CSL Myth busters

Gerrit

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I keep hearing about the carbureted CSL being some kind of Ultralight variation of the CSL.

It is my experience that the carbureted and the injected CSL (both without options or city pack) are within a few pounds of one another, probably about 20 pounds max. for the same level of equipment. A carbureted CSL could certainly be heavier as an basic injected model if one ordered it the power steering or air conditioning.

Another aspect is the weight/power ratio: The basic injected CSL has 20 horsepower more than the carbureted CSL which is about 11% more. This equates prorated to weight to a ca.280 pounds advantage over the carb CSL!
 

E911

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A "lightweight" injected CSL would be only slightly heavier due to the injection system versus carbs... in actuality (no on knows) there are very few of those as delivered from the factory. The thing about a carb'd CSL is that you know exactly how it was designed and delivered... no stories about this and that and such.
 

Markos

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I generally try to speak little about CSL’s since I am so incredibly far from becoming an expert on them. I don’t ever plan to learn the history of VIN x or y. We have a few participating experts in that arena including @Gerrit and the usual CSL expert contributors.

My take on the carb cars is much like what @E911 posted. Carb cars are just “given” lightweights. I have been doing quite a bit of CSL technical research lately, primarily around the CSL specific components. Bothering @Gerrit, @Yannick, with my ramblings and half-baked inquiries.

Regarding the injected lightweights, @Teej has an injected Taiga lightweight and it is every bit a lightweight including the missing dome light, plexi windows, etc. It does have a seemingly original front spoiler, and bumper cutouts. I’m not trying to put any cars on the spot but I could geek out on this stuff all day.
 

Gerrit

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I think we all agree that wether an injected CSL is considered lightweight or not so light has mainly to do with the city pack option. About 40 % of the LHD injected cars were produced without the city pack which is still a large number.
 

Markos

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I think we all agree that wether an injected CSL is considered lightweight or not so light has mainly to do with the city pack option. About 40 % of the LHD injected cars were produced without the city pack which is still a large number.

Did all non-city-pack CSL’s come with plexi windows? Not considering special orders, etc.
 

HB Chris

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Another question, did the first 169 have the standard seat release lever in the floor even though there is no standard seat rail? And another question, I trust Gerrit who says these 169 did not have the molded covers on the side of the Scheel seats but several members here have them, perhaps they were added later? I don’t want to mess up the CSL that I am doing some cosmetic work on.

Chris
 

Gerrit

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The CSL equipment can be series specific or evolutionary (as a new part or system became available or until a stock of parts at Karmann was exhausted). Most are noted in the ETK (like the listing of city pack cars), some not, maybe because it was considered unimportant at the time. The answer to those remain unfortunately speculative until someone comes up with a period document that confirms the observations. It would be nice if someone at BMW could sort this all out.
 

E911

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I suppose what makes collecting is the fussing over the details and the perception of rarity (real or perceived)... that's why we want to separate out a rare car into even smaller subcategories until we get down to the # of colors or features (or lack of features in this case).

Chris- my carb'd car (78th?) has no evidence of floor levers but does have fixed Scheel buckets (no headrests), Scheel mounting brackets, sliders and the side covers. I have no reason to believe anyone "updated" it since everything else is present.
 
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HB Chris

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Thank you Richard, I have determined the seat slider levers were added at one point as it most likely had comfort seats with a small slit in the carpet.
 

craterface

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I wish BMW would tell me how my car was built! It seems to have hood pins from the factory and no power steering from the factory. But it has other city pack features like glass rear windows (but fixed) and steel doors (although the doors on the car now are probably not the original doors since they are a different color on the inside.
 
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