BMW 3.0CS E9 from 1975, Belgium

[JensVdb]

Good evening everyone,

My name is Jens, I’m 24 years old and living in Belgium.
I’ve been a BMW enthusiast since I was born.

For the people who don’t believe me:
Me “detailing" the BMW E30 from my dad some years ago. Don’t mind the pink boots ;-)

I fell in love with the BMW E9 coupé series three years ago.
It started when the 2800Cs from Mike Burroughs popped up at the StanceWorks blog.
Before that I didn’t even know the existence of the E9 models.
His E9 is probably one of the most beautiful vintage BMW I’ve ever seen.

Since then I’ve been doubting to buy an E9 as well. Knowing I don’t have any experience in restoring a car...
I've always wanted a classic car in our family...

Few weeks ago an E9 project popped up in the Netherlands for a reasonable price.
I made an appointment and went to take a look at the car.
I knew the car needed a lot of work, but the most important thing for me was the fact that the car was complete and still drivable.
I took the car for a spin and from then of I knew… I needed to buy that car!

Some pictures of the car:
Unfortunately the previous owner thought it was necessary to paint the car with plastidip. To hide all the imperfections I guess...

Original color Granat Rot:

This will be a long-term project with the intention to learn a lot.
Probably I will need all the help I can get!

Hope to make something beautiful out of this project...

 

[rsporsche]

enjoy the journey in bringing this coupe back to life. take pictures along the way and build a thread on the restorations / projects forum ... ask advice ... enjoy the experience

scott

 

[Peter Coomaraswamy]

Yes, welcome!! who knows, maybe the plastic coating saved the body from allot of rust. As you know, rust is the number one enemy but indeed take your time and drive it through all the stages of restoration- it will be fun. Maybe you can dangle the pink booties from the rear-view mirror- we do that with fuzzy dice over here

 

[MyFemurHurts]

Congrats on the purchase!

 

[bwalvoord]

I lived in Belgium for a year as an exchange student. What part of the country are you in?

 

[Bmachine]

Welkom. Bienvenue.

Nederlandstaalige?

Tu parles français?

 

[bwalvoord]

Français , mais sa fait longtemps.

I lived in Quievrain and went to school in Mons. Beautiful country and wonderful people.

 

[Bmachine]

Français , mais sa fait longtemps.

I lived in Quievrain and went to school in Mons. Beautiful country and wonderful people.

The question was directed at new member Jens, but it's good to hear you were over there as well. ;-)

 

[Rek]

A 'stealth' E9.

I wonder whether it was to avoid radar speed gun detection.

 

[JensVdb]

I lived in Belgium for a year as an exchange student. What part of the country are you in?

Hello,

I'm from Zwevegem, this is next to Kortrijk. (West-Flanders)
Where did you studied (Read as: drank beer) in Belgium? ;-)

Grtz, Jens

 

[teahead]

Congrats! What are your plans with her?

 

[bwalvoord]

I lived in Quievrain but went to school in Mons. I'm not sure whether I spent more time in St Luc or La Fregate!

 

[JensVdb]

Congrats! What are your plans with her?

Thanks, I will do a full body restoration. At least I'm going to try.. ;-)
After that I hope to get the car back on the road again.

I don't have any goals in terms of time, I'll just see whats coming at me...
I know it's going to cost me a lot of money but I just wanted a BMW E9 coupe project... My dream is already coming true

At the moment I stripped the interior, now it's time for the engine bay and suspension.

 

[JensVdb]

So far so good..

Busy dismantling the car at the moment.
Still need to dismantle the steering column and some other small parts and then the car is ready for sandblasting.

I will only sandblast the inside and bottom of the car.
I have not decided yet what to do with the outer panels of the car.

Also discovered that the car has ventilated brake discs and the bigger CSI brake calipers. I think the springs that were on the car are lowering springs.

Some Pictures:

 

[Strato102]

I don't know about this. First I noticed a smudge of dirt on the hauler on which it came home. You have cardboard under where there isn't an engine. Now, I noticed only three screwdrivers where there is a place for a fourth on your shop wall. Are you sure that this is going to be an orderly project?

 

[JensVdb]

I don't know about this. First I noticed a smudge of dirt on the hauler on which it came home. You have cardboard under where there isn't an engine. Now, I noticed only three screwdrivers where there is a place for a fourth on your shop wall. Are you sure that this is going to be an orderly project?

I see you have quite an eye for detail!
Too bad you didn't notice the Belgian beer and French croissants at the fridge.

 

[vladkuk]

Hey Jens,

the car doesnt look that rusty and you are doing the whole big thing, my head hurts to think about the costs for that.

good luck,
Vladas

 

[nosmonkey]

Looks like the start of a great project, look forward to seeing this finished!

 

[teahead]

You've taken it down that far, I would dip it in a acid/caustic bath and galvanize. Don't know if they do that around where you are. In Vancouver, B.C. I've had that done to my other car.

 

[Markos]

Did you galvanize or expat? If so where? I would like to do this to my car. hot Galvanization is about 500 degrees and can warp the body. I'm curious to know more about your experience, especially if performed in Seattle.