1973 CSi with "M" engine at auction with RM/Sotheby's

Drew Gregg

Well-Known Member
Site Donor
Messages
1,565
Reaction score
1,201
Location
Ft. Lauderdale
Baikal/tan original automatic with a VIN just 11 less than my '73
Were automatic CSi's made?
The instrument panel has the gages like the Paul Cain car.
Note the dash does not have the '73 "fasten seat belts" sign, but the '73 side markers are still on the car.


The BMWCCA grill badge says the owner/PO belonged to the club some time ago. Is the owner a member of the forum?
 

adawil2002

Well-Known Member
Site Donor $$
Messages
5,183
Reaction score
3,045
Location
Brunswick, Maine
As far as I know BMW didn't make an Automatic CSi. CSis were for the European market & weren't sold in the US. All real CSis are imported from Europe.

Nice BMW CCA "No space" enamel grill badge, that's from the early 1980, BMW NA made the CCA the space in early late 1985 to early 1986.
 

HB Chris

Well-Known Member
Site Donor $$
Messages
19,418
Reaction score
8,757
Location
Huntington Beach, CA
This isn’t a CSi, a badge doesn’t make it a CSi, it’s a US 3.0CS automatic. We have at least two members with RHD CSis who have automatics they believe were installed at the factory though. There was no official CSi automatic VINs so who knows if BMW made any.
 

byron77

Member
Messages
25
Reaction score
24
Location
Tiburon, California
Saw this car a few days ago. As tferrer says, it's in a serious car collection, in fact I'd go further and say amazing collection. Given the financial means of the owner it's unlikely to have wanted for anything during his ownership.

I didn't want to drive it in SF traffic but it started easily from cold, idle was super smooth and it sounded great. Paint is lovely, interior is gorgeously done too. S38 work said to have been done in the Bay Area, though disappointingly no info on who did it or any of the other major work. Has a navigation system hidden behind the central dash speaker, sounds corny but well done though now dated; the speaker cover is actually magnetized and so easily removed to reveal the nav screen behind. Other nice details include the original M5 tach, temp and pressure gauges. The car was brought into the US from Canada around 2003-4 before the restoration/modification work; I didn't ferret around too much for rust but certainly nothing obvious.

The auction description now recognises the fact it's a US 3.0 cs not csi and also there's no reserve. Some great photos here, though they must have been taken a while ago, suspension & camber seem less aggressive as the car sits now:
 

Markos

Well-Known Member
Site Donor
Messages
13,369
Reaction score
7,502
Location
Seattle, WA
FYI - A trustworthy and very knowledgeable friend of mine examined this car in person. It’s a restomod so originality concerns can be left on the table.

I was told that the trunk had a flat piece of steel as a floor in in lieu of the tire well. There is visible pitting on the interior bright work. Some concerns around the sound deadening in the bay.

I can provide pics but my intention isn’t to drag the car through the mud. His thoughts were that it didn’t strike him as a $200K car. Not sure what the auction will bring.

Auction is this Friday IIRC. Hopefully the bidder may can examine in person and make their own judgment call.
 

Bmachine

Well-Known Member
Site Donor $
Site Donor $$
Messages
3,525
Reaction score
1,779
Location
Northern California coast
Ready to hit the stage in 15 or so minutes
 

Attachments

  • EB6A350D-7432-4C5F-B238-B4E2D6045F34.jpeg
    EB6A350D-7432-4C5F-B238-B4E2D6045F34.jpeg
    533.3 KB · Views: 132
  • 62CFC6A5-1ED7-4326-8280-3AFA296B5338.jpeg
    62CFC6A5-1ED7-4326-8280-3AFA296B5338.jpeg
    497.3 KB · Views: 141

Bmachine

Well-Known Member
Site Donor $
Site Donor $$
Messages
3,525
Reaction score
1,779
Location
Northern California coast
Sold indeed!
 

Attachments

  • 52D39189-52B5-48C2-82F7-F39E0C733BB0.jpeg
    52D39189-52B5-48C2-82F7-F39E0C733BB0.jpeg
    311.5 KB · Views: 126
  • B389BF34-1B18-4FEB-B338-24F80981B20C.jpeg
    B389BF34-1B18-4FEB-B338-24F80981B20C.jpeg
    347.5 KB · Views: 131
  • B15CCFC2-2E1C-4AC2-A312-3808E1812779.jpeg
    B15CCFC2-2E1C-4AC2-A312-3808E1812779.jpeg
    308.4 KB · Views: 127
  • 27403394-8527-420D-9B62-0410EF726B9E.jpeg
    27403394-8527-420D-9B62-0410EF726B9E.jpeg
    383.8 KB · Views: 126

Drew Gregg

Well-Known Member
Site Donor
Messages
1,565
Reaction score
1,201
Location
Ft. Lauderdale
I went on the web-site ,logged in, and could not find the results for Thursday or Friday's cars. Was $180K the hammer price? What are the buyer fees?
 

Markos

Well-Known Member
Site Donor
Messages
13,369
Reaction score
7,502
Location
Seattle, WA
If the engine is from a Euro M5, it should be an M88 not S38?

The M88 ended in 1989. This car has an S38B38, which came out in 91. Both late euro and US cars used the S38 motors. A 3.8 M30 is a serious motor.
This car must scream!
 
Top