The one near the starter is very hard to get to...especially if there is any grease or dirt in the area. And if the motor has been changed in the last 50 years, the number there will be worthless.
New member with "strange" CA VIN#
- Thread starter rastablood
- Start date
What does the title say (vehicle description and VIN)?
rastablood
Member
rastablood
Member
Posted the firewall photo. I looked a little and could see no signs of tampering.
I will but car pics in the restoration section...
Thanks again
Adam
Hi Adam,
IMO it ultimately doesn’t really matter what is going on with the VIN. You have the car. It is registered as a CS. It isn’t restored, it’s rusty. Nobody is trying to trick anyone, unless you paid a small fortune for
the car. Just be careful investing a ton of money into it, because you can’t escape your VIN conundrum.
The VIN is tied to a sedan, and this information is an obtainable fact (see below!
All e9 vins are documented and they started with a 2 or a 4. Likewise, a huge chunk of e3 ‘s started with a 3
e3 VIN list (edit updated url):
BMW E3 Club | E3 Fahrgestellnummern
Liste der Fahrgestellnummern sortiert nach Modellen
bmw-e3-club.de
Here is 3105537:
1973 BMW Bavaria 3.0 S
View the 1973 BMW Bavaria 3.0 S at Gooding & Company's Amelia Island 2019. Contact us for more information.
www.goodingco.com
I would take a closer look at your VIN plate. It should be clean metal. The area doesn’t rust out. There shouldn’t be filler, weld spatter, or cooled weld puddles. You may see paint drips, or a visible rectangle around the digits.
When I look at this VIN, obviously biased by the info above.. I wonder if that is weld pooling above the 3 and spatter below the 3 and less so across most of the digits (see the base of the 0 and 5). I also see an artifact between the + and the 3 that may have seen an angle grinder.
Like I said I’m biased, because the VIN range doesn’t match the chassis.
Email your VIN to:
[email protected]
Inform them that you own this “car”, and would like the build info.
Also, move forward on locating the block VIN. Send that to BMW as well. It very well could be tied to the actual chassis. If you post real pictures of the exterior and interior, we can probably date the car.
Snap a pic of the Karmann plate in the driver’s door jamb.
Helpful vehicle dating:
Nose vents
Washer nozzles
speedometer
seatbelt config
door panels
seats
front bumper
Last edited:
Great adviceHi Adam,
IMO it ultimately doesn’t really matter what is going on with the VIN. You have the car. It is registered as a CS. It isn’t restored, it’s rusty. Nobody is trying to trick anyone, unless you paid a small fortune foe
the car. Just be careful investing a ton of money into it, because you can’t escape your VIN conundrum.
The VIN is tied to a sedan, and this information is an obtainable fact (see below!
All e9 vins are documented and they started with a 2 or a 4. Likewise, a huge chunk of e3 ‘s started with a 3
e3 VIN list:
BMW E3 Limousinen Club e.V. - BMW E3 - Technik - Fahrgestellnummern
BMW E3. Diese offizielle Internetseite des BMW E3 Club e.V. informiert über die Aktivitäten des Vereins, die Geschichte des Fahrzeugs, aktuelle Termine, Kaufberatung und Technik des Limousinenklassikers.web.archive.org
Here is 3105537:
1973 BMW Bavaria 3.0 S
View the 1973 BMW Bavaria 3.0 S at Gooding & Company's Amelia Island 2019. Contact us for more information.
I would take a closer look at your VIN plate. It should be clean metal. The area doesn’t rust out. There shouldn’t be filler, weld spatter, or cooled weld puddles. You may see paint drips, or a visible rectangle around the digits.
When I look at this VIN, obviously biased by the info above.. I wonder if that is weld pooling above the 3 and spatter below the 3 and less so across most of the digits (see the base of the 0 and 5). I also see an artifact between the + and the 3 that may have seen an angle grinder.
Like I said I’m biased, because the VIN range doesn’t match the chassis.
View attachment 151971
Email your VIN to:
[email protected]
Inform them that you own this “car”, and would like the build info.
Also, move forward on locating the block VIN. Send that to BMW as well. It very well could be tied to the actual chassis. If you post real pictures of the exterior and interior, we can probably date the car.
Snap a pic of the Karmann plate in the driver’s door jamb.
Helpful vehicle dating:
Nose vents
Washer nozzles
speedometer
seatbelt config
door panels
seats
front bumper
What kind of story does the registration tell? If the friend had it for 8 years I assume it was insured and serviced by shops that write the VIN on every invoice. It must also have the DMV license plates associated with some VIN and that can be checked online.
Are all the numbers in firewall VIN etched/stamped in or are some raised up?
Good question. Mine are stamped, as are the ones Don posted. The numbers on this car's firewall appear to be raised.
One would need to investigate that firewall stamped area more closely (in person), but it sure does appear to be tampered with. I think the theory that some PO (before the current poster's friend) had falsely transferred the VIN identification components from an E3 to an E9. Why? Maybe the E9 had a salvage title. Maybe the E9 was stolen so the VIN was removed to conceal it's original identity. All just speculation, but a coupe with a sedan VIN is not something that would have come from the factory.
They look stamped to me, and looks like a factory e3 stamping. The area around the stamp is suspect. The only way that VIN got on an e9 is if it was added by an owner.
Reminder that the rivets on the fender plate aren’t original also.
rastablood
Member
Yes I will carefully clean up the area and take some more photos. Wonder if the firewall top piece could have been swapped..
Anyway the car is in bad shape and I will likely not do a "full" restore. Here are some photos that may help identify the actual year and model that it is.
Note inside has been redone with new floor plates and recaros with back seats from an e24. original color was clearly the green.
Anyway the car is in bad shape and I will likely not do a "full" restore. Here are some photos that may help identify the actual year and model that it is.
Note inside has been redone with new floor plates and recaros with back seats from an e24. original color was clearly the green.
I wouldn't spend a dime on that car w/a sketchy VIN.
Best to part it out.
Best to part it out.
Car is quite rusted which will take a lot of time and effort to get anywhere near to correct so the VIN issues really present a value problem...
rastablood
Member
Actually most of the rust is confined to the areas shown. It is deep but crawling under the car shows very solid undercarriage and when driven it handles quite stiffly.
For example the shock towers front and rear are fine, diff mount looks ok as do the subframe mounts. I will get it on the lift and have a real look tomorrow.
Not interested in making it perfect just good enough to paint it and have the paint last 5 years or so.
For example the shock towers front and rear are fine, diff mount looks ok as do the subframe mounts. I will get it on the lift and have a real look tomorrow.
Not interested in making it perfect just good enough to paint it and have the paint last 5 years or so.
You've got to cut both front fenders off to get to the rust that's likely destroyed the a-pillars. It's not a small undertaking. Not impossible by any means it's just what do you want to do with it. If you plan on selling it down the road the VIN presents some relatively serious issues. Again, it's all down to what you want to do with it. My 2 cents!
Car appears to have 73 US bumpers.
In addition to the concern about the A-pillars, the trim over the rockers/door sills does not look good. Usually with extensive visible rust, the stuff you can't see is worse. I would pull off that trim and evaluate the work needed. Pulling off the fenders and repairing the rockers is pretty expensve, but imperative to make the car sound.
In addition to the concern about the A-pillars, the trim over the rockers/door sills does not look good. Usually with extensive visible rust, the stuff you can't see is worse. I would pull off that trim and evaluate the work needed. Pulling off the fenders and repairing the rockers is pretty expensve, but imperative to make the car sound.
It is an early US 73 as it has the 73 bumpers and early window motors so built before Feb/March of 73. I personally think it is too far gone but our friends in Europe would probably give it a go.
The car I am seeing in the photos above, in fact, appears to have serious rust issues. I would surmise from the photographs that the sills are quite rotten. This is the longitudinal structure of the car. I am usually very generous with my "save them all" attitude, but this car seems to be structurally challenged. I suspect the corrosion is worse than you think - but I hope I am wrong.