But here’s the headline news.

This BMW 840Ci still looks pretty much as fresh as the day it left the Dingolfing plant in Lower Bavaria in 1996.

For context, we’ve been fortunate enough to see quite a few 8 Series cars over the years.

And we honestly don’t think we’ve ever seen a better one than this.

It must have a painting of a decrepit version of itself gathering dust in an attic somewhere.

This magnificent über-coupé is minty-fresh, squeaky-clean and, to all intents and purposes, as good as new in most meaningful respects.

That’s quite an achievement – and this car is a stellar exemplar of both the marque and the model.

The vendor has had the car for a brief period of time (during which he has had the car serviced), but the car was previously in the same family ownership for at least 20 years.

Used sparingly but regularly, it was always kept in a dry heated garage and, as you can clearly see, it enjoyed a very pampered, cosseted life.

In nearly 30 years, this car has put ju...