| Event: | Men's 4 x 400 metres relay |
| Competition: | European Athletics Championships |
The men's 4 x 400 metres relay event at the 1986 European Athletics Championships was held in Stuttgart, then West Germany, at Neckarstadion on 30 and 31 August 1986.
| Gold | Derek Redmond Kriss Akabusi Brian Whittle Roger Black | |
| Silver | Klaus Just Edgar Itt Harald Schmid Ralf Lübke | |
| Bronze | Vladimir Prosin Vladimir Krylov Arkadiy Kornilov Aleksandr Kurochkin |
31 August
| Rank | Nation | Competitors | Time | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| align=left | 2:59.84 | CR | ||||
| align=left | 3:00.17 | NR | ||||
| align=left | 3:00.47 | |||||
| 4 | align=left |  | 3:01.37 | NR | ||
| 5 | align=left |  | 3:04.12 | |||
| 6 | align=left | 3:04.87 | ||||
| 7 | align=left | 3:05.27 | ||||
| 8 | align=left |  | 3:10.17 |
30 August
| Rank | Nation | Competitors | Time | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | align=left | 3:03.79 | Q | |||
| 2 | align=left | | 3:03.96 | Q | ||
| 3 | align=left | 3:04.17 | Q | |||
| 4 | align=left | | 3:04.44 | q | ||
| 5 | align=left |  | 3:09.50 |
| Rank | Nation | Competitors | Time | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | align=left | 3:04.60 | Q | |||
| 2 | align=left | 3:05.53 | Q | |||
| 3 | align=left | 3:05.92 | Q | |||
| 4 | align=left | | 3:06.40 | q |
According to an unofficial count, 40 athletes from 9 countries participated in the event.
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