1984 Hartge BMW H5S Is a Fine Wine

From the March 1984 issue of Car and Driver.

The Hartge H5S is one BMW that’s not for everyone. Unless you have a well-devel­oped taste for seriously fast, hard-to-the-­touch drivers’ cars, you’ll probably find an H5S too rich for your blood. The average BMW owner would likely think the H5S has rocks for shocks and that there’s way too much growl in the exhaust—so thanks, but no thanks.

On the other hand, if you happen to be one of the more discriminating car con­noisseurs, the Hartge H5S should taste mighty fine. This is the Château Lafite of Bimmers, plain and simple. A wine expert might describe it as exquisite—dry, with a rich, full-bodied flavor and wonderful nu­ances that romp and gambol across the sensibilities.

The H5S is the product of Hartge Motorsport, a respected German tuning firm specializing in BMWs. Hartge fields BMWs in road racing and rallying and sells a full range of speed parts and accessories in addition to whole cars.

Until now, the only German tuner to promote its wares over here has been Alpina. That is about to change, since a Florida BMW service shop called Perfor­mance Plus, Inc. has been named the offi­cial Hartge distributor. By the time you read this, they should be able to sell you just about anything from the ample Hartge goody book.

As for the star of this report, it started life as a German-spec 5-series four-door, as all H5S sedans do. The H5S badge is affixed only after Hartge Motorsport replaces the standard-issue BMW engine with a big­-bore 3.4-liter six. After that, it’s up to you to pick and choose the optional equipment you want.

The Hartge philosophy is that the com­plexities of turbocharging are best left to the factory and that all the power you could ever want is available through tried-and-­true hot-rodding techniques. For that rea­son, all H5S models are treated to some mild cylinder-head work, a hotter cam, tu­bular exhaust headers, and a low-restric­tion exhaust system, all of which free up an impressive 237 horsepower (SAE net) at 5400 rpm.

From there, our demo went all the way, with a lowered, firmer Hartge suspension (including a reinforcement member that bolts between the front suspension towers) and bulging Pirelli P7 tires (P205/55VR-16 front, P225/50VR-16 rear) on handsome alloy wheels. Front and rear spoilers, driv­ing lights, an ABS anti-lock brake system, leather-covered Recaro buckets, and a high-powered sound system round out the package.

The next bit of good news is that the H5S is priced right. Performance Plus says that a reasonably equipped version will go out the door for between 32 and 33 grand, which is only a couple grand more than your average domesticated 533i. The dif­ference is part standard equipment, part BMW of North America profit margin. Un­fortunately, this is where things get a little complicated.

You see, the H5S you really want is the full-German model, like the one we tested, but that’s not the one you can have. The law of the land says that every H5S must be equipped with all DOT-mandated safety equipment and must be certified for fresh breath. Performance Plus optimistically claims that a fully sanitized H5S gives up only about 10 hp, despite having a catalyst stuffed up its tailpipe—but we’d guess the damage will be worse.

Just how you get the H5S back into Eu­ropean trim is your problem—because Section 203 of the Clean Air Act states that it’s illegal for a dealer or a repair shop to remove smog gear. Of course, there are any number of creative ways to circumvent the law. In fact, that’s just why we elected to test a German-spec model—the object be­ing to gauge the ultimate potential of a car like this on American soil for a change.

As for living up to its promise, well, this car is a four-wheeled invitation to a day in court. To envision its performance enve­lope, just think of it as a four-door Porsche 911. The spec box will give you the num­bers; the important thing here is how good it all feels.

First off, the sights and sounds are all world class: crouching suspension, rumpa-­rumpa idle, angry exhaust note. The H5S suspension feels a mite muscle-bound around town, but aside from that, we’re talking pure harmony. The H5S follows your every move like a great dance partner. There’s enough power underfoot for low­-speed, tail-out stunt driving, yet it’s totally docile in the stop-and-go mode. And in high-speed situations, the H5S clamps itself to the pavement as if it had a giant earth magnet in its belly.

Two things deserve special mention: first, the ABS brakes, which enable rank novices to pull off brake-and-steer acci­dent-avoidance maneuvers heretofore the province of experts, and second, the over­all mechanical quality of the H5S, which is exemplary.

It all adds up to a car that talks to you in a way few others do, and what it keeps saying is faster! faster! Getting back to our analo­gy with fine wine, the Hartge BMW H5S strikes us as nothing less than intoxicating.

Source: Reviews - aranddriver.com