72' 3.0cs original side & hood vent finishes...

studio128

studio128

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just bought a very clean, mostly orig. 72' 3.0cs that has a few odd bits, like black plastic side mirrors, side & hood vents...bought a pair of repro chrome side mirrors, but were the side & hood vents chromed (plastic?)or black like the ones on mine? were any of the chrome ones done in metal, and are reproductions available? thanks...
 
Why repro mirror?

The grills are made out of plastic and came in chrome or black versions.
New ones are available. Tell us the car color and our fashionistas will inform you
if you need black or chrome. Do post pictures in any case.

One maker of CNC aluminum grills if you want (David).
 
i recently learned that side and hood grilles, when bright silver colour option, where originally bright satin anodized aluminium

actual bmw new reproduction parts are silver painted plastic, but original ones were anodized aluminium as i said, it was not chromed but anodized aluminium

i found a source for NOS parts, really amazing parts, a w e s o m e !
 
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deQ,

Where did you hear this? I have never seen an aluminum hood/side grille. All Polaris coupes may have been a bright finish but I am not positive.
 
+1 my side grilles were original and they were plastic, as are their replacements. Inquiring minds want to know...

HB Chris said:
deQ,

Where did you hear this? I have never seen an aluminum hood/side grille. All Polaris coupes may have been a bright finish but I am not positive.
Click to expand...
 
HB Chris said:
deQ,

Where did you hear this? I have never seen an aluminum hood/side grille. All Polaris coupes may have been a bright finish but I am not positive.
Click to expand...

wow ! I have not spoken to Fritz in Mobile tradition to check this :wink:, but i bought the parts, a nice old patina, and real aluminium, was it an EURO version ? dontknow !
 
two-tone finish

I believe the original plastic "chrome" versions had two different finishes on them. The outer thin edges were a typical glossy chrome, and the wider flat surfaces had a satin finish. This is the way the original pieces on my car appear. Anybody else have grilles like these? The new chrome units available from BMW, that I have seen, have the polished chrome look all over.
 
Sven said:
I believe the original plastic "chrome" versions had two different finishes on them. The outer thin edges were a typical glossy chrome, and the wider flat surfaces had a satin finish. This is the way the original pieces on my car appear. Anybody else have grilles like these? The new chrome units available from BMW, that I have seen, have the polished chrome look all over.
Click to expand...

correct
 
I have always believed that all the bright work hood and side grills were chromed plated plastic. Don't know about the newer repro grills, but they may very well be silver painted plastic. Now, it could be the very first 2800CS coupes were fitted with polished aluminum grills and was later eliminated to save costs. Aluminum does not chrome plate very well, so it's highly unlikely that there were any chromed aluminum grills. Chromed pot metal maybe???
 
bert35csi said:
I have always believed that all the bright work hood and side grills were chromed plated plastic. Don't know about the newer repro grills, but they may very well be silver painted plastic. Now, it could be the very first 2800CS coupes were fitted with polished aluminum grills and was later eliminated to save costs. Aluminum does not chrome plate very well, so it's highly unlikely that there were any chromed aluminum grills. Chromed pot metal maybe???
Click to expand...

hi bert, could be, i do not have a degree in "the history of the e9 coupes 1964-1976" to be able to tell precisely :lol:;)

it seemed to me that the strenght, weight, and so on was not at all that of my repros bought three years ago to wallothnesch, but it could perfectly happen that original and repros are both plastic, buy completely different type, density and so on, i have not drilled them, and IMHO they are a sort of metal, alu, zamak,..?

as to the chrome, i said so, not chromed but anodized aluminium,

for those, like me, not familiar with this process, there is not only matt finish in anodized aluminium, but glossy silver too, even coloured finishes like bronze or black, are available on demand
 
deQuincey said:
wow ! I have not spoken to Fritz in Mobile tradition to check this :wink:, but i bought the parts, a nice old patina, and real aluminium, was it an EURO version ? dontknow !
Click to expand...


Time to call Interpol. We just exposed a ring distributing fake NOS OEM parts!
Fritz and dQ please describe your food preferences so we can bring you some while you are in jail.
 
Folks,
the hood grills were the same for E3 and E9 cars and were made of aluminium at least until August 1971, possibly 1973. After that date the hood and side grills were made of black plastic. My '69 2800 is all original and still have the aluminium grills.

The question if the car should have grey or black trim parts is not linked to the colour but to the production date (before or after August 1973)
 
HB Chris said:
deQ,

Where did you hear this? I have never seen an aluminum hood/side grille. All Polaris coupes may have been a bright finish but I am not positive.
Click to expand...

Check the R&T articles from '69 and '73 - they both show E9 coupes with bright hood and side grills - since that was the way the came until August '73. No E9, not even the CSL-cars had black hood and side trim parts before that.

Cheers
Anders
 
OK, the APB from interpol has been recalled after DerSchwede vouched for deQuincey in that aluminum was used deFacto.

All agents can return to their regular donut hangouts.
 
I asked two people I consider experts beyond compare.

From Carl Nelson:

They were only plastic, either matt black, or chrome plated *** except for very early cars they were silver satin finish on plastic. E3 and E9 do not interchange. I do have a new in the bag satin, but only one. The part numbers for satin and chrome are the same on the bags.

From Peter Sliskovich:

Grilles were never made of aluminum but chromed plastic for the early cars and switched to black plastic for cost measures on the '73 model year. Owners--maybe even dealers--would replace the black ones with chrome and vice versa depending on personal taste and color of the coupe, as a means of personalizing the car. I don't believe the factory changed the grilles on the basis of car color--i.e. putting chrome grilles on a black or dark car and black grilles on a white or light colored car. Seems too time intensive a thing to do on an assembly line built car.
 
i have a pair of satin side grilles - (next time out in HB, i'd like to see the one you have Chris). haven't put them on my coupe because i haven't found a pair of matching hood grilles. they are definitely painted plastic - not aluminum.
 
excellent ! lovely discussion here, very interesting investigation, attention to detail, and search for the real history of what it was, up to some extent, a more handcrafted than industrial production

Fritz is already in jail with little access to ouside communication, so worthless to pursue this, in other case, useful witness

i got the point of what DerSchwede says, he has a reputation on history and facts of these old beauties, so probably he is right, the other gentlemen are probably right too, do not forget that there might be differences when pondcrossing...

as the wise Mr. Arde told me once: "what do you want, to get the parts or to win the discussion ?", i am definitively having the parts in my car installed, and they look awesome ! :smile:

BTW, anyone is in the need of a three year old set of chromed plastic grilles ? they are in excellent condition...

As to the food preferences, weisswurst, schweine axe mit sauerkraut und kartoffen puree und heffeweiss bier für mich, danke !:wink:
 
There has been a sighting of Fritz in the company of one Edward Snowden.
He was testing fitment of aluminum trim on an old Lada.
 
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