Highlights Desirable colour combination ‘The thinking man’s M car’ Recently serviced Very rare, fewer than 300 produced worldwide Great summer cruiser Overview Alpina as a brand is the definition of ‘if you know, you know’ amongst the car enthusiast fraternity.

To a passer-by, most Alpinas look like a BMW with some bodywork, perhaps some nicer wheels, but otherwise they fly under-the-radar.

For those in the know, the driver is clearly someone of taste, someone that wants all the fun of a BMW M product, but with the kind of refinement and class that only an Alpina can provide.

The B3 range was based upon the E46-era 3-series, in convertible, coupe, saloon and touring format.

For those that wanted a little extra gusto, the B3 S was unveiled at the 2002 Paris Motor Show.

Building on the refinements offered in the B3 (3.3) the S model had near-identical performance to the E46 M3, thanks to its updated Alpina 3.3 engine, which was lightly bored-out and featured an upgraded intake and e...