Let me ask you this: if you could only have a two-car garage, what two cars would you have in it? Before anyone throws out something wild like pairing an SVJ with an 812 Superfast, let’s think about this logically. An ideal two-car garage should strike a perfect balance between practicality and passion. It should include one versatile daily driver and maybe a weekend fling. I think I’ve found the ideal solution, lying right in front of me.
This Alpina D3 S is the versatile daily driver. Sure, it might look like a mildly dressed-up 3 Series to the untrained eye, but that’s exactly the point. It’s able to be diminutive around town, but find it a remote autoroute or a twisty European mountain pass, and its whole persona shifts to that of a workhorse, longing for the real rough and tumble.
The heavily boosted diesel six, paired with a trick mild hybrid system, excels at busting long-range Google Maps ETAs while remaining Euro 6 compliant, granting full access to European cities. This one even has a European Road Atlas stuffed beside the passenger seat, suggesting the owner fits Alpina’s very specific mold.
The racing decals also look quite nice, if not dated, while the 20-spoke Alpina trademark wheels exert a sense of occasion which the rest of the car doesn’t otherwise demand. With Alpina being absorbed into the BMW Group come the end of this year, this is one of the last true Alpina models, as dwindling independent support and increasing OEM oversight will mark the end of an enthusiast-built dream.
If the Alpina is a farewell to an era, the 911 stands as a constant, a worthy addition to my two-car garage solution. This car is the weekend fling, perfect for spirited drives down flowing B-roads or rocking up to the local par 3. But here lies the problem, the golf course car park is also full of 911s. Luckily, this one is in a colour that resembles a sauce, or workplace underperformance. You get it, it stands out. And that makes it interesting, especially when Porsche has pumped out more 911s than the Golden Arches have Big Macs.
It even sits on 5-spoke heritage rims, complete with a matching heritage interior. Nothing about this car is subtle; it’s loud and brash, the polar opposite of the Alpina. And that is what makes a two-car garage great: the cohesiveness of having all bases covered. Now, I do wonder… are these cars actually owned by the same person? Because if they are, they’ve nailed the art of individuality.