Production Numbers - US E28s

[Mike W.]

I've got an Excel file I saved that Dave Maisenhelder worked up a while ago that really breaks down production by year and further sometimes. US, euro, Japan all in seperate catagorys. He used to post here I think as Dave in Va, but it doesn't seem like I've seen him in a while. It won't post well here, the formatting goes to hell, and his page is gone, but if someone else wants to host it, I can email it to them. He also has a good Excel file on engines I saved if that is wanted too. Both include many older BMW's, not just E28's and they seem to end in late 80's early 90's or so, but have a wealth of info on them and seem to be pretty accurate, though not perfect.

[BMWCCA2]

Did it include the USA 535is as a separate model?

[Mike W.]

Did it include the USA 535is as a separate model?

No, it does not.

[stevgtguy]

...but if someone else wants to host it, I can email it to them.

I will take it and I can host it for anyone that is interested. Thanks.

[CT533i]

Having trouble getting “classic” insurance for your old 5 Series sedan? In many cases these models are far more rare than most would guess. Check out the sales totals for each model in the U.S. and note the ratio of manual to automatic transmissions in the “performance” models compared to what BMW NA sells in the U.S. today!

SALES TOTALS FOR MODEL YEARS 1975 THROUGH 1988:

E12
530i 11,368
530iA 12,665
528i 10,434
528iA 9,275

E28*
528e 27,078
528eA 52,622
524tdA 3,635
533i 7,848
533iA 2,514
535i 10,252
535iA 7,357
535is 3,634
535isA 2,714
M5** 1,236

* includes 1,393 E28 units sold in calendar year
1989 and 52 units in calendar year 1990
** includes 273 M5s sold in calendar year 1989 and
thirteen in calendar year 1990

Interesting to see more automatic 530is were made than manuals . Especially for the 70's.

The M5 and the 533i are the only ads I can think of that mention their limited production. In 2 of the 3 533i ads I own, it mentions that quantities are limited and that one may have difficulty getting one, as with catching up to one on the road. It's interesting to keep this in mind when looking at these production numbers. Did the 535is or 524td ever mention their limited production in their ads? You'd think they would since these specs indicate fewer of these were made than the 533i.

[328dabi]

I found this I'd saved:

Phil Marx got this info just prior to 5er Fest and forgot to share it. He has the totals by calendar year but it doesn't break out by model-year so these are total by model for the entire run:
528e 27,078
528eA 52,622
524tdA 3,635
533i 7,848
533iA 2,514
535i 10,252
535iA 7,357
535is 3,634
535isA 2,714
M5 1,236

so this is Total american production from 9/1981-8/1988?

The 524td numbers are 1,847 for ‘85 and 1,759 for 86. These numbers indicate an additional 29 cars. I know at least 1 84 exists. I wonder if this means BMW built 29 84’s.

[BMWCCA2]

so this is Total american production from 9/1981-8/1988?

The 524td numbers are 1,847 for ‘85 and 1,759 for 86. These numbers indicate an additional 29 cars. I know at least 1 84 exists. I wonder if this means BMW built 29 84’s.

Just a suggestion, but those numbers may include EPA test cars, other "pre-production" press cars, crash cars, etc. Honestly a few could have been totaled in company use, too. We'll likely never know. Assuming sequential VINs, you could always punch the low and high numbers in RealOEM and then go one-more, or one-less and see what you get.

[328dabi]

The 524td numbers are 1,847 for ‘85 and 1,759 for 86. These numbers indicate an additional 29 cars. I know at least 1 84 exists. I wonder if this means BMW built 29 84’s.

Just a suggestion, but those numbers may include EPA test cars, other "pre-production" press cars, crash cars, etc. Honestly a few could have been totaled in company use, too. We'll likely never know. Assuming sequential VINs, you could always punch the low and high numbers in RealOEM and then go one-more, or one-less and see what you get.

I have a us spec 84. It was a euro delivery car. I wasn’t sure if the vins for td’s were sequential, but I guess it’s a good idea to start checking + and - from mine and see if there are any more. I’m trying to figure out if this is a 1 of 1 as it shouldn’t exist, and if not, how many other 84’s were made.

[328dabi]

So I have an 84 Td and found 1 other 84 us spec car that was parted out, but was unable to confirm if it were in fact an 84 my. Running vins through real oem shows the very next car as being an 85 MY and 30 total us spec 84’s.

How many of those 30 were actually sold to clients vs used as press cars, etc. I don’t know. But at least 1

[JohnH]

Checking realoem suggests there were
11 manual 524td (prod code 4214) built between 1983/03 - 1984/02, Vin range 0525001-0525011, and
3773 auto 524td (prod code 4224) built between 1983/03 - 1985/12, Vin range 0530001-0533773.

These are NA VINs, not just US.

[328dabi]

Checking realoem suggests there were
11 manual 524td (prod code 4214) built between 1983/03 - 1984/02, Vin range 0525001-0525011, and
3773 auto 524td (prod code 4224) built between 1983/03 - 1985/12, Vin range 0530001-0533773.

These are NA VINs, not just US.

Makes one wonder if those first 11 were test vehicles. I wonder how many MY 84’s made it into public hands. I guess I could hypothetically run a carfax on all 30 Vins. There is a 5 month gap between my car 03/84 and the first 1985 MY car 08/84.

[stuartinmn]

Makes one wonder if those first 11 were test vehicles. I wonder how many MY 84’s made it into public hands. I guess I could hypothetically run a carfax on all 30 Vins. There is a 5 month gap between my car 03/84 and the first 1985 MY car 08/84.

Not really the same thing but some cars may have gone to other manufacturers, they sometimes buy cars from their competitors for evaluation. My first 325iX had this sticker on the underside of the hood, apparently Chrysler Corporation was the first owner and they used it for some sort of emissions testing.

[kojo96]

Here is the list for all to enjoy.

https://web.archive.org/web/20041101081 ... umbers.htm

[328dabi]

Here is the list for all to enjoy.

https://web.archive.org/web/20041101081 ... umbers.htm

This is a great list but not accurate in regard to td models. 525000-530000 listed as 84 model year do not exist. For 85 model year it lists 530001+ as being 85 model year cars.

Vins 530001-530030 are 1984 model year cars. First ‘85 is 530031. I own 030 and it has 2 option codes, one being 910-research car with special controls without prior inspection.

The other 29 vins show on realoem but not on any vin decoder I’ve tried to check option codes. The first 29’pop up as invalid vins on any vin check I’ve tried. there is only 1 North American 1984.