New Owner of an original survivor (1974 3.0 CSA with only 35k miles)

[Gregs3point0]

Hey All -

I am glad to be part of this community and look forward to both contributing my perspective as well as learning the ins and outs of this great vehicle through your contributions. My car is very special in that the previous owner (and a friend of mine) held it in his car collection in a warehouse, rarely drove it and had it well maintained. Its a California car with virtually no rust and has all the maintenance records, factory repair manuals (the two big blue binders), owners manuals...and original window sticker showing all the options included. The paint, Polaris Silver, is in great shape with just a few hints of Patina here and there. The original interior is showroom quality with beautiful blue leather and coco mats.
I have had the pleasure of driving this car recently and appreciating the wonderful driving characteristics this car delivers. My journey with BMW started as a teenager when I bought my first car in 1979...a 1976 2002. I drove this car until 1985, when I traveled to Germany and purchased a 1985 Euro-version 323i and brought is back to the US as a "Grey Market" car. This sedan was super fast, even with the H&B conversion to US specs (I was living in CA at the time). I drove this car until 1988, when I purchased one of the first US 3 series convertibles available, a 1988 325i convertible. Interestingly and coincidentally, I purchased this car from the very same dealer that my new 3.0 was purchased by the original owner! There are many other great points of alignment with the original owner of this 3.0 CS and my life journey....which makes owning this car that much more special.
The only irritating factors I have with this car are:
1) It has those unattractive big bumpers of the mid seventies BMW's, and
2) it is automatic.
SO.....I am going to use my opening new member intro as a sounding board and ask you all (those that have the patience to get this far!!!) to answer the following poll? My feeling is to keep her entirely stock despite these factors...but I am open to suggestions! My preference is a 5 speed and Euro version bumpers.

 

[afeustel]

But keep all the parts...

 

[dang]

My preference is a 5 speed and Euro version bumpers.

100% agree. Bumpers would complete the cosmetics and a 5spd would complete the mechanics.

 

[Gregs3point0]

100% agree. Bumpers would complete the cosmetics and a 5spd would complete the mechanics.

Thanks for your response. I am curious as to what the best 5 speed gearbox is for this car. thoughts??

 

[eriknetherlands]

Do as you like, its your car. I also think the big bumpers aren't as nice as the smaller ones that were designed to match the car, not the regulation.
Wrt to the automatic, i've actually learned to appreciate it, as it matches the grace of the car's design. But if you're into sporty driving, you won't regret the stick shift.

Keep the original parts, it will be appreciated by the one who you will eventually sell it too, hopefully in a long time.

 

[craterface]

Thanks for your response. I am curious as to what the best 5 speed gearbox is for this car. thoughts??

Welcome! Super handsome car.
Used Getrag 265, the earlier versions have the correct setup for the speedo drive, circa 1981. They are hard to find, nowadays. But they are out there.
The Bible:

Five SpeedConversion for CS

 

[teahead]

I have a Getrag 265 for sale.

PM me for more info/pics.

 

[Gregs3point0]

Welcome! Super handsome car.
Used Getrag 265, the earlier versions have the correct setup for the speedo drive, circa 1981. They are hard to find, nowadays. But they are out there.
The Bible:

Five SpeedConversion for CS

Thanks for the response and link to the conversion details! Much appreciated.

 

[Gregs3point0]

I have a Getrag 265 for sale.

PM me for more info/pics.

Will do. Thanks.

 

[Stevehose]

Change to suit your preferences, keep the parts if concerned about future value, but I believe those 2 upgrades will never go out of favor.

 

[bmw2800cs]

Welcome! Super handsome car.
Used Getrag 265, the earlier versions have the correct setup for the speedo drive, circa 1981. They are hard to find, nowadays. But they are out there.
The Bible:

Five SpeedConversion for CS

I haven't gotten a direct answer to this - are parts still available to re-build a getrag 265?

 

[Dohn]

I'm going to play devil's advocate here. First, I'm no purist, as my car has both a 3.5 and a five-speed. Everyone jumps on the bumpers (no diving board comments, please) but: 1) they are correct for the year, at least in the US, 2) only 393 or so cars were imported in 1974, which makes them quite rare, 3) they are far better protection for the delicate sheetmetal, and 4) changing them requires both finding and buying suitable ($$$) used bumpers and brackets (or stainless remakes), and then performing bodywork and painting, which your car doesn't appear to need. Are they as aesthetically pleasing as the original bumpers? No. Is the affront serious enough to spend $4,000 to fix? Your call...

 

[HB Chris]

I haven't gotten a direct answer to this - are parts still available to re-build a getrag 265?

Not enough, easier to buy another as a spare

 

[HB Chris]

844 coupes received the large bumpers out of 30,565 in total, maybe 700 of those were Hoffman deliveries to the US. Although rare, no one is ever going to reinstall these in the future so if you change them out there is no need to keep them. I would keep it just as it is, you have a true survivor. Same with the auto, it makes no sense to keep it if you go to a five speed which I would recommend.

 

[craterface]

I can second the sentiment of possibly keeping the big bumpers. The conversion is expensive, and gathering the parts is non-trivial. I have have seen some big bumper cars with the bumpers pulled in closer to the body, and it looked really good. Not sure if I can point to a link on that, but it has been done.

 

[JMinPDX]

Nice coupe. Welcome.
My 74 (VIN 4335295) started life as an Automatic with the same color combo.
Shortly after I purchased it in 2008 I found an e12 parts car to facilitate the switch to 5 speed and L-jet injection.
My car had 50k original miles but was a non runner so swapping the drive train was an easy decision. If the car is a low mile untouched original I would think twice about modifying it.

BTW this is the best vintage BMW forum on the web. IMHO.

 

[Arde]

Nice car!
My opinion is:
- Drive it with the automatic for 6 months, else you will not appreciate the 5 speed improvement.
- Consider a third option for the front bumper: bumperless spoiler. Unless you park on city streets I think it is a good choice.

You HAVE to put some meaningful changes into this car, otherwise you are just extending the previous owner's tenure...

 

[Eric V]

Hey All -

I am glad to be part of this community and look forward to both contributing my perspective as well as learning the ins and outs of this great vehicle through your contributions. My car is very special in that the previous owner (and a friend of mine) held it in his car collection in a warehouse, rarely drove it and had it well maintained. Its a California car with virtually no rust and has all the maintenance records, factory repair manuals (the two big blue binders), owners manuals...and original window sticker showing all the options included. The paint, Polaris Silver, is in great shape with just a few hints of Patina here and there. The original interior is showroom quality with beautiful blue leather and coco mats.
I have had the pleasure of driving this car recently and appreciating the wonderful driving characteristics this car delivers. My journey with BMW started as a teenager when I bought my first car in 1979...a 1976 2002. I drove this car until 1985, when I traveled to Germany and purchased a 1985 Euro-version 323i and brought is back to the US as a "Grey Market" car. This sedan was super fast, even with the H&B conversion to US specs (I was living in CA at the time). I drove this car until 1988, when I purchased one of the first US 3 series convertibles available, a 1988 325i convertible. Interestingly and coincidentally, I purchased this car from the very same dealer that my new 3.0 was purchased by the original owner! There are many other great points of alignment with the original owner of this 3.0 CS and my life journey....which makes owning this car that much more special.
The only irritating factors I have with this car are:
1) It has those unattractive big bumpers of the mid seventies BMW's, and
2) it is automatic.
SO.....I am going to use my opening new member intro as a sounding board and ask you all (those that have the patience to get this far!!!) to answer the following poll? My feeling is to keep her entirely stock despite these factors...but I am open to suggestions! My preference is a 5 speed and Euro version bumpers.

Hi Gregs3point0,
I also have a ‘74 with big bumpers and automatic. I love it just the way it is. You should sort it out well so you can drive it anywhere at any time, fix any cosmetics that bother you, and see if you love your car just the way it is too. If I ever decide I want a small bumper 5-speed for a more sporting experience I will sell this one intact and buy another that’s already configured that way. Welcome! Post more pictures.

 

[teahead]

It's your car, you should be able to do what you want to do to it.

I recommend you snag the parts you want as they are not getting any more plentiful. And decide later if you want to do the changeover.

Any competent body shop can handle the body work to change to smaller bumpers.

With about a $6k investment, it will literally transform the looks of the E9.

Purists aren't going to buy your car and drive it. You will.

 

[teahead]

Simply no comparison.

E.g.:

Will also add at least $10k to the value of your car. No joke. All the $90k+ '74s that sold had the conversion done.