E3 newbee right here!

[Joe Barthlow]

Been lurking for a few weeks. Yesterday I bought a 1976 3.0Si. An original survivor with 77K on the clock. Previous owners did some work on the motor, suspension, head, fuel injection, brakes, automatic transmission, radiator/fan, windshield and sun roof. Paint was said to be a respray of the original, but it's hard to tell. My maiden voyage was from Portland to Eugene, Oregon, 120 miles. I made it. The interior is OK. It seems to run fine, though the idle is a little high. It will be a rolling project. Came with an Enrico Nerdi steering wheel, couple sets of Euro bumpers and extra fuel injection system.

initial needs:

• I'm looking for 4 of the original 14in wheels that came on the '76 3.0Si. I currently have 16in Aplina replicas. Lower rear springs were installed, but I would like to return it to the original specified height and wheel size.

• my driver's seat has a couple of tears. any online sources out there for repair?

• looking for an original working radio. See many Bavaria radios on ebay, but there seems to be many. not sure which is the right one.

• my AC is shot. from reading, I understand they were not great to begin with. My charger is gone, but the wiring in there. I'm looking for a replacement unit and/or alternative AC solutions.

• what are the preferred shop manuals? Parts manuals? Diagrams... Best place to find them?

• Can anyone here recommend an E3 guru in the Willamette Valley? I have some options, but thought I'd check around.

• oil recommendation?

• If anyone has photos of swapping out bumpers, please share.

Thanks!

 

[HB Chris]

Looks very nice!

The original wheels would be the turbine style with raised ridges on the spokes, not very attractive I'm afraid but should be very cheap, I see them on eBay

The radio would most likely be a Blaupunkt but that doesn't mean it would be the Bavaria model, those were installed in lots of BMWs. See eBay, $400 mono Frankfurt, $600-800 stereo Frankfurt.

A/C, lots of threads here, use a rotary compressor, new parallel flow condenser and replace hoses, any A/C shop can handle this.

Blue factory shop manuals on eBay, be sure it is two volume edition which covers injection, $200.

Castro 20W/50 or equivalent brand of your choice.

Good luck, lots of help available here from our members.

Chris

 

[Mike Goble]

• I'm looking for 4 of the original 14in wheels that came on the '76 3.0Si. I currently have 16in Aplina replicas. Lower rear springs were installed, but I would like to return it to the original specified height and wheel size.

I have a four 1118216 14x6 ET22 rims that came on my Bav.

Here's one on ebay - $165
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-Genuine-O...ash=item211eed59c0:g:QygAAOSwkEVXGSFE&vxp=mtr

 

[HB Chris]

Ridiculous asking price on eBay though.

 

[GolfBavaria]

Looks nice, sounds like you are going in a great direction. Couple quick tips, the radios that say "Bavaria" on them aren't BMW e3 specific radios. Some others will chime in but I have a Euro Blaupunkt Frankfurt that was refurbished. They are kind of hard to find, but out there, not cheap if in great condition and working. Dealers did install different brands. Some other owners will show you theirs. I will try and snap a photo of mine and post. There are lots of posts on the AC, I just inquired myself, check this: http://www.e9coupe.com/forum/threads/e3-m30-upgrade-ac-pump-bracket.24230/#post-180514

 

[Joe Barthlow]

this is my original 14 inch spare

 

[Joe Barthlow]

View attachment 23310 Looks nice, sounds like you are going in a great direction. Couple quick tips, the radios that say "Bavaria" on them aren't BMW e3 specific radios. Some others will chime in but I have a Euro Blaupunkt Frankfurt that was refurbished. They are kind of hard to find, but out there, not cheap if in great condition and working. Dealers did install different brands. Some other owners will show you theirs. I will try and snap a photo of mine and post. There are lots of posts on the AC, I just inquired myself, check this: http://www.e9coupe.com/forum/threads/e3-m30-upgrade-ac-pump-bracket.24230/#post-180514

I've seen that radio out there. Looks like I need to find the faceplate too. thanks

 

[HB Chris]

That's the earlier wheel and much, much nicer but may be hard to find. What is the width? Michelin Defender is a good tire for a 14.

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/showparts?id=3435-USA-05-1973-E9-BMW-30CS&diagId=36_0366

 

[StephenZ]

Yay! Another E3 owner! I'm knee deep in the refurb of my 73 and I'm always looking for motivation... Congrats on the purchase!

 

[johnl]

That's the earlier wheel and much, much nicer but may be hard to find. What is the width? Michelin Defender is a good tire for a 14.

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/showparts?id=3435-USA-05-1973-E9-BMW-30CS&diagId=36_0366

I purchased a set of the Michelin Defenders for our '72 Bavaria with correct period alloys. They were the most expensive of the offerings but still very reasonable. I've put about 5K on them and they are excellent. These are great cars and I keep waiting for more to discover and appreciate them.

 

[autowerks]

Hi Joe, have a running set on my 2800CS but I like to go to 16", send me a pic of your wheels, maybe we trade or? Joe

 

[bavbob]

I love my turbines!
If you drove a clutch in a city for 20 years, you will enjoy the automatic. I did not see the anticipated "go manual, get rid of the automatic" . Drain the tranny, put in type F (Redline Racing ATF), do it a few times with miles in between and the thing will be awesome and reliable.

 

[Joe Barthlow]

I love my turbines!
If you drove a clutch in a city for 20 years, you will enjoy the automatic. I did not see the anticipated "go manual, get rid of the automatic" . Drain the tranny, put in type F (Redline Racing ATF), do it a few times with miles in between and the thing will be awesome and reliable.

Not in a hurry for the 5 speed conversion as this tranny just got a fresh rebuild and works well. But down the road perhaps

 

[Joe Barthlow]

Hi Joe, have a running set on my 2800CS but I like to go to 16", send me a pic of your wheels, maybe we trade or? Joe

Will do

 

[Joe Barthlow]

I purchased a set of the Michelin Defenders for our '72 Bavaria with correct period alloys. They were the most expensive of the offerings but still very reasonable. I've put about 5K on them and they are excellent. These are great cars and I keep waiting for more to discover and appreciate them.

$100/tire isn't bad. I was hoping for some 14 in pirellis but they don't seem to be available stateside. Thanks


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Markos]

Score on the car! I was watching this one on CL. It looks like a really good buy and I lusted after it for weeks. I don't know all that much about E3's but I follow the 'parts market' pretty closely.

Take a look at the face of your Alpina reps. I know from the original ad that they are 20 spoke replicas, which means that they are nicer than some of the cheaper 21 spoke knockoffs out there. Coupe King Replicas (stamped on wheel face) sell for around $1,600 new. As far as the 14x6 factory FPS wheels, I know someone in Seattle with a set from a '76 3.0S. He may be willing to do a trade for your 16's if you are interested. Let me know if you want me to reach out.

Not that they look bad, but the wheels that Mike posted (his and ebay) were never offered on the E3 or E9. They came on e12's, and e23's. They look similar but they are unfortunately not the same. If you examine your factory spare, you will find that the spokes have no ridges on the edge, and there is no raised aluminum ring around the black center.

Also - check the condition of the AC face plate. If you have a single DIN radio installed the face plate is likely hacked to bits. Generally, they have all been hacked up a bit. I have one that has been widened slightly, and so does Harry (Koopman). The E9 ones go for mega bucks but you can generally find a good E3 one for $200 or less.

Here *was a perfect one for $200:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/BMW-Bavaria-E3-A-C-Faceplate-NOS-German-Perfect-/302123326309


Here is my face plate. Needs paint:


Here is the one that Koopman has:

 

[Joe Barthlow]

tires are new Mastercraft MC-440 tire 205/55R16

 

[Markos]

Joe,

I was told that he would definitely be up for a trade. Just waiting to hear back with contact info. Keep you posted!

 

[autowerks]

Thanks, but I have to make sure the wheels are 7.5" in front to fit my e9!

 

[Joe Barthlow]

Can someone point me to a good tutorial on swapping out the bumpers (US for Euro)? I understand there is some body and paint work involved. I'd like to get a better than average idea to direct my b/p guy before tearing my car apart. Thanks