I hold for the E32 or E38 generations? No. Those generations were, simply put, vastly superior designs. But for a start, the E23 was a giant step for BMW and remains a durable classic.

And, I must say, from some angles the cross-marque, Teutonic resemblance between the E23 and W126 S-Class is uncanny...