Minneapolis Street Sighting: BMW E28 524td

Okay, I'll be blunt here; when I first saw this E28, I thought "hmm...clean E28...can't hurt to shoot it." Once I crossed the street to examine it a bit more closely, I'm glad I shot it. On the surface, it appears to be a straight, rust-free black E28. Typical BMW wheels, no nasty "tuner" mods, not gaping holes in the bodywork; it looked untouched. Once I read the badge, I learned why. It wasn't a performance model in any way, shape, or form -- unless the only performance you're referring to is fuel efficiency.
Most E28s here in the States came with a 2.7L straight six (528e), a 3.2/3.4L straight six (533i/535i), and then finally the 3.5L straight six found in the M5. So what is the 524td, and where does it stand? It's the basest of the base in the E28 lineup. And being a "base model" BMW wasn't really a bad thing; this new turbodiesel was the fastest, quickest, and most silent diesel-powered car of its time. While this is the only 524td I've seen in recent memory, this little boostfed alt-fuel six was apparently a good engine; Ford purchased a limited quantity of these engines and used them in the Lincoln Mark VIII LSC. How odd is that?
To be honest, E28s get mixed emotions from me. They're not all that rare, even in the rustbelt; I encounter a decent-to-nice one almost everyday, so they're sort of an iffy subject for me to shoot. If I like said car as a whole, I'll shoot. If not, well, I'll either nod in approval or shake my head if it's either riced or in crap shape.
As the car stands, this example of one of BMW's finest (and most cliched) sedans is a pretty good one. The paint is in nice shape for a car of this age, and unlike several of its clones, this one shows no rust. All the factory trim is in great shape as well, including the oft-faded BMW roundel. Likewise, the trunk badge, too, is in spectacular shape. I almost expected to not know what model this was due to a missing badge. Thankfully, that was not the case. Would I change this car in any way? Probably not. I don't like the factory BMW wheels for this generation, but for history's sake, I'd likely leave them on. Ugly wheels don't hurt anything if they're factory.
So am I glad I shot this particular E28? In short, yes. While not the most flashy, performance-oriented model, this particular car goes against the stereotype that BMW only produces sporty vehicles. The truth is, in Europe BMW produces more diesel and turdodiesel vehicles than they do petrol; they have economy-minded cars, too. It just goes to show that what you assume might not always be correct.