I've been on the board for nearly four years with only a handful of posts and am now prompted by my nearby fellow e3'er, Luis, to introduce my '73 Verona e3 as well as myself. My interest in BMW (oh yes, Porsche too) began in the mid 60's when serving as an MP in Germany. About a year after my return to the states I bought a three year old '67 1600 which sparked a now 45 year long odyssey of the cars from Munich - about 25 in total. I owned both a 2500 and a '72 Bavaria back in the day when they were daily kid haulers, grocery getters, occasional autocrossers, etc., but midwestern winters took their toll so by the time the e12 appeared they had become just a historical, but fond, footnote in my BMW lineage.
In 2006, however, I stumbled upon an ad for a very original 73K mile Verona '73 Bavaria which had but one owner for its first 32 years. Purchased new at Fox Valley Imports, a tiny and short lived BMW dealership in Neenah, Wisconsin by a firefighter (red, of course) from Manitowoc, Wi., the car had been carefully maintained and driven summers only. At about the time of the owner's retirement he decided to part with the car in order to tackle an Austin Healy project so he parked it at Road America during a vintage race with a 3x5 card For Sale sign and 48 hours later it was on a road trip to Florida with a vintage Porsche racer who, though he had nothing but flat six air cooled cars in his possession, was smitten by the condition of the e3. Though he drove it less that an thousand miles after getting it home, he did make a couple of nice improvement; radiator rebuild, water pump, fan clutch and a 265 5-speed. Within 18 months, however, the space occupied by the Bavaria was needed for additional long hood Porsches and his subsequent ad is what caught my eye. A couple of phone calls later, followed by an airline reservation to Tampa and I was on my way.
These are photos taken by the Florida seller:
Note: It still has its Wisconsin plate on the front.
As is evidenced in the first and last images, the Bavaria is surrounded by a sea of P-cars and soon to be displaced by more; a fact which pleases me.
Within eighteen months of the car's arrival back in Wisconsin a fairly significant, though not cosmetic, transformation will begin, so there's more to come...
Thanks,
Jim
In 2006, however, I stumbled upon an ad for a very original 73K mile Verona '73 Bavaria which had but one owner for its first 32 years. Purchased new at Fox Valley Imports, a tiny and short lived BMW dealership in Neenah, Wisconsin by a firefighter (red, of course) from Manitowoc, Wi., the car had been carefully maintained and driven summers only. At about the time of the owner's retirement he decided to part with the car in order to tackle an Austin Healy project so he parked it at Road America during a vintage race with a 3x5 card For Sale sign and 48 hours later it was on a road trip to Florida with a vintage Porsche racer who, though he had nothing but flat six air cooled cars in his possession, was smitten by the condition of the e3. Though he drove it less that an thousand miles after getting it home, he did make a couple of nice improvement; radiator rebuild, water pump, fan clutch and a 265 5-speed. Within 18 months, however, the space occupied by the Bavaria was needed for additional long hood Porsches and his subsequent ad is what caught my eye. A couple of phone calls later, followed by an airline reservation to Tampa and I was on my way.
These are photos taken by the Florida seller:
Note: It still has its Wisconsin plate on the front.
As is evidenced in the first and last images, the Bavaria is surrounded by a sea of P-cars and soon to be displaced by more; a fact which pleases me.
Within eighteen months of the car's arrival back in Wisconsin a fairly significant, though not cosmetic, transformation will begin, so there's more to come...
Thanks,
Jim
