Took out a rather rare beast today-an old 6 series-with dog leg 5 speed.

Would it live up to expectations?

Yes and no. The engine really is a peach, not especially quick by today's standards, but after the unending diet of today's whirring petrols and rattly 4 pot diesels-the sound track of the big six was a welcome change.

The L-Jetronic fuel injection system still worked pretty well-settling into a smooth idle after sitting for months.

The seats were as comfortable as any that I've sat in, interior beautifully finished, no low rent plastics.

External styling? Blows away anything on the road today. Todays's big coupes just look vulgar in comparison.

The downsides? For a such a huge floorplan, the actual cabin isn't huge-and it's strictly a four seater. The dog leg box was apalling-long throws and vague gates-maybe it was just worn. I doubt the handling was much to write home about. We weren't pushing it hard.

The clock can't be turned back, but for a little while it was nice to pretend!