1973 3.0 CS 3.5L 5 SPEED FOR SALE on Bring a Trailer

teahead

teahead

aka "Rob"
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1973 BMW 3.0CS 3.5L 5-Speed

Bid for the chance to own a 1973 BMW 3.0CS 3.5L 5-Speed at auction with Bring a Trailer, the home of the best vintage and classic cars online. Lot #23,684.
bringatrailer.com bringatrailer.com

Looks pretty good!

Any guesses what final bid will be? Looks SUPER NICE!

Thinking RNM at $90k.
 
bringatrailer.com

1973 BMW 3.0CS 3.5L 5-Speed

Bid for the chance to own a 1973 BMW 3.0CS 3.5L 5-Speed at auction with Bring a Trailer, the home of the best vintage and classic cars online. Lot #23,684.
bringatrailer.com bringatrailer.com
 
@Markos are you saying that in 1974, the seat belts moved BACK down below the window opening?

That's how it is on my 1970-built 1971 2800CS.

They moved it up on the roof on 1973 and then backdown in 1974 (Gary Knox's 1974 below)?


1974_bmw_3-0cs_1565296895b53dc77f6d43.0-CS-sale-pix-095.jpg
 
I have questions about this '73. I feel I need to state these are not criticisms or nit picking - genuine "want to learn" questions.
1. I see that the mirror on the driver's door is in the typical NA position. But the mirror on the passenger door is further forward - yet not quite where I'd expect a European mirror. Is this common/correct?
2. The stance seems higher than usual to my eye. Specifically, the rear looks higher than the front. Is it me? Would this be typical for an original car?
 
teahead said:
@Markos are you saying that in 1974, the seat belts moved BACK down below the window opening?

That's how it is on my 1970-built 1971 2800CS.

They moved it up on the roof on 1973 and then backdown in 1974 (Gary Knox's 1974 below)?


1974_bmw_3-0cs_1565296895b53dc77f6d43.0-CS-sale-pix-095.jpg
Click to expand...

The seatbelts i. t
teahead said:
@Markos are you saying that in 1974, the seat belts moved BACK down below the window opening?

That's how it is on my 1970-built 1971 2800CS.

They moved it up on the roof on 1973 and then backdown in 1974 (Gary Knox's 1974 below)?
Click to expand...

I am indeed saying that Charles’s belts are correct for a ‘73 and also correct in ‘74 for Lorelei. I had a longer response on BaT (plus some comments about the “no rust before restoration” claim), but I wasn’t logged in. At some point I would like to stand alone seat and seatbelt thread in the FAQ. I have enough to start, but not to tighten it up.

I can think of about 8 belt configurations off the top of my head.

  • Front Lap Belts, Klipan loop latch on the tunnel
  • Front Lap Belts Fixed, modern buckle (maybe)
  • Front Lap Belts, retractable
  • Fixed Shoulder Belts (as seen in my ‘71 CS)
  • Roof Mounted Shoulder Belts (mount arrived in ‘72, belts visible in ‘73ish)
  • Rear Mounted Retractable Shoulder Belts with factory modified arm rest (1974)
  • UK CSL Retractable Shoulder Belts, reel at base of rear window near motor
 
Last edited:
Markos said:
The seatbelts i. t


I am indeed saying that Charles’s belts are correct for a ‘73 and also correct in ‘74 for Lorelei. I had a longer response on BaT (plus some comments about the “no rust before restoration” claim), but I wasn’t logged in. At some point I would like to stand alone seat and seatbelt thread in the FAQ. I have enough to start, but not to tighten it up.

I can think of about 8 belt configurations off the top of my head.

  • Front Lap Belts, Klipan loop latch on the tunnel
  • Front Lap Belts Fixed, modern buckle (maybe)
  • Front Lap Belts, retractable
  • Fixed Shoulder Belts (as seen in my ‘71 CS)
  • Roof Mounted Shoulder Belts (mount arrived in ‘72, belts visible in ‘73ish)
  • Rear Mounted Retractable Shoulder Belts with factory modified arm rest (1974)
  • UK CSL Retractable Shoulder Belts, reel at base of rear window near motor
Click to expand...
I have a 72 and it has ceiling mounted shoulder straps with the little holsters on the ceiling to stow them
 
autokunst said:
I have questions about this '73. I feel I need to state these are not criticisms or nit picking - genuine "want to learn" questions.
1. I see that the mirror on the driver's door is in the typical NA position. But the mirror on the passenger door is further forward - yet not quite where I'd expect a European mirror. Is this common/correct?
2. The stance seems higher than usual to my eye. Specifically, the rear looks higher than the front. Is it me? Would this be typical for an original car?
Click to expand...

Ride height looks off to me too, even in comparison to a stock US car. As to the rear being higher, the seller commented that SFDon removed the aluminum spacers from the front struts, but he does not comment on whether the US spec rear spring pad was replaced with the lower Euro pad. This would explain why the rear appears higher relative to the front, but does not explain why both sides seem high. In any event, whatever is going on there would be easy to correct.
 
INteresting floor pan plugs. Wonder where those came from?

Might be one of the best 1973s non-CSLs on the planet. My only nits are:

- too much seam sealer in the engine compartment. I don't care if that's stock, it's still ugly and not necessary if you'll never drive it in the rain
- side makers. Uggh.
- ride height. Easily remedied w/CN springs.
- no sunroof (my personal pref.)
 
that is super nice
Anyone know where this was photographed? the interesting building in the background
It looks like the window switch panel / gear shift surround needs to be lowered a bit, you can see wires under it
 
"...3 of the 4 floor panels had only surface corrosion, but the 4th one was corroded around the plug. This could have been repaired, but when Neil McDonnell told me he had sourced 4 new panels for a good price, I decided to get all 4 done. "


Very odd to replace panels that didn't need to be done. I would never do that.

End result is beautiful, but still seems like unnecessary work if the above is indeed true.
 
I count at least three different versions of how much work was done on the floor panels. I honestly don't know that this takes away at all from the car. Rather, it seems that the seller simply doesn't know much about what restoration work was done on the car, nor restoration work in general and what is involved.?. He took it somewhere (reputable), they charged for some "floor panel" work, and the car is done well now. Could be pretty common of checkbook restorers, I'd think.
 
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